Amanda Woods-McConney

This study provides a contemporary perspective on how teachers implement inquiry-based instruction and direct instruction in everyday science lessons. While science education researchers have historically positioned these instructional approaches as flowing from epistemological opposites, this research examines how teachers pragmatically combine inquiry-based and direct instruction by investigating how teachers integrate these instructional approaches, including the timing, duration, and contextual factors that shape instructional decisions in authentic classroom settings. Systematic and structured observations and interviews were conducted with 8 upper primary teachers and 11 lower secondary teachers. Results showed primary teachers implemented more inquiry-based instruction (48%) than secondary teachers (18%) who relied predominantly on direct instruction. Both groups combined approaches within individual lessons, though primary teachers alternated between inquiry and direct instruction episodes more frequently than secondary teachers. Secondary teachers typically began lessons with direct instruction before transitioning to practical activities, a pattern driven by institutional requirements that overrode teachers’ pedagogical beliefs. The marked reduction in inquiry instruction at the secondary level creates a pedagogical disconnect that contradicts research-based expectations for increased inquiry as students develop scientific capabilities. This study establishes that contemporary science teaching pragmatically integrates both inquiry and direct instruction, though implementation differs considerably between primary and secondary settings.

This study is a comparative analysis of 15-year-old students’ scientific literacy, and its association with the instructional strategies that students experience, across six OECD countries that participated in PISA 2015. Across the six countries, the study investigates the efficacy of inquiry-based instruction in science in contrast with two other instructional approaches to teaching secondary science: adaptive and teacher-directed teaching. The analysis shows that students who reported experiencing high frequencies of inquiry strategies in their classrooms consistently evidenced lower levels of scientific literacy across the six countries. Benchmark analysis also showed, common to all six countries, a strongly positive association between the frequency of teacher-directed and adaptive teaching strategies and students’ scientific literacy. Additionally, the study disaggregates PISA’s composite variable representing inquiry-based instruction and shows that different components of inquiry are differentially associated with students’ scientific literacy. We discuss the implications of these analyses for science teacher educators, science teachers, and educational policy makers. In doing so, we add nuance to our understanding of the efficacy of inquiry-based instruction in science, suggesting that some components, as conceptualised and assessed in PISA, seem to suggest greater attention and use, and others more moderated use.

The research examines Indonesian vocational high school teachers’ perceptions of continuing professional development (CPD) in the context of changing policies regarding teacher CPD. Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological model is used as the conceptual framework. Six accounting teachers interviewed understood CPD as an activity for teachers’ improvement, but in different ways. They perceived CPD as teacher performance assessment and government regulation (exosystem), personal development activities (individual), and some considered religious values when they described CPD. These teachers regarded their profession as a devotion to God and CPD as part of their duty and responsibility as obedient persons (interactional factors between individual and macrosystem). Civil servant teachers participated in more structured CPD compared with their non-civil servant peers as CPD activities are more closely related to promotion. Teachers showed they have interest and capacity to further develop their CPD but need support to develop their professionalism through microsystem and exosystem factors.

Education for sustainability - understood as efforts to equip people with the knowledge and skills necessary to make environmental, social and economic decisions that consider the needs of present and future generations - has been incorporated in the official curriculum of Australia as a 'cross-curriculum priority'. This research sought to understand practising primary school teachers' integration of the sustainability cross-curriculum priority into the curriculum. In this study, nine primary school teachers in the Perth metropolitan region (five generalist; four specialists - including two science specialists) were interviewed about the extent to which the Western Australian Curriculum has guided and supported their teaching practices in relation to sustainability and the sustainability cross-curriculum priority. Through detailed and rich examples of classroom practice, the participants illustrated the web of interrelated factors that characterise the implementation of the sustainability cross-curriculum priority across various learning areas, including science. Participant experiences also alluded to the idea that the sustainability cross-curriculum priority is a valuable avenue for re-emphasising science concepts across learning areas. Overall, the most salient take-home message of this work is that, in addition to the various influences contributing to the implementation of the sustainability cross-curriculum priority (such as whether a school is considered sustainably built), teachers are the main actors in the implementation of sustainability and making informed decisions about how sustainability is to be incorporated in their teaching. However, in order for teachers to drive this implementation, their required level of support goes beyond the curriculum and includes active engagement from their school leadership teams.

This chapter describes the evolution of an inquiry-based activity in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), Ball of Fear, that was developed and used in a primary classroom setting and then further developed as an inquiry-based activity in a first-year university context with pre-service teachers enrolled in a science content unit. Inquiry-based teaching and learning in primary STEM is well aligned with modern learning theory, allowing an in-depth exploration of the nature, principles and concepts of STEM disciplines. Because cooperative groups ranging from two to five members are prevalent in primary STEM and ‘almost all inquiry-learning approaches make use of group work’, the chapter highlights cooperative inquiry-based teaching and learning in primary STEM. High-level interactions among the students in the cooperative groups occurred without explicitly teaching inquiry or cooperative skills, which supports the rationale for including inquiry-based activities in primary STEM.

The Rio Tinto Earth Assist Program (RTEA) is an innovative approach to linking schools with conservation and land management throughout Western Australia. Since its inception in 2009, Conservation Volunteers Australia has run the Rio Tinto funded program which has grown and evolved to deliver tailored programs to primary and secondary schools across the metropolitan region and throughout the state. The Living Classroom program has evolved from being designed for primary schools to becoming a program run in primary and secondary schools and involves activities such as creating a vegetable garden, building native bee boxes or constructing a frog pond on school grounds. The Community Service Program is an excursion designed for secondary students to actively participate in conservation projects such as weed abatement, rubbish collection and native vegetation surveys. In 2015, to meet part of the funding agreement, Conservation Volunteers Australia engaged Murdoch University (MU) to conduct a longitudinal study from 2015 to 2018 to measure the direct and indirect impacts and effectiveness of RTEA on participating schools and students. The evaluation was designed to offer formative feedback throughout the research period to enable RTEA to adapt and modify processes and programs for improved delivery and to better align with deliverables and key performance indicators. During the four years, data was collected through teacher surveys, student pre and post surveys and student focus group sessions. Additional information was also gained though administrative data and regular collaboration with the CVA and RTEA staff. Throughout the research period, MU provided regular feedback to RTEA and CVA in the form of recommendations, based on early data analysis. Many recommendations were implemented and program improvements were observed, and some key recommendations were not implemented. This report presents a comprehensive view of RTEA activities from 2015 to 2018 against the deliverables and key performance indicators provided to CVA by Rio Tinto.

Background Prompted by fewer females compared to males enrolling in physics and advanced mathematics at both secondary and university levels, our research investigated the views and experiences of female students currently studying upper secondary school physics. We interviewed 18 female students about influences they considered important to their own science education, interest in science, and future science-related aspirations. Our purpose was to identify the experiences that these students most strongly associated with the generation and maintenance of their engagement in science, particularly represented in this research by their enrolment in upper secondary physics. Results The research team used a systematic, iterative process to identify the main themes in the transcribed interview data. We identified the influence each girl reported as the strongest (ranked first). We also combined all influences that the participants had nominated, regardless of their ranking, to further examine all factors participants suggested as influential in their sustained engagement in school science (represented by their decision to study upper secondary physics). Systematic analysis of the interview data confirms that the influences on these females’ choices to study physics at upper secondary originate from a combination of their teachers, their school’s science culture, members of their family, the participants themselves and their peers. Conclusions The interviews highlighted the idiographic complexities in understanding the wide range of important influences on these students studying physics at upper secondary school and their engagement in science. The unique contribution of this work is giving voice to the participants and reflecting on what these high-achieving females have to say about the influential factors in their decisions to pursue science. Supportive teachers and the school science culture play essential roles, and other cultural and/or social factors such as family members and peers are identified as important. References to the culture and expectations of the school, family holidays, and conversations with siblings are support factors that seem to interact and overlap. At the same time, the importance of policy-amenable factors such as competent and caring science teachers, and science-supportive school cultures should be emphasised and encouraged.

The national curriculum for chemistry includes topics that have not previously been taught at secondary level. In response to requests for teacher professional learning (PL) covering these topics, a course called 'Divide and Analyse' was developed. Investigations into the PL needs of chemistry teachers were carried out in conjunction with the pilot session. Pre- and post-PL survey responses and focus group discussions provided a wealth of information about the needs of chemistry teachers and how university chemists can support them. Three themes of support for chemistry teaching were identified: resources for chemistry teaching, content PL for chemistry teachers and enrichment excursions/incursions for school students. Teachers explained that this type of support may contribute to making the study of chemistry more interesting and relevant for their students. A partnership between chemistry teachers and university chemists can facilitate the provision of the identified support for chemistry teaching. It was concluded that a community of practice partnership had developed from the Divide and Analyse PL. A model that brings together the major findings of the study is proposed.

A survey has been carried out of graduates and employers working in the sustainable energy (SE) industry in Australia. The aims were to identify the key areas of content to be included in University level SE training and the type of degree structures that are most appropriate for SE professionals. Attention was also directed to the mode of instruction (online, blended or face-to-face) and the role of work-integrated learning (WIL). This paper presents the results of the survey, which provide guidance to Universities seeking to develop new, or revise existing, SE education offerings. The results of the survey clearly indicate that responding students and employers prefer a generalist degree in engineering, with a stream in sustainable energy as the initial qualification for professionals in this field. Specialist degrees at postgraduate level were also considered appropriate for continuing professional education (CPE). Both graduates and employers agreed on key areas to be included in the SE courses. These key areas are generic skills (research methods, team work, report writing), generation technologies (especially PV, wind and biomass), and enablers (such as economics, policy and project management). The graduates, many of whom came from overseas countries, generally agreed about the course content and its relevance to employment in their countries. Face-to-face or blended learning was preferred by both groups as the mode of instruction for the first degree. Online learning was considered a valuable adjunct in the undergraduate course and more suitable for CPE in postgraduate courses. WIL and more practical work were considered important, especially in the first degree. There was some disagreement about the appropriate length of work placements, with graduates preferring 6–8 weeks and employers 10–12 weeks. This work should provide a basis for further course development and curriculum reform for sustainable energy education.

Science education research has recommended cooperative inquiry based science in the primary science context for more than two decades but after more than 20 years, student achievement in science has not substantially improved. This study, through direct observation and analysis, investigated content-related student interactions in an authentic inquiry based primary science class setting. Thirty-one upper primary students were videotaped working in cooperative inquiry based science activities. Cooperative talk and negotiation of the science content was analysed to identify any high-level group interactions. The data show that while all groups have incidences of high-level content-related group interactions, the frequency and duration of these interactions were limited. No specific pattern of preceding events was identified and no episodes of high-level content-related group interactions were immediately preceded by the teacher’s interactions with the groups. This in situ study demonstrated that even without any kind of scaffolding, specific skills in knowing how to implement cooperative inquiry based science, high-level content-related group interactions did occur very briefly. Support for teachers to develop their knowledge and skills in facilitating cooperative inquiry based science learning is warranted to ensure that high-level content-related group interactions and the associated conceptual learning are not left to chance in science classrooms.