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Science Interest Could Foster ‘Learning Progressions’

Frameworks spell out student comprehension of concepts over time.

Most children acquire an understanding of the natural world well before they receive their first science lesson, research suggests. They know that solid objects cannot move through each other, that individuals behave differently, and that plants and animals need food to live.

After enrolling in school, that knowledge is broadened and refined, experts say, as students face society’s expectations for what they need to know about science, for each grade.

Developing a cohesive, logical path between those starting and ending points is the goal of “learning progressions,” a concept that has long interested scholars and soon could draw renewed attention from school officials, particularly when it...