Welcome to issue 18, which highlights pedagogical challenges in science education from practitioners' perspectives from different parts of the world. Two articles from Japan highlight the importance of promoting science education through a range of Hypothesis-Experiment Classbooks. Another article discusses the relevance of teaching science in contexts that are real to students. Ade Magaji reflects on the current state of STEM education in Nigeria, and the final article examines the act of learning from and emulating natural forms, processes and ecosystems through biomimicry.