The primary focus of this book is to present a detailed and practical guide to audiometric test procedures with strict adherence to the American Speech and Hearing Association and American National Standards Institute guidelines. Also included are simplistic overviews of acoustics, anatomy, mechanisms of hearing, aural pathology, and rehabilitation, which are often uniquely integrated with the audiometric tests. Psychoacoustics and evoked potentials receive little attention. Each chapter is easy to read and includes stated objectives, liberal use of headings and figures, excellent review tables, a summary, a comprehensive glossary, study questions, and a few suggested readings. Chapters 1 and 2 deal with acoustics and sound measurement. Chapters 3 through 5 form the major emphasis of the book describing, in a "cookbook" fashion, how to perform basic audiometric tests. Chapters 6 through 8 cover anatomy, mechanisms, and pathologies of the outer, middle, and inner ear. Chapter 9 is an overview of
This article provides an up-to-date list of reasons for teachers to create a case for residential fieldwork. The list was developed as part of a project examining 'learning journeys' of inner-urban school visits to residential field centres in England. Uniquely, it draws from the perspectives of students and teachers in light of the changes to A-level biology assessment. As resourcing constraints following the COVID-19 pandemic threaten fieldwork, this evidence-based case shows that residential visits are more valuable than ever. It is argued that, amidst the post-pandemic 'catch up' discourse and by putting 'nature' at the centre, field visits can work even harder for the benefit of urban students.
This article offers an outline of 3D science that conceptualises science around three dimensions: domain knowledge, evidence-management procedures and psychological energy. We propose that this model could underpin a rigorous, effective and motivating approach to science education in schools. We show how self-determination theory offers useful insights into motivation in 3D science and discuss the benefits of this for teachers and students. As proof of concept we sketch out clear assessment objectives for a 3D-compliant science course and develop outline assessment criteria to show the possibility for progression.
Conrad Hal Waddington (1905–1975) was an English biologist who was especially interested in the big (metaphysical) questions of life. His thinking has become part of the foundation of modern systems biology. This article applies his thinking to middle-years school biology curricula (for ages 11–16), to see if their approach to epistemic questions might be reframed to allow students to understand more about the nature of life.
The rapidly growing field of epigenetics is now beginning to reveal how our genes are affected by environmental factors such as nutrition, exercise and stress. As it has such profound effects on our everyday lives, this article argues for the inclusion of epigenetics in the compulsory school science curriculum, and explores trainee science teachers’ knowledge about epigenetics and their views on its implications for society. A minority of trainee science teachers surveyed were familiar with the term, but with further discussion they were readily able to engage with social, ethical and health promotion implications relating to epigenetics.
Best Evidence Science Teaching’ (BEST) is a collection of open-access, researchevidence-informed resources for science teaching at 11–14. BEST includes progression toolkits comprising sequenced learning steps, diagnostic questions and response activities. Case studies illustrate how teachers are using BEST resources. Observations and interview data from 12 teachers suggest that BEST allowed these teachers to develop their practice in the following key areas identified by the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) Improving Secondary Science guidance report: preconceptions, memory, metacognitive talk, feedback, practical work and language of science. Findings suggest that research-evidence summaries were being used by teachers to inform how they describe and explain scientific concepts, listen to student responses, sequence teaching and select models and analogies. As such, they provided access to no-cost, subject-specific professional development ‘just in time’ for teaching. Transforming research evidence into teaching practice The push of current education policy is to encourage schools and teachers to participate in trials and engage with research (Cabinet Office, 2018; The Royal Society and British Academy, 2018), yet research is often inaccess ible to teachers. Coldwell et al. (2017) found limited evidence of teachers using research findings to change their practice. As Black and Wiliam (1998: 16–17) highlight: Teachers will not take up attractive sounding ideas, albeit based on extensive research, if these are presented as general principles which leave entirely to them the ask of translating them into everyday practice – their classroom lives are too busy and too fragile for this to be possible for all. Studies have suggested that research-informed diagnostic materials can enable teachers to identify teaching and learning needs, support non-specialist teachers and have a positive impact on student learning (Millar, Leach and Osborne, 2006). A key challenge for science educators is to transform research evidence into resources and pedagogical approaches that are accessible to teachers. This article reports on one response to this challenge, the Best Evidence Science Teaching (BEST) project. BEST (www.stem.org.uk/best-evidencescience-teaching) is a collection of openaccess resources comprising the following, designed to enable teachers to use and gather evidence in the classroom: l learning progression pathways, which exemplify how understanding of 15 big ideas (listed in Table 1) in science education can be developed through appropriately sequenced key concepts; l diagnostic questions, which use research on children’s ideas to inform the question and responses, with the distractors (incorrect answers) informed by research into children’s ideas in science (for example, Driver, 1985); l response activities, to promote purposeful practical work, metacognition and progression in conceptual understanding. A ‘progression toolkit’ is provided for each key concept, consisting of sequenced learning steps, diagnostic questions and response activities. These draw upon the Evidence-based Practice in Science Education (EPSE) project (Millar et al., 2002), which used diagnostic assessment to enhance learning by monitoring students’ understanding of scientific ideas. Table 1 Big ideas for which BEST offers research-informed resources Biology Chemistry and earth
Earthbound manifestations of gravity in falling objects are distorted by the large mass and size of the earth. Movement is also affected by air resistance. This article questions whether an approach based on everyday observations is necessarily the best starting point for introducing the idea of Newtonian gravity. Instead, a theoretical approach is advocated. Starting in space, a model for gravity is developed in a stepwise progression that leads towards understanding gravity involving an extremely large mass. The model is then applied to scenarios on the Moon and the Earth. Newton’s third law is discussed in the context of the model. En route, common misconceptions are addressed in a positive manner.
Science hunters is a UK outreach Project that uses Minecraft (a computer game that allows children to build with a wide range of blocks) to engage children with science. Sessions are based on a range of science topics and include practical activities. A new topic, on bioluminescence was designed in collaboration with staff and students at Aylesford School, a multiphase academy in Warwick, UK. The session was then tested with a primary school (Woodrow First School) and a secondary school (South Bromsgrove High School) in Worcestershire, UK, with benefits for all involved: practitioners gained direct access to the view of students, while students contributed to the development of a nationwide resource, giving them a sense of ownership and insights into research and professional practice processes.
A teaching approach based on the Biggs and Collis SOLO taxonomy is described. Lessons were planned using the SOLO taxonomy to communicate how students could demonstrate increasing complexity of response to scientific questions. Consideration is given to extending the use of the SOLO taxonomy to create a relational curriculum, which may be useful I helping students to contextualise learning and make complex responses more likely.
Science appears to be coming under increasing pressure in parts of society and the media, with an increase of ‘fake news’ and less regard for ‘experts’. If this is to be combatted it is important that students develop a good understanding of both the big conceptual ideas of science and the nature of science itself. However, the nature of science is rarely well defined in school science curricula or explicitly taught by teachers. This raises questions as to the preparedness of the science teaching profession to teach about the nature of science. The article explores this issue through the literature and from the author’s experience as a teacher and teacher educator. A second article will look at some teaching strategies and resources designed to help address the issues raised here.
