In response to the new needs for S/T/E/S‐literate science teachers, an S/T/E/S‐oriented ISMMC‐IEE combination model of instruction was implemented in two specially designed undergraduate courses and one graduate course within college science teacher training programs. These three courses served as case studies for class‐based, quasiquantitative pilot investigation aimed at gaining a deeper insight into some of the issues involved in the implementation in college of nontraditional, open‐ended, problem‐solving‐oriented teaching strategies which are in dissonance with the cognitive or affective styles and functional paradigms of most students. This probe into the dissonance issue revealed that prospective teachers are capable of handling the new instructional model and do gain in their higher‐level cognitive learning. However, undergraduates perceive these courses to be either difficult or not in accord with their needs, and their appreciation of the instructional techniques and style employed is different from that of graduate students accordingly. The current study suggests that although the ISMMC‐IEE model is useful in S/T/E/S‐oriented courses in science teacher training programs, special attention to the implementation stage is required to close the gap between students' and S/T/E/S educators' functional paradigms.