Education Commons^™

Transforming The Teaching Of Geoscience And Sustainability, David Gosselin, Cathy Manduca, Timothy J. Bralower, David Mogk

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

The geosciences have an important role to play in addressing whether humans can live sustainably on Earth. From water to energy, from climate change to natural hazards, geoscience is central to solving a wide range of problems.

Two projects funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) support faculty in incorporating aspects of sustainability in their teaching: the Interdisciplinary Teaching of Geoscience for a Sustainable Future ( InTeGrate) Center in the Geosciences and the On the Cutting Edge Faculty Development Program in the Geosciences. The former is funded by NSF’s Science Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Faculty Development Program, and the …

Fostering Student Sense Making In Elementary Science Learning Environments: Elementary Teachers’ Use Of Science Curriculum Materials To Promote Explanation Construction, Laura Zangori, Cory Forbes, Mandy Biggers

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

While research has shown that elementary (K-5) students are capable of engaging in the scientific practice of explanation construction, commonly-used elementary science curriculum materials may not always afford them opportunities to do so. As a result, elementary teachers must often adapt their science curriculum materials to better support students’ explanation construction and foster student sense making. However, little research has been conducted to explore if and, if so, how and why, elementary teachers modify science curriculum materials to engage students in explanation construction. We use an embedded mixed methods research design to explore elementary teachers’ (n = 45) curricular adaptations …