Anton E. Lawson
Biology Education, Cognitive Science
Dr. Lawson' s research centers on the nature and development of scientific reasoning patterns such as hypothetico-deductive, probabilistic, proportional, combinatorial, analogical and correlational reasoning. Major interests involve determination of factors that influence the development of these reasoning patterns during childhood and adolescence and determination of their relationship to each other and to scientific concept acquisition. The goal is to generate and test explanatory theories of the development of reasoning patterns and develop neurological models of cognition. Classroom implications are sought with the intent of improving science instruction.
Selected Publications
Lawson, A.E. (2005). William Harvey, predicting capillaries, and the nature of science – one more time. The American Biology Teacher, 67(4), 202-203.
Lawson, A.E. (2005). Editorial: Conducting high quality research. International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education . 3(1), 1-5.
Lawson, A.E. (2005). Why are some students failing your course? Focus on Microbiology Education, 12(1), 8-10.
Lawson, A.E. (2005). What is the role of induction and deduction in reasoning and scientific inquiry? Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 42(6), 716-740.
Lawson, A.E. (2004). T. rex , the crater of doom, and the nature of scientific discovery. Science & Education, 13(3), 155-177.
Lawson, A.E. (2004). Preserving our intellectual history: The history and development of the learning cycle. Proceedings 2003-2004 AETS Annual Conference. Muncie , IN : Association for the Education of Teachers in Science.
Lawson, A.E. (2004). A reply to Allchin's "pseudohistory and pseudoscience." Science & Education, 13(6), 599-605.
Lawson, A.E. (2004). The nature and development of scientific reasoning: A synthetic view. International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education, 2(4), 307-338.
Cardellini, L. (2005). Questions biology teachers are asking: An interview with Anton E. Lawson. The American Biology Teacher. 67(3), 140-148.
Lawson, A.E. (2004). Biology: An Inquiry Approach. Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall/Hunt Publishers.
Lawson, A.E. (2004). Reasoning and brain function. In R.J. Sternberg & J.P. Leighton (Eds.), The Nature of Reasoning. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Adamson, S.L., Burtch, M., Cox III, F., Judson, E., , Turley, J.B., Benford, R., and Lawson, A.E. (2003). Reformed undergraduate instruction and its subsequent impact on secondary school teaching practice and student achievement. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 40(10), 939-957.
Lawson, A.E. (2003). The nature and development of hypothetico-predictive argumentation with implications for science teaching. International Journal of Science Education, 25(11), 1387-1408.
Lawson, A.E. (2003). Allchin's shoehorn, or why science is hypothetico-deductive. Science & Education. 12(3), 331-337.
Lawson, A.E. (2003). Using the RTOP to Evaluate Reformed Science and Mathematics Instruction. In R.A. McCray, R.L. DeHaan, and J.A. Schuck (Eds.), Improving Undergraduate Instruction in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. National Research Council, The National Academies. Washington D.C
Lawson, A.E. & Wollman, W.T. (2003). Encouraging the transition from concrete to formal cognitive functioning - an experiment. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 40(Supplement), 33-50.
Lawson, A.E. (2003). The Neurological Basis of Learning, Development and Discovery: Implications for Teaching Science and Mathematics. Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Kluwer Academic Publishers.
Lawson, A.E. (2002). The origin of logical reasoning: Does a cheater detection module exist? Journal of Genetic Psychology, 163(4), 425-444.
Lawson, A.E. (2002). Teaching concepts and developing reasoning skills using learning cycles. The School Science Review. 1(4), 1-19. The School Science Review is an electronic journal: www.flexi.net.au/~willdown/scedview.html.
Lawson, A.E. (2002). Sound and faulty arguments generated by pre-service biology teachers when testing hypotheses involving un-observable entities. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 39(3), 237-252.
Lawson, A.E. (2002). What does Galileo's discovery of Jupiter's moons tell us about the process of scientific discovery? Science & Education, 11(1), 1-24.
Lawson, A.E., Benford, R., Bloom, I., Carlson, M.P., Falconer, K., Hestenes, D., Judson, E., Piburn, M.D., Sawada, D., Turley, J., & Wyckoff, S. (2002). Evaluating college science and mathematics instruction. Journal of College Science Teaching. 31(6), 388-393.
Lawson, A.E. & Johnson, M.A. (2002). Investigating the validity of learning styles and developmental levels in college biology. Studies in Higher Education, 27(1), 79-90.
Lawson, A.E. (2002). The learning cycle. In Fuller, R.G. (Ed.). A Love of Discovery: Science Education - The Second Career of Robert Karplus. New York: Kluwer Academic Publishers.
Baker, W.P. & Lawson, A.E. (2001). Complex instructional analogies and theoretical concept acquisition in college genetics. Science Education, 85, 665-683.
Lawson, A. E., (2001). Using the learning cycle to teach biology concepts and reasoning patterns. Journal of Biological Education, 35(4), 165-169. (http://www.iob.org)
Kwon, Y.J., Lawson, A.E., Chung, W.H., & Kim, Y.S. (2000). Effect on development of proportional reasoning skill of physical experience and cognitive abilities associated with prefrontal lobe activity. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 37(10), 1171-1182.
Lawson, A.E. (2000). How do humans acquire knowledge? And what does that imply about the nature of knowledge? Science & Education, 9(6), 577-598
Lawson, A.E., Alkhoury, S., Benford, R., Clark, B. & Falconer, K.A. (2000). What kinds of scientific concepts exist? Concept construction and intellectual development in college biology. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 37(9), 996-1018.
Lawson, A.E. (2000). Managing the inquiry classroom: Problems and solutions. The American Biology Teacher, 62(9), 641-648.
Lawson, A.E. (2000). The generality of hypothetico-deductive reasoning: Making scientific reasoning explicit. The American Biology Teacher, 62(7), 482-495
Lawson, A.E., Clark, B., Cramer-Meldrum, E., Falconer, K.A., Kwon, Y.J., & Sequist, J.M. (2000). The development of reasoning skills in college biology: Do two levels of general hypothesis-testing skills exist? Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 37(1), 81-101.
Lawson, A.E. (2000). A learning cycle approach to introducing osmosis. The American Biology Teacher, 62(3), 189-196.
Lawson, A.E., Drake, N., Johnson, J., Kwon, Y. & Scarpone, C. (2000). How good are students at testing alternative hypotheses involving unseen entities? The American Biology Teacher, 62(4), 249-255.
Kwon, Yong-Ju & Lawson, A.E. (2000). Linking brain growth with scientific reasoning ability and conceptual change during adolescence. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 37(1), 44-62
Birk, J.P. & Lawson, A.E. (1999). The persistence of the candle and cylinder misconception. Journal of Chemical Education, 76(7), 914-916.
Lawson, A.E., Lewis Jr., Cecil M. & Birk, James P. (1999). Why do students "cook" lab data? A case study of the tenacity of misconceptions. The Journal of College Science Teaching, 29(3), 191-198.
Lawson, A.E. (1999). What should students learn about the nature of science and how should we teach it? Journal of College Science Teaching, 28(6), 401-411.
Lawson, A.E. (1999). A scientific approach to teaching about evolution and special
creation. The American Biology Teacher, 61(4), 266-273.