DUIT

To improve instructional practices – in schools, universities and in out of school settings has been a major concern of science education research and development. The intensive international debate on scientific literacy in the 1990s and the series of international monitoring studies like TIMSS and PISA in the 1990s and in the 2000s have fuelled this debate substantially. Various strands of science education research contribute to the stock of knowledge on more efficient means of teaching and learning science. The Model of Educational Reconstruction (MER) presented in this chapter provides a conception of science education research that is relevant for improving instructional practice and teacher professional development programs. The model is based on European Didaktik and Bildung (formation) traditions – with a particular emphasis on the German tradition. A key concern of the model is that science subject matter issues as well as student learning needs and capabilities have to be given equal attention in attempts to improve the quality of teaching and learning. There are three major emphases that are intimately connected: (1) The clarification and analysis of science subject matter (including key science concepts and principles like evolution, energy, particles, or combustion, and science processes and views of the nature of science, as well as the significance of science in various out of school contexts). (2) The investigation into student and teacher perspectives regarding the chosen subject (including pre-instructional conceptions, affective variables like interests, self-concepts, attitudes, and skills). (3) The design and evaluation of learning environments (e.g. instructional materials, learning activities, teaching and learning sequences). The first emphasis comprises analyses of subject matter from science and educational perspectives. Research and development activities are closely linked