Contemporary Science Teaching Approaches

Promoting Conceptual Understanding in Science

Edited by:
Dr. Funda Ornek, Bahrain Teachers College, University of Bahrain
Dr. Issa M. Saleh, Bahrain Teachers College in University of Bahrain

Published 2012

Contemporary science teaching approaches focus on fostering students to construct new scientific knowledge as a process of inquiry rather than having them act as passive learners memorizing stated scientific facts. Although this perspective of teaching science is clearly emphasized in the National Research Council’s National Science Education Standards (NRC, 1996), it is however challenging to achieve in the classroom. Science teaching approaches should enhance students’ conceptual understanding of scientific concepts which can be later utilized by students in deeper recognition of real world (Marsak & Janouskova, 2007). This book identifies and describes several different contemporary science teaching approaches and presents recent applications of these approaches in promoting interest among students. It promotes conceptual understanding of science concepts among them as well. This book identifies pertinent issues related to strategies of teaching science and describes best practice The chapters in this book are culmination of years of extensive research and development efforts to understand more about how to teach science by the distinguished scholars and practicing teachers.

CONTENTS
PART I: STRATEGIES IN TEACHING SCIENCE. Science Teaching Approaches to Promote Conceptual Understanding in Science, Issa M. Saleh and Funda Ornek. Differentiating Science Pedagogy, Anila Asghar. The Metacognitive Science Teacher: A Statement for Enhanced Teacher Cognition and Pedagogy, Gregory P. Thomas. Teaching About Climate Change: An Action Research Approach, John Wilkinson. Constructivist, Analogical, and Metacognitive Approaches to Science Teaching and Learning, Samson M. Nashon and J. Douglas Adler. Concept Mapping and the Teaching of Science, Sadiah Baharom. Physics Modeling: An Approach Stimulates Students’ Conceptual Understanding of Scientific Concepts, Funda Ornek. PART II: USING COMPUTERS IN TEACHING SCIENCE. A Framework for the Integration of Technology into Science Instruction, Yilmaz Saglam and Servet Demir. Real-Time Experiments and Images (RTEI) as Open Learning Environments for Building Physics Knowledge, Giorgio Olimpo and Elena Sassi. Enhancing Asynchronous Learning in a Blended Learning Environment, Mun Fie Tsoi.