The current study deals with the development of system thinking skills at the junior high school level. The sample population included about 50 eighth-grade students from two different classes of an urban Israeli junior high school who studied an earth systems-based curriculum that focused on the hydro cycle. The study addressed the following research questions: (a) Could the students deal with complex systems?; (b) What has influenced the students' ability to deal with system perception?; and (c) What are the relationship among the cognitive components of system thinking? The research combined qualitative and quantitative methods and involved various research tools, which were implemented in order to collect the data concerning the students' knowledge and understanding before, during, and following the learning process. The findings indicated that the development of system thinking in the context of the earth systems consists of several sequential stages arranged in a hierarchical structure. The cognitive skills that are developed in each stage serve as the basis for the development of the next higher-order thinking skills. The research showed that in spite of the minimal initial system thinking abilities of the students most of them made some meaningful progress in their system thinking skills, and a third of them reached the highest level of system thinking in the context of the hydro cycle. Two main factors were found to be the source of the differential progress of the students: (a) the students' individual cognitive abilities, and (b) their level of involvement in the knowledge integration activities during their inquiry-based learning both indoors and outdoors. ß 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 42: 2005

This study deals with the educational effectiveness of field trips. The main purpose was to obtain insight concerning factors that might influence the ability of students to learn during a scientific field trip in a natural environment. The research was conducted in the context of a I-day geologic field trip by 296 students in Grades 9 through I 1 in high schools in Israel. The study combined qualitative and quantitative research methods. Data were collected from three different sources (student, teacher, and outside observer) in three stages (before, after, and during the field trip). Using observations and questionnaires we investigated: a) the nature of student learning during the field trip, b) student attitudes toward the field trip, and c) changes in student knowledge and attitudes after the field trip. Our findings suggest that the educational effectiveness of a field trip is controlled by two major factors: the field trip quality and the "Novelty space" (or Familiarity Index). The educational quality of a field trip is determined by its structure, learning materials, and teaching method, and the ability to direct learning to a concrete interaction with the environment. The novelty space consists of three prefield variables: cognitive, psychological, and geographic. The learning performance of students whose "Novelty Space" was reduced before the field trip was significantly higher than that of students whose "Novelty Space" had not been so reduced. Thus, the former group gained significantly higher achievement and attitude levels. It is suggested that a field trip should occur early in the concrete part of the curriculum, and should be preceded by a relatively short preparatory unit that focuses on increasing familiarity with the learning setting of the field trip, thereby limiting the "Novelty Space" factors.

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Systems thinking is regarded as a high‐order thinking skill required in scientific, technological, and everyday domains. However, little is known about systems thinking in the context of science education. In the current research, students' understanding of the rock cycle system after a learning program was characterized, and the effect of a concluding knowledge integration activity on their systems thinking was studied. Answers to an open‐ended test were interpreted using a systems thinking continuum, ranging from a completely static view of the system to an understanding of the system's cyclic nature. A meaningful improvement in students' views of the rock cycle toward the higher side of the systems thinking continuum was found after the knowledge integration activity. Students became more aware of the dynamic and cyclic nature of the rock cycle, and their ability to construct sequences of processes representing material transformation in relatively large chunks significantly improved. Success of the knowledge integration activity stresses the importance of postknowledge acquisition activities, which engage students in a dual process of differentiation of their knowledge and reintegration in a systems context. We suggest including such activities in curricula involving systems‐based contents, particularly in earth science, in which systems thinking can bring about environmental literacy. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 40: 545–565, 2003

The specific spatial abilities required for the study of basic structural geology were characterized by quantitative and qualitative data analysis. A geologic spatial ability test (GeoSAT) was developed and administered to 115 comprehensive high-school students. Six of these students were interviewed. An analysis of students' incorrect answers revealed two types of answers: (a) nonpenetrative answers, which were based on external exposures of the structure; and (b) penetrative answers, which indicated attempts at representing internal properties of the structure. Students who tended to give penetrative incorrect answers performed significantly higher than students who tended to give nonpenetrative incorrect answers. The reasoning of students for these types of answers, as determined by interviews, supported the initial assumption that these answers were given by students with different levels of ability mentally to penetrate the image of a structure, which was named visual penetration ability (VPA). The interview findings indicated that the VPA is one of two complementary factors needed to solve the problems of GeoSAT; the other factor is the ability to perceive the spatial configuration of the structure. It is concluded that the teaching and learning process should provide students with assistance in both of these areas. 1.What are the typical answers students give in solving such problems? 2. What are students' reasoning behind different types of answers? 1. Cross-section subtest, including four problems which require drawing cross-sections of structures presented as block diagrams (Figure la). 2. Completion subtest, including four problems which require completing block diagrams that reveal only a single face (Figure 1 b). Construction subtest, including five problems in which two cross-sections and theirlocation on a very simplified geologic map are given. The students are required to draw a third cross-section at a specified location on the map (Figure lc).Each subtest is based on the same geologic structures, which include inclined flat layers, two types of horizontal folds (upright synclinal and anticlinal), and a plunging anticlinal fold (Figure 2).The test includes an instruction sheet, which gives an illustrated explanation of the concept cross-secrion, designed for non-earth sciences students. In addition, the following guidelines are listed:1. The problems might have more than one correct answer. 2. The layers are continuous and have consistent thicknesses. 3. The block diagrams can be regarded as cut out of larger three-dimensional structures.

A critical element of the earth sciences is reconstructing geological structures and systems that have developed over time. A survey of the science education literature shows that there has been little attention given to this concept. In this study, we present a model, based on Montagnero's (1996) model of diachronic thinking, which describes how students reconstruct geological transformations over time. For geology, three schemes of diachronic thinking are relevant: 1. Transformation, which is a principle of change; in geology it is understood through actualistic thinking (the idea that present proceeses can be used to model the past). 2. Temporal organization, which defines the sequential order of a transformation; in geology it is based on the three-dimensional relationship among strata. 3. Interstage linkage, which is the connections between successive stages of a transformation; in geology it is based on both actualism and causal reasoning. Three specialized instruments were designed to determine the factors which influence reconstructive thinking: (a) the GeoTAT which tests diachronic thinking skills, (b) the TST which tests the relationship between spatial thinking and temporal thinking, and (c) the SFT which tests the influence of dimensional factors on temporal awareness. Based on the model constructed in this study we define the critical factors influencing reconstructive thinking: (a) the transformation scheme which influences the other diachronic schemes, (b) knowledge of geological processes, and (c) extracognitive factors. Among the students tested, there was a significant difference between Grade 9-12 students and Grade 7-8 students in their ability to reconstruct geological phenomena using diachronic thinking. This suggests that somewhere between Grades 7 and 8 it is possible to start teaching some of the logical principles used in geology to reconstruct geological structures. ß

This study deals with the development of system thinking skills at the elementary school level. It addresses the question of whether elementary school students can deal with complex systems. The sample included 40 4th grade students from one school in a small town in Israel. The students studied an inquiry-based earth systems curriculum that focuses on the hydro-cycle. The program involved lab simulations and experiments, direct interaction with components and processes of the water cycle in the outdoor learning environment and knowledge integration activities. Despite the students' minimal initial system thinking abilities, most of them made significant progress with their ability to analyze the hydrological earth system to its components and processes. As a result, they recognized interconnections between components of a system. Some of the students reached higher system thinking abilities, such as identifying interrelationships among several earth systems and identifying hidden parts of the hydrological system. The direct contact with real phenomena and processes in small scale scenarios enabled these students to create a concrete local water cycle, which could later be expanded into large scale abstract global cycles. The incorporation of outdoor inquiry-based learning with lab inquiry-based activities and knowledge integration assignments contributed to the 4th grade students' capacity to develop basic system thinking abilities at their young age. This suggests that although system thinking is regarded as a high order thinking skill, it can be developed to a certain extent in elementary school. With a proper long-term curriculum, these abilities can serve as the basis for the development of higher stages of system thinking at the junior-high/middle school level. ß