Category: News

We are pleased to share that Remah Haj presented her research at the Annual International Conference on Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Education 2026:

Haj, R., Tsybulsky, D. Epistemic emotions as markers and mechanisms in the integration of scientific knowledge through the SSI-DC learning pathway. Annual International Conference on Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Education 2026. Western Galilee College, Israel, May 2026. Oral presentation.

Her presentation focused on the role of epistemic emotions in students’ learning processes within a Socio-Scientific Issues through Digital Curation (SSI-DC) learning pathway.
The study conceptualizes epistemic emotions as both markers of uncertainty, cognitive conflict, and knowledge gaps, and mechanisms that support exploration, evaluation of information, argumentation, and knowledge construction. By examining students’ experiences across different phases of SSI learning, the research highlights the dynamic ways in which emotions accompany and support the integration of scientific knowledge.
This work contributes to the growing body of research on emotions in science education and provides new insights into the role of epistemic emotions in technology-enhanced learning environments.

 

We are pleased to share the publication of a new article by our research group in Science & Education:

Ben Simon, H., Pshenichny-Mamo, A., & Tsybulsky, D. (2026). Teaching nature of science: A pedagogy of practice framework for teachers’ professional development. Science & Education. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11191-026-00750-8

The article presents a practice-based pedagogical framework for supporting science teachers’ professional development in teaching the Nature of Science (NOS).

The study explores how teachers incorporated NOS instruction into their classrooms through authentic, reflective, and context-based teaching practices. The findings demonstrate how teachers adopted and adapted new pedagogical strategies for NOS instruction, with storytelling-based approaches emerging as particularly meaningful and engaging for both teachers and students.

This work contributes to ongoing research and practice in science teacher education and offers new insights into effective approaches for supporting NOS teaching in schools.

Today, we were pleased to host a delegation from the Haifa District, led by representatives from the STEM supervision team and educational leadership, at our Smart BioEd Lab. During the visit, we presented our research focus on bridging between the culture of science and the worlds of learners and teachers through authentic and meaningful learning contexts. The delegation was introduced to our work on digital curation, and teacher professional development, as well as to our citizen science Sleep Project. The visit also highlighted our lab’s role in connecting research with practice through collaborations with schools, teacher communities, and pre-service teachers. We are grateful for this opportunity to share our work and look forward to future collaborations with the Haifa educational community.

 

We are happy to share that we presented our research on the “Sleep” Citizen Science Project at three conferences: the NARST Online Conference, the ILANIT Conference and the Annual Conference of the Israeli Center for Citizen Science.

We are grateful for the engaging discussions, the interest in this work, and the opportunity to be part of such meaningful scientific communities.

Ben Simon. H, L., & Tsybulsky, D. Learning about science by doing real science: fostering NOS understanding through citizen science. NARST2026 Online Conference. Seattle, Washington, April 2026. Oral presentation.

Ben Simon, H. & Tsybulsky, D. Engaging students with citizen science: Gateway to new scientific frontiers. ILANIT2026 Conference. Eilat, Israel, February2026. Oral presentation.

Yifrach. L.  & Tsybulsky, D. Sleep project: Investigating sleep from humans to drosophila as a biological model. Annual Conference of the Israeli Center for Citizen Science, The Steinhardt Museum of Natural History, February  2026. Oral presentation.

Excited to share our new publication!

In this study, we explore how epistemic emotions, such as confusion, curiosity, and enjoyment, unfold and function within socio-scientific issue learning through digital curation. Our findings highlight a clear emotional trajectory: from initial uncertainty and tension toward curiosity, engagement, and meaningful knowledge construction.

Importantly, we show that these emotions are not just by-products of learning, but integral to it – serving both as markers of cognitive processes and as mechanisms that drive inquiry, evaluation, and collaborative sensemaking.

Kudos to Remah Haj for this fascinating research, conducted as part of her doctoral work!

Haj, R. & Tsybulsky, D. (2026). From confusion to curiosity: epistemic emotions in socio-scientific issue learning through digital curation. Disciplinary and Interdisciplinary Science Education Research. Special Issue on SSIs. https://doi.org/10.1186/s43031-026-00157-z

We are pleased to announce that Anna Pshenichny-Mamo has received the Technion’s Award for Excellence in Teaching Assistance for Spring 2025.
Congratulations to Anna on this well-deserved achievement 🏆

We are delighted to congratulate Haya Ben Simon on being awarded the Jacobs Excellence Scholarship (2026).

This prestigious scholarship recognizes academic excellence and outstanding promise, and reflects Haya’s dedication, scholarly achievements, and meaningful contributions to research. We are proud of her accomplishment and wish her continued success in her academic journey.

We are delighted to congratulate Gal Stern on being selected to receive a NARST 2026 International Travel Award, supporting her travel to the NARST2026 Annual International Conference.

At the conference, Gal will present her accepted oral paper:
Stern, G. & Tsybulsky, D. (2026). From collecting to designing: Integrating AI into digital curation for personalized science education.
NARST 2026 Conference, Seattle, USA, April 2026.

 We are proud of her achievement and look forward to her presentation at NARST 2026.

I’m delighted to share that our article, “Critical Ignoring Reimagined: Insights from STEM Digital Curation on Wikimedia Platforms,” has been published in Smart Learning Environments.

Led by Shani Evenstein Sigalov, this study revisits the concept of critical ignoring and extends it through an in-depth qualitative analysis of experienced Wikimedians engaged in STEM digital curation on Wikipedia and Wikidata. The findings show how the original strategies of critical ignoring (self-nudging, lateral reading, and “don’t feed the trolls”) are enacted and sustained in real-world, collaborative knowledge production.

Importantly, the study identifies additional motivational and contextual dimensions that support critical ignoring over time, highlighting its role as a sustained, socially embedded practice rather than a momentary evaluation skill.

👉 Read the article here:

Evenstein Sigalov, S. & Tsybulsky, D. (2026). Critical ignoring reimagined: Insights from STEM digital curation on Wikimedia platforms. Smart Learning Environments, 13:4, 1-32. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40561-026-00432-6

🎥 You can also watch a short AI-generated video overview here: 

 

 

We are excited to share that our new book chapter has been published!

The chapter examines the educational goals that natural history museum staff associate with climate change exhibitions and analyzes how different aspects of nature of science are integrated into exhibition content. By focusing on museum professionals’ perspectives alongside an analysis of the exhibitions themselves, the study highlights the pedagogical potential of natural history museums as authentic learning environments that can complement formal biology and climate change education.
📘 The chapter is available here:
https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-032-05346-6_7

Pshenichny-Mamo, A., Demarse, M., Hunter, R.H. & Tsybulsky, D. (2026). Exploring the educational potential of climate change exhibitions in natural history museums. In C. Bruguière, M. Hammann & O. Morin (Eds.), Shaping the Future of Biological Education Research. Contributions from Biology Education Research (pp. 87-101). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-032-05346-6_7