ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews a range of science education research on best practices in urban schools. The term “urban education” has been used as a code word for issues associated with race, culture, and poverty. A more dynamic vision of urban schools becomes increasingly important as movements toward gentrification reshape what an “urban” school looks like in a modern context. A significant shift in the framing of science teaching in urban schools involves refocusing the research base from one that attempts to fix underperforming students in urban schools toward a framework that seeks to build equitable educational opportunities for students who are embedded in societal and educational contexts that produce inequitable opportunities. A number of studies in science education attempt to describe the challenges associated with preparing teachers to teach science in urban schools. A significant theme in research on urban schools centers on shifting the paradigm of instruction from teacher-centered to student-centered.
