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Biology: the ultimate science for teaching an understanding of scientific evidence (2018)
Presentation / Conference Contribution
Roberts, R. (2018). Biology: the ultimate science for teaching an understanding of scientific evidence. In N. Gericke, & M. Grace (Eds.), Challenges in biology education research (225-241)

Recent school science curriculum developments in many countries emphasise that scientists derive evidence for their claims through different approaches; that such practices are intimately bound up with disciplinary knowledge; and that the quality of... Read More about Biology: the ultimate science for teaching an understanding of scientific evidence.

Exploring ‘The Thinking Behind the Doing’ in an Investigation: Students’ Understanding of Variables (2017)
Book Chapter
Oshima, R., & Roberts, R. (2017). Exploring ‘The Thinking Behind the Doing’ in an Investigation: Students’ Understanding of Variables. In J. Yeo, T. W. Teo, & K. Tang (Eds.), Science Education Research and Practice in Asia-Pacific and Beyond (69-83). Springer Verlag. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-5149-4_5

Recent curriculum developments emphasise that scientific practice involves understanding about evidence. The concepts of evidence have been identified as ‘the thinking behind the doing’ and have been validated as a knowledge base underpinning this un... Read More about Exploring ‘The Thinking Behind the Doing’ in an Investigation: Students’ Understanding of Variables.

Understanding evidence in scientific disciplines: identifying and mapping ‘the thinking behind the doing’ and its importance in curriculum development (2017)
Journal Article
Roberts, R. (2017). Understanding evidence in scientific disciplines: identifying and mapping ‘the thinking behind the doing’ and its importance in curriculum development. Practice and evidence of scholarship of teaching and learning in higher education, 12(2), 411-429

Understanding research, the uncertainty of the resultant data and research claims are widely held aims of HE science curricula. Expertise in scientific research involves, inter alia, an understanding of evidence. The underpinning knowledge-base of ev... Read More about Understanding evidence in scientific disciplines: identifying and mapping ‘the thinking behind the doing’ and its importance in curriculum development.

A concept map for understanding ‘working scientifically’ (2016)
Journal Article
Johnson, P., & Roberts, R. (2016). A concept map for understanding ‘working scientifically’. School science review, 97(360), 21-28

The generation and critical evaluation of good-quality data requires the understanding of ideas rather than practising set procedures. ‘Working scientifically’ does not explicitly specify these ideas. To highlight that thinking is necessary, this art... Read More about A concept map for understanding ‘working scientifically’.

Understanding the validity of data: a knowledge-based network underlying research expertise in scientific disciplines (2016)
Journal Article
Roberts, R. (2016). Understanding the validity of data: a knowledge-based network underlying research expertise in scientific disciplines. Higher Education, 72(5), 651-668. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-015-9969-4

This article considers what might be taught to meet a widely held curriculum aim of students being able to understand research in a discipline. Expertise, which may appear as a ‘chain of practice’, is widely held to be underpinned by networks of unde... Read More about Understanding the validity of data: a knowledge-based network underlying research expertise in scientific disciplines.

The practical work challenge: incorporating the explicit teaching of evidence in subject content (2015)
Journal Article
Roberts, R., & Reading, C. (2015). The practical work challenge: incorporating the explicit teaching of evidence in subject content. School science review, 31-39

The new National Curriculum in England aims for pupils to understand traditional ideas in biology, chemistry and physics as well as to understand evidence, as specified in ‘Working scientifically’. It also instructs that ‘Working scientifically . . .... Read More about The practical work challenge: incorporating the explicit teaching of evidence in subject content.

Understanding the quality of data: a concept map for ‘the thinking behind the doing’ in scientific practice (2015)
Journal Article
Roberts, R., & Johnson, P. (2015). Understanding the quality of data: a concept map for ‘the thinking behind the doing’ in scientific practice. The Curriculum Journal, 26(3), 345-369. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585176.2015.1044459

Recent school science curriculum developments in many countries emphasise that scientists derive evidence for their claims through different approaches; that such practices are bound up with disciplinary knowledge; and that the quality of data should... Read More about Understanding the quality of data: a concept map for ‘the thinking behind the doing’ in scientific practice.

Scientific Evidence as Content Knowledge: a replication study with English and Turkish pre-service primary teachers (2012)
Journal Article
Roberts, R., & Sahin-Pekmez, E. (2012). Scientific Evidence as Content Knowledge: a replication study with English and Turkish pre-service primary teachers. European Journal of Teacher Education, 35(1), 91-109. https://doi.org/10.1080/02619768.2011.633991

Pre-service teachers around the world need to develop their content knowledge of scientific evidence to meet the requirements of recent school curriculum developments which prepare pupils to be scientifically literate. This research reports a replica... Read More about Scientific Evidence as Content Knowledge: a replication study with English and Turkish pre-service primary teachers.

The language of measurement: terminology used in school science investigations. (2010)
Book
Boohan, R., Campbell, P., Charlesworth, J., Galloway, I., Millar, R., Needham, R., & Roberts, R. (2010). The language of measurement: terminology used in school science investigations. ASE

The scientific community has developed over time a specialised vocabulary for talking about practical exploration and investigation. Terms such as valid, reliable, accurate, precise, error, uncertainty – and many more – are frequently used in discuss... Read More about The language of measurement: terminology used in school science investigations..

Students' approaches to open-ended science investigation: the importance of substantive and procedural understanding (2010)
Journal Article
Roberts, R., Gott, R., & Glaesser, J. (2010). Students' approaches to open-ended science investigation: the importance of substantive and procedural understanding. Research Papers in Education, 25(4), 377-407. https://doi.org/10.1080/02671520902980680

This paper investigates the respective roles of substantive and procedural understanding with regard to students’ ability to carry out an open-ended science investigation. The research is a case study centred on an intervention in which undergraduate... Read More about Students' approaches to open-ended science investigation: the importance of substantive and procedural understanding.

Questioning the evidence for a claim in a socio-scientific issue: an aspect of scientific literacy (2010)
Journal Article
Roberts, R., & Gott, R. (2010). Questioning the evidence for a claim in a socio-scientific issue: an aspect of scientific literacy. Research in Science and Technological Education, 28(3), 203-226. https://doi.org/10.1080/02635143.2010.506413

Understanding the science in a ‘socio-scientific issue’ is at the heart of the varied definitions of ‘scientific literacy’. Many consider that understanding evidence is necessary to participate in decision making and to challenge the science that aff... Read More about Questioning the evidence for a claim in a socio-scientific issue: an aspect of scientific literacy.

Underlying success in open-ended investigations in science: using Qualitative Comparative Analysis to identify necessary and sufficient conditions. (2009)
Journal Article
Glaesser, J., Gott, R., Roberts, R., & Cooper, B. (2009). Underlying success in open-ended investigations in science: using Qualitative Comparative Analysis to identify necessary and sufficient conditions. Research in Science and Technological Education, 27(1), 5-30. https://doi.org/10.1080/02635140802658784

Both substantive (i.e. factual knowledge, concepts, laws and theories) and procedural knowledge (understanding and applying concepts such as reliability and validity, measurement and calibration, data collection, measurement error, the ability to int... Read More about Underlying success in open-ended investigations in science: using Qualitative Comparative Analysis to identify necessary and sufficient conditions..

Biological Nomenclature. (2009)
Book
Cassidy, M., Lakin, L., Madden, D., Meatyard, B. (., Roberts, R., & Tribe, M. (2009). Biological Nomenclature. (4th edition). Institute of Biology

Can teaching about evidence encourage a creative approach in open-ended investigations? (2009)
Journal Article
Roberts, R. (2009). Can teaching about evidence encourage a creative approach in open-ended investigations?. School science review, Special Edition 90 (Creativity)(332), 31-38

Open-ended investigations give pupils the opportunity to work creatively to solve a problem. But what ideas need to be taught to enable such creativity? The empirical work reported in this case study shows that an understanding of substantive ideas i... Read More about Can teaching about evidence encourage a creative approach in open-ended investigations?.

The roles of substantive and procedural understanding in open-ended science investigations: using fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis to compare two different tasks. (2009)
Journal Article
Glaesser, J., Gott, R., Roberts, R., & Cooper, B. (2009). The roles of substantive and procedural understanding in open-ended science investigations: using fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis to compare two different tasks. Research in Science Education, 39(4), 595-624. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-008-9108-7

We examine the respective roles of substantive understanding (i.e., understanding of factual knowledge, concepts, laws and theories) and procedural understanding (an understanding of ideas about evidence; concepts such as reliability and validity, me... Read More about The roles of substantive and procedural understanding in open-ended science investigations: using fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis to compare two different tasks..