Inside versus outside the science classroom: examining the positionality of two female science teachers at the boundaries of science education

The Atmospheric Science Education Program (ASEP) established in 1986 at Purdue University had two components: (1) To conduct a summer program for teachers on topics in atmospheric science; and (2) To develop educational materials for teaching atmospheric science to grades five through nine. The ASEP Summer Program for Teachers was conducted at Purdue University in July 1987 for selected Indiana teachers. Its purpose was to help teachers that teach science in grades five through nine to incorporate atmospheric science topics into their school curricula. The teachers participated in a four-week program that included lectures, laboratory sessions, educational applications seminars, field trips, and guest speakers. The ASEP staff also developed a series of videotapes and an accompanying set of instructional booklets for students and teachers. These materials were designed to reach a nationwide audience of students and teachers of science so they could incorporate atmospheric-related activities into the general science classroom. The participating teachers in the summer program provided input on the suitability (for the targeted school grades) of these materials, which will become available in late 1988. Follow-up visitations were made by ASEP staff to the schools of the summer participants to determine the impact of the summer program and to assist the teachers with implementation of atmospheric science into their science classrooms. These visitations and other correspondence with the participating teachers have revealed that the teachers are actively adapting the educational materials and components of the summer program instruction into their science curricula, as well as conducting in-service training for other teachers in their own school districts and at state science-teachers' meetings.

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En Delfistudie om lärares uppfattning av elevengagemang i NO-undervisningen A Delphi study of teachers views on engagement in the science classroom

Nordic Studies in Science Education ◽

10.5617/nordina.5614 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 15 (2) ◽

pp. 128-144

Author(s):

Cristian Abrahamsson ◽

Claes Malmberg ◽

Ann-Marie Pendrill

Keyword(s):

Science Education ◽

Science Teachers ◽

Delphi Study ◽

Science Classroom ◽

Emotional Expressions ◽

Direct Connection ◽

Academic Behavior ◽

Scientific Content ◽

Expert Science ◽

High Level

What happens in a science classroom where students are engaged and how do teachers observe and interpret student engagement? This article highlights teachers’ perspective on students’ engagement in science education and to what extent it is connected to the scientific content. This approach complements earlier research which focuses mostly on students’ attitude towards science education and their interest in various topics in science.The findings are based on a three-stage Delphi survey distributed to 39 expert science teachers. The results shows science education with a range of different perspectives and that most teachers do not perceive any direct connection between specific science topics and the students’ engagement. The survey also shows that teachers to a high level interpret students’ emotional expressions and academic behavior as engagement rather than their cognitive behavior.

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Science Communication Versus Science Education: The Graduate Student Scientist As A K-12 Classroom Resource

Journal of College Teaching & Learning (TLC) ◽

10.19030/tlc.v2i6.1831 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 2 (6) ◽

Author(s):

Jeff Strauss ◽

Richard E. Shope III ◽

Susan Terebey

Keyword(s):

Science Education ◽

No Child Left Behind ◽

Los Angeles ◽

Science Teachers ◽

Graduate Student ◽

Science Communication ◽

Common Ground ◽

Science Literacy ◽

Science Classroom ◽

K 12

Science literacy is a major goal of science educational reform (NRC, 1996; AAAS, 1998; NCLB Act, 2001). Some believe that teaching science only requires pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) (Shulman, 1987). Others believe doing science requires knowledge of the methodologies of scientific inquiry (NRC, 1996). With these two mindsets, the challenge for science educators is to create models that bring the two together. The common ground between those who teach science and those who do science is science communication, an interactive process that galvanizes dialogue among scientists, teachers, and learners in a rich ambience of mutual respect and a common, inclusive language of discourse (Stocklmayer, 2001). The dialogue between science and non-science is reflected in the polarization that separates those who do science and those who teach science, especially as it plays out everyday in the science classroom. You may be thinking, why is this important? It is vital because, although not all science learners become scientists, all K-12 students are expected to acquire science literacy, especially with the implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB). Students are expected to acquire the ability to follow the discourse of science as well as connect the world of science to the context of their everyday life if they plan on moving to the next grade level, and in some states, to graduate from high school. This paper posits that science communication is highly effective in providing the missing link for K-12 students’ cognition in science and their attainment of science literacy. This paper will focus on the “Science For Our Schools” (SFOS) model implemented at California State University, Los Angeles (CSULA) as a project of the National Science Foundation’s GK-12 program, (NSF 2001) which has been a huge success in bridging the gap between those who “know” science and those who “teach” science. The SFOS model makes clear the distinctions that identify science, science communication, science education, and science literacy in the midst of science learning by bringing together graduate student scientists and science teachers to engage students in the two world’s dialogue in the midst of the school science classroom. The graduate student scientists and the science teachers worked as a team throughout the school year and became effective science communicators as they narrowed the gulf between the two worlds.

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Beliefs of preschool teacher candidates about the nature of science

African Educational Research Journal ◽

10.30918/aerj.84.20.173 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 (4) ◽

pp. 774-783

Author(s):

Güzin Özyılmaz ◽

Keyword(s):

Science Education ◽

Nature Of Science ◽

Science Teachers ◽

Teacher Candidates ◽

Preschool Education ◽

Preschool Teacher ◽

Spring Semester ◽

Teachers Beliefs ◽

Aim Of Science ◽

Academic Year

The aim of science education is to enable children to become “science-literate.” Science literacy is defined as taking responsibility for and making decisions about situations requiring scientific understanding and having sufficient knowledge, skills, attitudes and understanding of values to put their decisions into practice. Revealing teachers’ beliefs can help to understand the types of experiences presented by teachers in their classrooms. Inadequate understandings and misbeliefs of teachers shape the first perceptions of children about the NOS when they are formally introduced with science education in their early childhood. Most of the studies were also performed with science teachers and there have been few studies conducted with preschool teachers. Therefore, the present study was directed towards determining NOS beliefs of preschool teacher candidates. To achieve this aim, Nature of Science Beliefs Scale (NOSBS), developed by Özcan and Turgut (2014), was administered to the preschool teacher candidates studying in Preschool Education Department of Buca Education Faculty at Dokuz Eylül University in the spring semester of the 2018-2019 academic year. In the study, the NOS beliefs of the teacher candidates were found to be acceptable in general. While the findings of this study are consistent with those revealed in several relevant studies in the literature

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A Glance Portrayal of Science Education in Indonesia

10.31219/osf.io/egy2n ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Adib Rifqi Setiawan

Keyword(s):

Science Education ◽

General Education ◽

Science Teachers ◽

Teaching And Learning ◽

Science Teacher Education ◽

Asia Pacific ◽

Professional Organizations ◽

Curriculum Innovation ◽

Global Science ◽

Historical Developments

The goal of this work is to describe pre- and in-service science teacher education and science education research in Indonesia in an effort to better inform the global science education community about historical developments and present challenges. We begin by providing an historical overview of the general education system to provide readers with context needed to understand current reform initiatives. Next we describe the current-day process for preparing and certifying science teachers and we describe some of the challenges facing teachers, students, and researchers in Indonesia’s science education context today. We follow this discussion with an introduction to some existing professional organizations for teachers and researchers in Indonesia that are working to develop important channels for disseminating current research on teacher practice, curriculum innovation, and student learning that have the potential to positively influence on teaching and learning in the future. We conclude by highlighting some areas that would benefit from additional research and by inviting more international collaborative research initiatives with colleagues in the Asia-Pacific region and beyond.

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Science Teachers’ Perceptions and Self-Efficacy Beliefs Related to Integrated Science Education

Education Sciences ◽

10.3390/educsci11060272 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (6) ◽

pp. 272

Author(s):

Outi Haatainen ◽

Jaakko Turkka ◽

Maija Aksela

Keyword(s):

Science Education ◽

Science Teachers ◽

Self Efficacy ◽

Online Survey ◽

Teaching Method ◽

Survey Study ◽

Integrated Education ◽

Integrated Science ◽

Teachers Perceptions ◽

Key Factor

To understand how integrated science education (ISE) can be transferred into successful classroom practices, it is important to understand teachers’ perceptions and self-efficacy. The focus of this study is twofold: (1) to understand how teachers perceive ISE and (2) to assess if science teachers’ perceptions of and experiences with integrated education correlate with their views on self-efficacy in relation to ISE. Ninety-five Finnish science teachers participated in an online survey study. A mixed method approach via exploratory factor analysis and data-driven content analysis was used. Self-efficacy emerged as a key factor explaining teachers’ perceptions of and their lack of confidence in implementing ISE as well as their need for support. In addition, teachers regarded ISE as a relevant teaching method, but challenging to implement, and teachers primarily applied integrated approaches irregularly and seldom. Furthermore, teachers’ experiences with integrated activities and collaboration correlated with their views on integrated education and self-efficacy. These findings indicate teachers need support to better understand and implement ISE.

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Exploring Pre-service Science Teachers’ Perspectives on the Nature of Science: A Comparative Study Between China and Canada

ECNU Review of Education ◽

10.1177/2096531120966782 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 209653112096678

Author(s):

Guihua Zhang ◽

Yuanrong Li ◽

George Zhou ◽

Sonia Wai-Ying Ho

Keyword(s):

Teacher Education ◽

Science Education ◽

Science Teacher ◽

Nature Of Science ◽

Science Teachers ◽

Scientific Literacy ◽

Survey Design ◽

Science Teacher Education ◽

Teaching Behaviors ◽

Preservice Science Teachers

Purpose: The Nature of Science (NOS) is an important component of scientific literacy. Science teachers’ Views of the Nature of Science (VNOS) directly affect their teaching behaviors. Therefore, it is of great significance to explore science teachers’ VNOS and find ways of improvement. This study was designed to comparatively investigate preservice science teachers’ VNOS between China and Canada. Design/Approach/Methods: The study employed a survey design to explore how Chinese and Canadian preservice science teachers understood the seven different aspects of NOS. Findings: Data showed that preservice science teachers in China and Canada both hold a modern view about science education. The level of Chinese and Canadian participants’ understanding of NOS was above the relatively naive level. Chinese teachers had better macro-understanding toward science education but their micro-mastery was insufficient. While the Canadian participants had a better understanding of the NOS than their Chinese counterparts. Originality/Value: Based on the research results and the experience of science education and teacher education in Canada, we suggested that there is a need to reconstruct the preservice science teacher education curriculum in China and promote the transformation in the science teacher educational system.

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Facing neoliberalism through dialogic spaces as sites of hope in science education: experiences of two self-organised communities

Cultural Studies of Science Education ◽

10.1007/s11422-021-10042-y ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Betzabé Torres-Olave ◽

Paulina Bravo González

Keyword(s):

Science Education ◽

Science Teacher ◽

Science Teachers ◽

Teacher Educators ◽

Political Knowledge ◽

Sense Of Agency ◽

Critical View ◽

Counter Narratives ◽

Science Teacher Educators

AbstractIn this paper, we discuss the role of dialogue in two layers; first, in relation to two self-organised communities of science teachers in which we participated and, second, our process of coming together during our PhDs to analyse these communities, a dialogue about the dialogue. Regarding the first layer, there is much to learn from science teachers and science teacher educators when they are organised in sites of learning that can be spaces of hope, beginnings, and becoming, as is illustrated in the case of these two self-organised communities. Regarding the second layer, we discuss the value of dialogue and the possibilities it offers to develop ideas for science education in a way that might be democratising, emancipatory, and offering counter-narratives in a neoliberal Chile. By engaging in this dialogue revisiting the practices of our communities, we gained a sense of agency within the field of science education. However, we realised that we need to move towards a critical view within our communities, and more contextual and transformative science education by translating these sites of hope to our educational praxis today. For us, this relates both to developing a collective view of how to make science education provide pedagogical conditions and experiences for critical and engaged citizenship and thinking how we can act and engage with different settings in solidarity. One way of moving towards this is by developing a political knowledge of our disciplines through a collective scientific conscientisation. Our communities are the departure points to achieve this.

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