Kana Ioku

University students aspiring to become elementary school teachers practiced cooking rice in glass pots, following two home economics textbooks. Changes in the pots, students' actions, insights, questions, and decision-making criteria were extracted from video recordings and student worksheets. The "lid sound" indicating boiling, mentioned in both textbooks, was not observed, and all groups experienced boil-overs. Steam proved to be a more useful indicator. Students were confused by the interpretation of "water absorption" during the transition from boiling to simmering, which led to delays in switching phases; however, these delays were generally acceptable. One textbook suggested using the "burning smell" as an indicator to turn off the heat during the simmering phase; however, some groups noticed it too early, making it an unreliable cue. Although the students prioritized assessing the condition of the cooking rice, they sometimes adjusted the heat based on the cooking times indicated by the textbooks. Burning was observed at the bottom of the pots in all groups. Home economics textbooks should detail the reproducible state of rice-cooking.