This book explores how science learning can be more relevant and interesting for students and teachers by using a contextualized approach to science education. The contributors explore the contextualization of science education from multiple angles, such as teacher education, curriculum design, assessment and educational policy, and from multiple national perspectives. The aim of this exploration is to provide and inspire new practical approaches to bring science education closer to the lives of students to accelerate progress towards global scientific literacy. The book presents real life examples of how to make science relevant for children and adolescents of diverse ethnic and language backgrounds, socioeconomic status and nationalities, providing tools and guidance for teacher educators and researchers to improve the contextualization and cultural relevance of their practice. The book includes rigorous studies demonstrating that the contextualization of science learning environments is essential for student engagement in learning science and practitioners' reflections on how to apply this knowledge in the classroom and at national scale. This approach makes this book valuable for researchers and professors of science education and international education interested in designing teacher education courses that prepare future teachers to contextualize their teaching and in adding a critical dimension to their research agendas.

This book explores how science learning can be more relevant and interesting for students and teachers by using a contextualized approach to science education. The contributors explore the contextualization of science education from multiple angles, such as teacher education, curriculum design, assessment and educational policy, and from multiple national perspectives. The aim of this exploration is to provide and inspire new practical approaches to bring science education closer to the lives of students to accelerate progress towards global scientific literacy. The book presents real life examples of how to make science relevant for children and adolescents of diverse ethnic and language backgrounds, socioeconomic status and nationalities, providing tools and guidance for teacher educators and researchers to improve the contextualization and cultural relevance of their practice. The book includes rigorous studies demonstrating that the contextualization of science learning environments is essential for student engagement in learning science and practitioners' reflections on how to apply this knowledge in the classroom and at national scale. This approach makes this book valuable for researchers and professors of science education and international education interested in designing teacher education courses that prepare future teachers to contextualize their teaching and in adding a critical dimension to their research agendas.

Science Education: A Global Perspective is ‘global’ both in content and authorship. Its 17 chapters by an assemblage of seasoned and knowledgeable science educators from many parts of the world seek to bring to the fore current developments in science education and their implications. The book thus covers a wide range of topics in science education from various national and international perspectives. These include the nature of science, science and religion, evolution, curriculum and pedagogy, context-based teaching and learning, science and national development, socially-responsible science education, equitable access for women and girls in science and technology education, and the benefits of science education research. It ends on an optimistic note by looking at science education in 50 years’ time with a recommendation, among others, for stakeholders to take the responsibility of preparing children towards a blossoming science education sector in an anticipated future world. This book is suitable for use by discerning researchers, teachers, undergraduate and postgraduate students in science education, and policy makers at all levels of education. Other educationalists and personnel in science and technology vocations will also find it interesting and useful as the reader-motivated approach has guided the presentation of ideas. Science Education: A Global Perspective is a rich compendium of the components of science education in context, practice, and delivery. Dr Bulent Cavas, Professor of Science Education, Dokuz Eylul Univerity, Buca-Izmir, Turkey/President-Elect, International Council of Associations for Science Education (ICASE) This book will be of immense relevance for current and future global strides in training and research in science education. Surinder K. Ghai, Chairman, Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, India This book provides a refreshing insight into the current status and future direction of science education. It will be very useful to researchers, those pursuing undergraduate and post-graduate courses in science education, and all other personnel involved in the policy and practice of science education. Dr. Bennoit Sossou, Director/Country Representative, UNESCO Regional Office in Abuja, Nigeria

This book addresses the context-based teaching of science and geography as seen by outstanding specialists from several countries around the world. It starts by providing an updated overview on the relevance of the four main physical and natural sciences (biology, chemistry, geology and physics) as well as geography for educating the public irrespective of whether citizens live (or not) in technologically advanced societies. Afterwards, it discusses unique context-based teaching approaches as well as original context-based curriculum and evaluation material tools. Additionally, the book highlights potential relationships between science and geography, which are often seen as independent areas of knowledge, namely in school. By uncovering the similarities between them and by putting in evidence where both areas deal with issues that are relevant for citizens daily lives, the book explores how contexts act as tools to link and give coherence to science and geography as components of everyday life. The worldwide trend towards providing meaningful science education to all, coupled with the concern raised by students disengagement in sciences, namely in technologically advanced societies, put increasingly high demands on the teachers. As shown in this book, contextualized teaching offers unique insights into how teachers can profit from students complicated and interconnected realities. They can use this knowledge to help them learn about the authenticity and relevance of science and geography. In addition, this book also provides directions for future research if the contribution of geography and science to context-based teaching is to be fully explored. Therefore, it is a book designated for researchers, educators and schoolteachers, as it goes from theoretical perspectives to general research-based approaches and ends with practical applications that may make a difference in the 21st century.

Chemical education is essential to everybody because it deals with ideas that play major roles in personal, social, and economic decisions. This book is based on three principles: that all aspects of chemical education should be associated with research; that the development of opportunities for chemical education should be both a continuous process and be linked to research; and that the professional development of all those associated with chemical education should make extensive and diverse use of that research. It is intended for: pre-service and practising chemistry teachers and lecturers; chemistry teacher educators; chemical education researchers; the designers and managers of formal chemical curricula; informal chemical educators; authors of textbooks and curriculum support materials; practising chemists and chemical technologists. It addresses: the relation between chemistry and chemical education; curricula for chemical education; teaching and learning about chemical compounds and chemical change; the development of teachers; the development of chemical education as a field of enquiry. This is mainly done in respect of the full range of formal education contexts (schools, universities, vocational colleges) but also in respect of informal education contexts (books, science centres and museums).

This handbook gathers in one volume the major research and scholarship related to multicultural science education that has developed since the field was named and established by Atwater in 1993. Culture is defined in this handbook as an integrated pattern of shared values, beliefs, languages, worldviews, behaviors, artifacts, knowledge, and social and political relationships of a group of people in a particular place or time that the people use to understand or make meaning of their world, each other, and other groups of people and to transmit these to succeeding generations. The research studies include both different kinds of qualitative and quantitative studies. The chapters in this volume reflect differing ideas about culture and its impact on science learning and teaching in different K-14 contexts and policy issues. Research findings about groups that are underrepresented in STEM in the United States, and in other countries related to language issues and indigenous knowledge are included in this volume.