Instruction Design for the Classroom

The art of effective teaching has three major components: content knowledge, knowledge of how students learn, and pedagogy. Knowing the major components of inquiry learning and the compone... See More

The art of effective teaching has three major components: content knowledge, knowledge of how students learn, and pedagogy. Knowing the major components of inquiry learning and the components of effective teaching helps to design curriculum students can learn from. The article includes a planning model as well as a sample product called ‘Sampling Osmosis.’ The article itself is great and the unit is very appropriate for use in a middle school setting.

Instructional Design That Informs Practice

This article explains how content knowledge, knowledge of how students learn, and knowledge of teaching strategies that are research-based best practices for science teaching are purposely c... See More

This article explains how content knowledge, knowledge of how students learn, and knowledge of teaching strategies that are research-based best practices for science teaching are purposely combined to create effective inquiry science lessons. Besides providing information on the importance of pedagogical content knowledge, the author includes a chart that lists the characteristics of inquiry-based instruction. A ‘hidden’ osmosis investigation is the vehicle used to demonstrate this instructional model for planning and delivering a lesson. There are excellent suggestions for how to improve one’s teaching practices whether one is a novice or an experienced teacher. This framework for instructional design contains important elements that need to be considered in order to deliver effective inquiry- based science instruction.