Showing papers in "International Journal of Science Education in 2009"
TL;DR: The ability to visualize in three dimensions is a cognitive skill that has been shown to be important for success in engineering and other technological fields as discussed by the authors, however, a great deal of the previous work has been aimed at merely identifying differences.
Abstract: The ability to visualize in three dimensions is a cognitive skill that has been shown to be important for success in engineering and other technological fields. For engineering, the ability to mentally rotate 3‐D objects is especially important. Unfortunately, of all the cognitive skills, 3‐D rotation abilities exhibit robust gender differences, favoring males. The assessment of 3‐D spatial skills and associated gender differences has been a topic of educational research for nearly a century; however, a great deal of the previous work has been aimed at merely identifying differences. The author has been conducting applied research in the area of spatial skills development for more than a decade aimed at identifying practical methods for improving 3‐D spatial skills, especially for women engineering students. This paper details the significant findings obtained over the past several years through this research and identifies strategies that appear to be effective in developing 3‐D spatial skills and in con...
476 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe four essential features of constructivism: eliciting prior knowledge, creating cognitive dissonance, application of new knowledge with feedback, and reflection on learning, and then use the criteria they developed to evaluate five representative published articles that claim to describe and test constructivist teaching methods.
Abstract: Constructivism is an important theory of learning that is used to guide the development of new teaching methods, particularly in science education. However, because it is a theory of learning and not of teaching, constructivism is often either misused or misunderstood. Here we describe the four essential features of constructivism: eliciting prior knowledge, creating cognitive dissonance, application of new knowledge with feedback, and reflection on learning. We then use the criteria we developed to evaluate five representative published articles that claim to describe and test constructivist teaching methods. Of these five articles, we demonstrate that three do not adhere to the constructivist criteria, whereas two provide strong examples of how constructivism can be employed as a teaching method. We suggest that application of the four essential criteria will be a useful tool for all professional educators who plan to implement or evaluate constructivist teaching methods.
220 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explore the potential of narrative in science education and explore the question: What is narrative and why might it be of value to science education? In answering this question, they propose a view of narrative and its necessary components, which permits narrative a role in Science education, and is, in fact, the main contribution of this paper.
Abstract: The present theoretical paper presents a case for the use of narrative (i.e., fictional written text) in science education as a way of making science meaningful, relevant, and accessible to the public. Grounded in literature pointing to the value of narrative in supporting learning and the need to explore new modes of communicating science, this paper explores the potential of narrative in science education. More specifically, in this paper we explore the question: What is narrative and why might it be of value to science education? In answering this question we propose a view of narrative and its necessary components, which permits narrative a role in science education, and is, in fact, the main contribution of this paper. Also, a range of examples of narrative text are offered in the paper to make the case for a representation of fictional narrative in science. In order to address questions connected with the use of narrative in science education, a research agenda based on perspectives of narrative imp...
214 citations
TL;DR: This paper described a four-year project involving the development of a new instrument, the Attitudes to School Science and Science instrument, and its use to collect baseline attitudinal data for measuring attitudes to school science and science.
Abstract: The present paper describes a four‐year project involving the development of a new instrument, the Attitudes to School Science and Science instrument, and its use to collect baseline attitudinal da...
203 citations
TL;DR: This article identified basic implicit assumptions that seem to constrain students' ideas and reasoning on the particulate nature of matter at various learning stages and suggested common paths in the transition from naive through novice to expert along relevant dimensions related to the structure and properties of chemical substances.
Abstract: Based on the analysis of available research on students’ alternative conceptions about the particulate nature of matter, we identified basic implicit assumptions that seem to constrain students’ ideas and reasoning on this topic at various learning stages. Although many of these assumptions are interrelated, some of them seem to change or lose/gain strength independently from one another. Overlapping or competing presuppositions about the structure, properties, and dynamics of matter may be able to coexist at any given level, particularly at intermediate stages of expertise. Our results allowed us to suggest common paths in the transition from naive through novice to expert along relevant dimensions related to the structure and properties of chemical substances. The identification of these cognitive constraints provides a useful framework that educators can use to better understand and even predict many of their students’ learning difficulties. It can also assist in the design and organisation of learning experiences and assessment tools that recognise and take advantage of the most likely trajectories towards expertise (learning progressions) followed by many students.
180 citations
TL;DR: The authors explored how drawing and visualisation can assist young children in their shift from everyday, or spontaneous concepts, to more abstract, symbolical thinking, and demonstrated how drawing, and the related visualisation that results from drawing, helped children to construct meaning for themselves as well as share their ideas with others and across contexts.
Abstract: It is in the visualisation of ideas, and the expression or representation of our ideas, that we can bring something more clearly into consciousness. A drawing might be seen as an externalisation of a concept or idea. Drawing has the potential to play a mediating role in the visualisation of ideas and concepts in relation to young children exploring scientific concepts. This paper explores how drawing and visualisation bridges the gap between perception‐bound thinking and more abstract, symbolical thinking. It demonstrates how drawing, and the related visualisation that results from drawing, helped children to construct meaning for themselves as well as share their ideas with others and across contexts. A socio‐cultural framework is used to examine the dialogic engagement with drawing in relation to young children’s exploration of scientific ideas. Drawing and visualisation can assist young children in their shift from everyday, or spontaneous concepts, to more scientific concepts. Drawing also assists you...
171 citations
TL;DR: This article explored Australian high-school students' argumentation and informal reasoning about biotechnology using semi-structured interviews with 10 Year-8 students, 12 Year-13, 14 Year-10, and 6 Year-12 students from six metropolitan high schools in Perth, Western Australia.
Abstract: The aim of this research was to explore Australian high‐school students’ argumentation and informal reasoning about biotechnology. Data were obtained from semi‐structured interviews with 10 Year‐8 students (12–13 years old), 14 Year‐10 students (14–15 years old) and 6 Year‐12 students (16–17 years old) from six metropolitan high schools in Perth, Western Australia. The transcripts were analysed using both Toulmin’s argumentation pattern and informal reasoning patterns (rational, emotive, and intuitive) as frameworks. The notion of scientific literacy was used as the basis of the theoretical framework to examine the data. Most students used no data or only simple data to justify their claims. Students of all year groups used intuitive and emotive informal reasoning more frequently than rational. Rational informal reasoning was associated with more sophisticated arguments.
160 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined the effects of a socioscientific issues-driven curriculum on the development of students' moral sensitivity and found that moral sensitivity can be promoted through science learning experiences embedded in SSI.
Abstract: This study is a part of a larger study that examined using socioscientific issues (SSI) as a form of effective science teaching. The purpose was to investigate how teaching a year‐long curriculum using SSI affects science learning outcomes. In this report, we examine the effects of a SSI‐driven curriculum on the development of students’ moral sensitivity. Our results indicate that development of moral sensitivity can be promoted through science learning experiences embedded in SSI. Results also suggest that moral sensitivity is contextually dependent. Implications for teaching are discussed.
157 citations
TL;DR: This article examined whether practical work can be said to have affective outcomes, and if so in what sense, and found that whilst practical work generates short-term engagement, it is relatively ineffective in generating motivation to study science post compulsion or longer-term personal interest in the subject, although it is often claimed to do so.
Abstract: The present paper reports on a study that examined whether practical work can be said to have affective outcomes, and if so in what sense. The term ‘affective’ is used here to refer to the emotions, or feelings, engendered amongst pupils towards school science in general, or one of the sciences in particular. The study is based on 25 multi‐site case studies that employed a condensed fieldwork strategy. Data were collected, using tape‐recorded interviews and observational field notes, in a sample of practical lessons undertaken in English comprehensive (non‐selective) schools during Key Stages 3 and 4 (ages 11–14 years and 15–16 years, respectively). The findings suggest that whilst practical work generates short‐term engagement, it is relatively ineffective in generating motivation to study science post compulsion or longer‐term personal interest in the subject, although it is often claimed to do so. This suggests that those involved with science education need to develop a more realistic understanding of...
155 citations
TL;DR: This paper examined teacher philosophy and pedagogical practices within the context of an analysis of children's concept formation within playful early childhood settings and found that teacher philosophy about how young children learn is a significant contributing factor to learning in science.
Abstract: Little change has been noted over 10 years of research into teacher knowledge and confidence to teach science in the early and primary years of schooling. There is a significant body of research demonstrating that early childhood and primary teachers lack confidence and competence in teaching science. However, much of this research blames the victim, and offers little analysis for the systemic reasons for teachers’ confidence and competence in science education other than a lack of science knowledge. This paper reports on a study that examined teacher philosophy and pedagogical practices within the context of an analysis of children’s concept formation within playful early childhood settings. Through teacher interviews, video recordings of science play, and photographic documentation of children’s science activities in one rural preschool, it was noted that teacher philosophy about how young children learn is a significant contributing factor to learning in science. It is argued that teacher philosophy ma...
145 citations
TL;DR: This article assessed the influence of training in and use of metacognitive strategies on the development of prospective elementary teachers' views of nature of science (NOS) and found that significantly more students in the intervention group explica...
Abstract: This study assessed the influence of training in, and use of, metacognitive strategies on the development of prospective elementary teachers’ views of nature of science (NOS). Participants were 49 students (92% female) enrolled in two sections of an elementary science methods course. The sections were randomly assigned to an intervention group and a comparison group. Students in both groups were engaged with explicit‐reflective NOS instruction, which focused on the empirical, tentative, theory‐driven, inferential, and creative NOS. Additionally, students in the intervention group received instruction in, and used, three metacognitive strategies during their engagement with thinking about NOS. The Views of Nature of Science Questionnaire—Form C and the Metacognitive Awareness Inventory were respectively used to assess participants’ views of NOS and metacognitive awareness at the beginning and conclusion of the study. Data analyses indicated that significantly more students in the intervention group explica...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors focus on decision-making discussions about biological conservation issues among 131 15-16-year-old students, to address two main research questions: Can peer group decision making discussions, in a normal science lesson setting, help develop students' personal reasoning in relation to conservation issues? And are there features common to high quality discussions about conservation which might be readily identified by classroom teachers?
Abstract: The conservation of biodiversity is an important socio‐scientific issue that is often regarded as a precondition to sustainable development. The foundation for citizens’ understanding of conservation issues can be laid down in formal school education. This research focuses on decision‐making discussions about biological conservation issues among 131 15–16‐year‐old students, to address two main research questions: Can peer group decision‐making discussions, in a normal science lesson setting, help develop students’ personal reasoning in relation to conservation issues? Are there features common to high quality discussions about conservation which might be readily identified by classroom teachers? Findings indicate the positive value of students taking part in these short decision‐making discussions guided by a structured framework and as part of their normal science classroom activities. Students increase their quality of personal reasoning, and modify their solutions to the issues. The study begins to unc...
TL;DR: In this paper, a study was conducted to examine students' learning of simple machines, a fifth grade forces and motion unit, and student engagement using a teacher-created Multiplayer Educational Gaming Application.
Abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine students' learning of simple machines, a fifth‐grade (ages 10–11) forces and motion unit, and student engagement using a teacher‐created Multiplayer Educational Gaming Application. This mixed‐method study collected pre‐test/post‐test results to determine student knowledge about simple machines. A survey ascertained the time spent using the computer for general purposes, and the time spent playing computer games as a function of gender. The pre‐test and post‐test design involved 74 students, 31 males and 43 females, who played the Dr. Friction Multiplayer Educational Gaming Application for several days in the middle of the unit. Results showed the females averaged using the computer more than their male counterparts and males played video games more than females. Analysis of covariance suggested no significant difference between the factor gender (p > .05) but statistically significant differences in gain scores (p = .001). Observations and qualitative focus groups ...
TL;DR: In this paper, the effect of the amount and quality of content knowledge on pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) was investigated, and the biological content photosynthesis and plant growth was used as an example.
Abstract: The aim of the research was to investigate the effect of the amount and quality of content knowledge on pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). The biological content photosynthesis and plant growth was used as an example. The research sample consisted of 10 primary and 10 secondary (biology) teacher students. Questionnaires, lesson preparation task and an interview were used to collect data. Primary student‐teachers’ were not aware of students’ conceptual difficulties and had problems in choosing the most important content. Neither of the groups had knowledge on suitable experiments and demonstrations, which indicates that PCK should be explicitly taught. The usefulness of PCK and some related constructs in initial teacher training is discussed.
TL;DR: In this paper, the relation between children's conceptions and their representations in drawings was investigated and it was shown that drawings are often used to obtain an idea of children's conceptualizations.
Abstract: Drawings are often used to obtain an idea of children’s conceptions. Doing so takes for granted an unambiguous relation between conceptions and their representations in drawings. This study was und ...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigated the impact of a simulation-based learning environment on elementary school students' (11-12 years old) development of system thinking skills using two written tests.
Abstract: The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of a simulation‐based learning environment on elementary school students’ (11–12 years old) development of system thinking skills. The learning environment included interactive simulations using the Stagecast Creator software to simulate the ecosystem of a marsh. Simulations are an important tool in any effort to develop system thinking, because they have the potential to highlight the dynamic nature of systems. Before the implementation of the learning environment (over a period of five 90‐min lessons) two written tests were administered to the students, investigating the development of seven aspects of system thinking. The same tests were administered after the implementation. Specifically, four of the tasks included in each test were associated with skills concerning the structure and the elements of a system and three were associated with the processes and interactions taking place within a system. The findings indicated that elementary school st...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors developed a model of factors affecting students' ability to interpret external representations (ERs) in biochemistry, using the modelling framework of Justi and Gilbert.
Abstract: The aim of this research was to develop a model of factors affecting students’ ability to interpret external representations (ERs) in biochemistry. The study was qualitative in design and was guided by the modelling framework of Justi and Gilbert. Application of the process outlined by the framework, and consultation with relevant literature, led to the expression of a Venn model and to the formulation of operational definitions for seven component factors of the model; namely, the conceptual (C), reasoning (R), representation mode (M), reasoning‐mode (R‐M), reasoning‐conceptual (R‐C), conceptual‐mode (C‐M), and conceptual‐reasoning‐mode (C‐R‐M) factors. To validate the model, nine students were interviewed using a specially designed three‐phase single interview technique to investigate their interpretation of three ERs, representing antibody–antigen interaction. The data were analysed by induction, where response patterns emerged naturally rather than being predisposed. The results verified the validity ...
TL;DR: In this article, the concepts of probability and energy quantization were used to understand the conceptual barriers to learning atomic structure. But, they did not address the problem of student understanding by threshold barriers, and they focused on three particularly high-achieving students from an interview sample of 20 students who were selected from an introductory college chemistry course.
Abstract: Atomic theory or the nature of matter is a principal concept in science and science education. This has, however, been complicated by the difficulty students have in learning the concept and the subsequent construction of many alternative models. To understand better the conceptual barriers to learning atomic structure, this study explores the troublesome nature of this fundamental scientific concept. In order to illustrate the distinction of student understanding by threshold barriers, this study chose three particularly high‐achieving students from an original interview sample of 20 students who were selected from an introductory college chemistry course. The pre‐course and post‐course interview responses were examined and compared in detail. This study considers the concepts of ‘probability’ and ‘energy quantization’ to both describe the structure of the threshold of understanding students’ need to negotiate in their construction of the target model of atomic structure. In this respect, this study sugg...
TL;DR: This article found that the unpopularity of science in many industrialised countries is largely due to the gap between the subculture of science, on the one hand, and students' self-image on the other.
Abstract: In this paper we propose that the unpopularity of science in many industrialised countries is largely due to the gap between the subculture of science, on the one hand, and students' self‐image, on the other. We conducted a study based on the self‐to‐prototype matching theory, testing whether the perceived mismatch between the typical representative of the science culture (the science prototype) and students' self‐image is linked to not choosing science as a major. Fifty‐four Dutch ninth‐grade students currently choosing their subject majors (so‐called profiles) completed a Dutch version of a questionnaire previously designed by Hannover and Kessels, which measures students' perceptions of typical peers favouring different school subjects (prototypes for physics, biology, economics, languages) and students' self‐image. Students chose a profile to the extent that they conceived of themselves as similar to the typical peer who likes the key subject of that profile. Fifty per cent of variance was explained w...
TL;DR: This article explored the drama forms, teaching objectives, and characteristics by which drama was perceived to enable learners to learn affective, cognitive and procedural knowledge in chemistry, biology, and physics classes.
Abstract: Over 20 years of research into the use of cross‐curricular drama in secondary science has indicated that this medium enables learning of affective, cognitive and procedural knowledge. To date, academic research has tended to frame successful drama pedagogy as resulting from a Drama‐in‐Education approach, incorporating extended role plays and simulations of social events. By contrast, research has rarely focused on the scope and context of drama which is devised and used by real people in real situations. Indications from non‐academic literature and informal education practice suggest that there is a gap in our knowledge between research and classroom practice. This study focused on teachers’ own drama activities in five science lessons taught across schools in Cambridge, Kent, and Hertfordshire. Their classes spanned the ages of 12–16 in the subjects of chemistry, biology, and physics. This study explored the drama forms, teaching objectives, and characteristics by which drama was perceived to enable lear...
TL;DR: The authors explored the first year of 114 secondary science teachers as they participated in one of four different induction programs. And they found that teachers who participated in science-specific induction programmes significantly changed their beliefs and used more investigations in their classroom lessons than did their peers in the other induction programmes.
Abstract: While it is generally acknowledged that the first years of teaching are the most difficult, little is known about the development of subject matter specialists during this period. In order to add to the knowledge in this area, the present study explores the first year of 114 secondary science teachers as they participate in one of four different induction programmes. The data collected in this study consist of observations of practice, and of interviews about beliefs, pedagogical content knowledge and experiences throughout the year. Quantitative and qualitative analysis of the data revealed that, as a group, the beginning teachers held teacher‐centred practices, beliefs, and pedagogical content knowledge. Analysis by induction programme, however, revealed that teachers who participated in science‐specific induction programmes significantly changed their beliefs and used more investigations in their classroom lessons than did their peers in the other induction programmes. Moreover, the physical proximity ...
TL;DR: This article reported on a research project to support vocabulary learning in mainstream science for Year 8 refugee students (n = 23) in one high school data sources included teacher interviews, student journal writing, and the science text itself The author demonstrates why science content language is inaccessible to many students through an extensive review of the literature, and then juxtaposes the views of students and teachers with the actual demands of one chapter from the Year 8 Sci
Abstract: With the globalisation of education, large numbers of students with interrupted schooling and low English literacy levels represent both a quantitative and qualitative shift in the kinds of students faced by teachers in classrooms In Australia, after a year in an intensive English language programme, immigrant and refugee students are placed in the mainstream, where they face enormous challenges in content areas such as science The complexity and specificity of science terminology pose a serious barrier for students This article reports on a research project to support vocabulary learning in mainstream science for Year 8 refugee students (n = 23) in one high school Data sources included teacher interviews, student journal writing, and the science text itself The author demonstrates why science content language is inaccessible to many students through an extensive review of the literature, and then juxtaposes the views of students and teachers with the actual demands of one chapter from the Year 8 Sci
TL;DR: In this paper, a longitudinal study of Swedish upper secondary science students' (16-19 years of age) developing understanding of key chemical concepts was conducted. The informants were informants were...
Abstract: The results presented here derive from a longitudinal study of Swedish upper secondary science students' (16-19 years of age) developing understanding of key chemical concepts. The informants were ...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors constructed a valid and reliable multiple-choice conceptual survey to investigate students' understanding of introductory quantum physics concepts, which was administered to 312 students at the University of Sydney.
Abstract: Conceptual surveys have become increasingly popular at many levels to probe various aspects of science education research such as measuring student understanding of basic concepts and assessing the effectiveness of pedagogical material. The aim of this study was to construct a valid and reliable multiple‐choice conceptual survey to investigate students’ understanding of introductory quantum physics concepts. We examined course syllabi to establish content coverage, consulted with experts to extract fundamental content areas, and trialled open‐ended questions to determine how the selected content areas align with students’ difficulties. The questions were generated and trialled with different groups of students. Each version of the survey was critiqued by a group of discipline and teaching experts to establish its validity. The survey was administered to 312 students at the University of Sydney. Using the data from this sample, we performed five statistical tests (item difficulty index, item discrimination...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explored the relationships among the components of preservice science teachers' pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) involving the topic of ozone layer depletion.
Abstract: The purpose of this study was to explore the relationships among the components of preservice science teachers’ (PSTs) pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) involving the topic ‘ozone layer depletion’. An open‐ended survey was first administered to 216 PSTs in their final year at the Faculty of Education to determine their subject matter knowledge of ozone layer depletion. Then, the PSTs were classified as high‐ability, average‐ability, and low‐ability groups according to their scores on the survey. The interviews were carried out with 25 randomly selected PSTs from each of these ability groups in order to determine their pedagogical knowledge and investigate the inter‐relationships and intra‐relationships among the components of the PSTs’ PCK for teaching the topic ‘ozone layer depletion’. The results showed that there was a significant inter‐relationship between the subject matter and pedagogical knowledge of the PSTs. There were also significant intra‐relationships among the components of the PSTs’ pedag...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors survey some major trends from research on visual and spatial thinking coming from cognitive science, developmental psychology, science literacy, and science studies, and explore the role of visualisation in creativity, in building mental models, and in the communication of scientific ideas.
Abstract: This paper surveys some major trends from research on visual and spatial thinking coming from cognitive science, developmental psychology, science literacy, and science studies. It explores the role of visualisation in creativity, in building mental models, and in the communication of scientific ideas, in order to place these findings in the context of science education research and practice.
TL;DR: The findings suggest that teacher‐mediated negotiation of representational issues as students construct different modal accounts can support enriched learning by enabling both a richer conceptual understanding by students; and enhanced teacher insights into students’ thinking.
Abstract: There has been extensive research on children’s understanding of evaporation, but representational issues entailed in this understanding have not been investigated in depth. This study explored three students’ engagement with science concepts relating to evaporation through various representational modes, such as diagrams, verbal accounts, gestures, and captioned drawings. This engagement entailed students (a) clarifying their thinking through exploring representational resources; (b) developing understanding of what these representations signify; and (c) learning how to construct representational aspects of scientific explanation. The study involved a sequence of classroom lessons on evaporation and structured interviews with nine children, and found that a focus on representational challenges provided fresh insights into the conceptual task involved in learning science. The findings suggest that teacher‐mediated negotiation of representational issues as students construct different modal accounts can su...
TL;DR: Four learning effects help clarify the positive and negative aspects of current simulation designs: picture superiority, noticing, structuring, and tuning.
Abstract: Interactive simulations are entering mainstream science education. Their effects on cognition and learning are often framed by the legacy of information processing, which emphasized amodal problem solving and conceptual organization. In contrast, this paper reviews simulations from the vantage of research on perception and spatial learning, because most simulations take a spatial format and the pedagogical intent is to promote learning. Four learning effects help clarify the positive and negative aspects of current simulation designs: picture superiority, noticing, structuring, and tuning.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors tested for deep understanding and critical thinking about basic quantum chemical concepts taught at 12th grade (age 17-18) and achieved conceptual change in students.
Abstract: This study tested for deep understanding and critical thinking about basic quantum chemical concepts taught at 12th grade (age 17–18). Our aim was to achieve conceptual change in students. A quantitative study was conducted first (n = 125), and following this 23 selected students took part in semi‐structured interviews either individually or in small groups that were allowed to interact under the coordination of the investigators. The planetary Bohr model was strongly favoured, while the probabilistic nature of the orbital concept was absent from many students' minds. Other students held a hybrid model. In some cases, students did not accept that the electron cloud provides a picture of the atom. Many students had not understood the fundamental nature of the uncertainty principle. Finally, the mathematical description of the formation of molecular orbitals caused problems in the case of destructive (antibonding) overlap of atomic orbitals. Our approach to conceptual change employed active and cooperative ...
TL;DR: The need for the inclusion of socio-scientific issues (SSI) into science curricula has been generally accepted, but relatively few science teachers have incorporated SSI into their courses.
Abstract: The need for the inclusion of socio‐scientific issues (SSI) into science curricula has been generally accepted, but relatively few science teachers have incorporated SSI into their courses. Most science teachers feel that their most important task by far is to teach the principles of science, and any substantive pedagogical changes represent a burden. Reformers and researchers often point out science teachers' lukewarm reactions to the reforms as a major barrier for educational changes but pay little attention to teachers' deeper values and inspirations. However, there are some teachers who address SSI out of their own personal initiative. Detailed case studies of four such teachers showed that although the teachers were aware of Science, Technology, Society or other reform efforts, they developed their own thrust and materials for SSI based on their own values, ideals, philosophies and personal concerns. This suggests that the current curriculum reforms (Science, Technology, Society, SSI, and Nature of S...