In order to assess the rainfall erosivity in the Pannonian basin, several parameters which describe distribution, concentration and variability of precipitation were used, as well as 9 extreme precipitation indices. The precipitation data is obtained from the European Climate Assessment and Dataset project for the period 1961-2014, for 8 meteorological stations in northern Serbia, 5 in Hungary and 1 in eastern Croatia. The extreme values of precipitation were calculated following the indices developed by the ETCCDI. RclimDex software package was used for indices calculation. Based on statistical analysis and the calculated values, the results have been presented with Geographic Information System (GIS) to point out the most vulnerable parts of the Pannonian basin, with regard to pluvial erosion. This study presents the first result of combined rainfall erosivity and extreme precipitation indices for the investigated area. Results of PCI indicate presence of moderate precipitation concentration (mean value 11.6). Trend analysis of FI (mean value 22.7) and MFI (mean value 70.2) implies a shift from being largely in the low erosivity class, to being completely in the moderate erosivity class in the future, thus indicating an increase in rainfall erosivity for most of the investigated area (except in the northwestern parts). Furthermore, the observed precipitation extremes suggest that both the amount and the intensity of precipitation are increasing. The knowledge about the areas affected by strong soil erosion could lead to introducing effective measures in order to reduce it. Long term analysis of rainfall erosivity is a significant step concerning flood prevention, hazard mitigation, ecosystem services, land use change and agricultural production.

Many studies carried out on the mole concept emphasize that students show significant difficulties in learning this concept. The aim of our research was to analyze those difficulties that students, who have their first contact with chemistry in school, encounter, and also to examine the usefulness of systemics as a graphical way of knowledge representation. The sample of the study included seventh grade students from a primary school in Novi Sad, Serbia. Based on the results of the pre-test, students were divided into three main groups: "excellent", "good" and "acceptable", which all consisted of two subgroups: experimental and control. Students in the experimental subgroup were learning by applying systemics, while the students in the control subgroup were taught by traditional method. The final results show that systemics is convenient in overcoming the difficulties in the case of "excellent" and "acceptable" groups of students, while the same cannot be concluded for the students characterized as "good". Systemics has not proved to be adequate for them. The following question remains a topic for the future research: Is there any way that the group of students characterized as "good" still benefits from learning with systemics? In addition, new research on a larger number of students should be conducted, in order to statistically confirm these results, or to discuss new ones.

Previous research of inquiry-based learning in natural science education indicates that there are different methodological trends and paradigms in the study of these issues. The aim of this research has been to analyze the selected relevant studies on inquiry-based learning in natural science education in order to assess their scope and limitations in the light of educational changes and reform initiatives. Directions of analysis of the relevant studies include considerations of the following: 1) Theoretical starting points and specific conceptual solutions, 2) Methodological design (research questions / problems, methods, techniques, and procedures), as well as 3) (Re)interpretation of the most significant findings. It could be stated that studies on inquiry-based learning in the field of natural sciences are rather insufficient, very diverse and heterogeneous, differing from each other both in terms of theory and conceptual solutions, research problems, methodological design, and implications for educational work. Even though experiments are very common in natural sciences, it has been found that triangulation is often used as a combination of qualitative and quantitative paradigms. The common thread that connects the selected studies in this field is the recognition of importance of inquiry-based learning as a very promising model of active teaching the natural sciences. It could be concluded that such studies require an interdisciplinary approach to the subject of study, both in empirical and theoretical field, providing better understanding of the future research directions of this phenomenon. Keywords: inquiry-based learning, innovative approach, methodological design, natural science education, research paradigms

Research studies aimed at finding a more efficient model of teaching biology are still sporadic and inconsistent in the contemporary literature. The main aim of the research was to examine the correlation between the application of teaching strategies in biology teaching and students' school achievements, depending on how much the teacher respects their learning styles. The method of theoretical analysis and descriptive method were applied in the research. The sample consisted of 151 third-grade students (39.7% male and 60.3% female) of upper-secondary school. Kolb’s Inventory of Learning Styles and Questionnaire for Assessing the Teaching Strategies of Biology Teachers were used as data gathering tools. Independent t-test, χ2 - square test, and One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) were used to analyze data. The results showed that there was a statistically significant correlation between teaching strategies, learning styles, and students' school achievement in biology learning. At the same time, students perceived the applied teaching strategies differently, and manifested different dimensions of learning styles. This was followed by the conclusion that students achieved better school achievements in biology teaching when they were taught in the ways that corresponded to their learning styles, which pointed to certain implications for inquiry-based teaching, as well as in education of future biology teachers. Keywords: descriptive method, inquiry-based teaching, learning styles, teaching strategies in biology, theoretical analysis

Lecture-based teaching is still the prevalent form of teaching in almost all secondary schools in Serbia. Although active teaching cannot eliminate all the shortcomings in the teaching of Geography, this particular form gives the best opportunities for understanding individual abilities and preferences of students. The principal aim of the study was to explore which way of teaching (modern-active or traditional-passive) is more beneficial for motivating students' learning and acquiring competencies (knowledge, skills, and abilities) in Geography. Research was conducted to analyse competencies acquired by selected high school students through the application of certain didactic principles in the third grade of Grammar school "Laza Kostić" (Novi Sad, Serbia) with the topic "Hydrography of Serbia". Fieldwork investigation was comprised of conducted survey questionnaire (with pupils evaluating motivation and participation in the process of teaching Geography, as well as activities and learning/acquiring certain geographical content through selected didactic principles, forms, methods, and tools) and the competency test. Descriptive statistics was used for calculating the percentage and average values. The independent t-test was used in order to determine whether there is a statistically significant difference between the experimental and control group regarding the self-evaluation of motivation, participation in teaching, and learning. The difference in terms of acquiring competencies between experimental and control groups was explored by the Chi-square test (χ2). In order to determine whether there is a correlation between self-evaluation in terms of motivation, cooperation, and learning, as well as in the knowledge test between the experimental and control groups, Pearson's correlation coefficient (r) has been calculated. The results indicate that the students have higher level of motivation, and are more interested in learning and acquiring knowledge when the teacher organises the lecture through active learning techniques. The knowledge and skills resulting from these kinds of classes are higher. Also, the results obtained from this type of experimental classes, showed that with an increase of skills and abil-ities, there is no increase in knowledge implying that modern (active) teaching presented better results than the traditional teaching format, but not in all analysed segments.