This study aims to verify the possibility of applying KI （Knowledge Intensive Staff Innovation） to Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) teachers. KI is an on-the-job-training method, and has been used for its positive effects in the Japanese workplaces. The results suggest the beneficial impact of the HOIKU-KI (H-KI) approach on the ECEC teachers. After conducting a workshop for 45 ECEC teachers, we improved the educational methods, based on their feedback. The data analysis classified 175 comments in terms of expected and unexpected reactions as well as positive and negative messages. We reflected on the teachers’ opinions and improved the format of the discussion worksheet. Further, technical terms were translated into everyday terminology. The H-KI process as well as the discussion method was explained in detail. Thereafter, a workshop for another 20 teachers in which the improved teaching method was employed, was held. The results confirmed the positive educational effect of H-KI. All teachers actively stated their opinions, owing to the use of improved educational methods. Thus, the result suggests that H-KI is applicable to ECEC teachers. Arrangements for the application of H-KI approach in each childcare facility will be made in the next stage.

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This study aimed to clarify the effect of a teaching method on facilitating interaction between students’ scientific knowledge and prior knowledge of science at junior high school level. Two different types of lessons were delivered, with thirty-two students participating in each. The aforementioned teaching method was used in one of the lessons, whose participants were classified as the experimental group, while the other participants were classified as the nonexperimental group. After the lesson, students were tested on the recall and application of knowledge. More students from the experimental group gave correct answers to questions relating to both recall and application than those from the non-experimental group. In addition, a protocol analysis in the experimental group revealed that students could clearly grasp the link between different concepts within the wider spectrum of scientific knowledge and could relate prior knowledge to the broader scientific framework. These results suggest that the students in the experimental group could apply the knowledge required for problem solving by effectively adapting the logic of recalled scientific knowledge.

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The objectives of this study were to examine (1) how eighth graders understand formulae and　why they are unable to use relational processing of formulae and (2) the effect of a teaching　method to facilitate relational processing in learning a new formula. In Study 1, Ohm’s law was used to assess if the students (N = 345) were capable of identifying　the relation between formulae and variables, comprehending the formulae, and understanding　“the difference between the remainder and the ratio.” The results showed that the students were　unable to process variables and they had a limited understanding of relativity and“ the difference　between the remainder and the ratio.” In Study 2, the students were divided into an experimental　group (N = 198) and a non-experimental group (N = 145). In the experimental group, a teaching　method that included operational thinking tasks was used to facilitate learning. The results showed that with this method, most students developed the ability to process variables in a　formula, and therefore, it was an effective method for teaching new formulae.

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