The abstract should be in Palatino Linotype as the font type, 9 pt., between 150-250 words.  The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of the 7E instructional strategy on the achievement and retention of SS II (11th grade) Biology students in public secondary schools in Nigeria. Intact classes of 60 students were randomly selected and denoted as the experimental group, which was taught with the 7E instructional strategy, and the control group, which was taught using the traditional, teacher-centered instruction methods. The data were collected via Biology Achievement in Respiration Test (BART), and analyzed using descriptive statistics and Independent Samples t-test for both variables. The results of the independent-sample t-test for the post-test scores indicated a significant value of p < 0.05 for the achievement variable. Similarly, the statistic indicated a p < 0.05 for students’ retention, when taught by the 7E instructional approach. The implication of these findings suggest that the adoption of the 7E instructional approach enhances students’ achievement in Biology. The findings also imply that students are able to remember what they were taught, after a time lapse, which enhances their chance of passing examinations.  The retention test was administered a month after the post-test.

<p style="text-align: justify;">The loss of direct experiences with nature among today's children is of concern as it affects their conservation willingness (CW). While little is known about the influence of live experiences on CW, much less is known about how these events are related. This study aimed to examine the serial mediating effects of biodiversity knowledge (BK) and affective attitudes (AA) on the relationship between live experiences with species and CW. An online questionnaire was administered to 429 school children (11-12 years) in the Maldives. A two-serial mediation analysis revealed that live experiences exerted significant negative direct and positive indirect effects on CW. Thus, although a predictive sequential pathway from live experiences to BK to AA to CW was confirmed, partial mediation involving other mediators or moderators is likely. The direct effects of live experiences on BK and AA and of BK on AA suggest that experiential learning that stimulates AA is necessary to achieve overall positive impacts on CW. Therefore, educators and policymakers are critical in providing first-hand experiences to instill positive biodiversity conservation traits in children, enabling successful education for sustainable development and long-term biodiversity conservation.</p>