scholarly journals Can Pre-Service Biology Teachers’ Professional Knowledge and Diagnostic Activities Be Fostered by Self-Directed Knowledge Acquisition via Texts?

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 244
Author(s):  
Maria Kramer ◽  
Christian Förtsch ◽  
Birgit J. Neuhaus
Keyword(s):  
Knowledge Acquisition ◽  
Scientific Reasoning ◽  
Assessment Tool ◽  
Instructional Quality ◽  
Professional Knowledge ◽  
Biology Teachers ◽  
Time Effects ◽  
Effect Of Treatment ◽  
Scientific Reasoning Skills ◽  
Design Paper

In a diagnostic context of reasoning about instructional quality, scientific reasoning skills can be described as diagnostic activities, which require professional knowledge. Different approaches to enhance pre-service teachers’ professional knowledge (PCK, CK, PK), as well as diagnostic activities exist. However, results about their effectiveness are still inconsistent. We systematically investigated the effectiveness of self-directed knowledge acquisition via texts on PCK, CK, PK, and diagnostic activities of 81 pre-service biology teachers following an experimental design. Paper-pencil tests, measuring PCK, CK, and PK, and the video-based assessment tool DiKoBi Assess, measuring diagnostic activities in the context of diagnosing instructional quality, were used pre and post an intervention. Intervention included four treatments on self-directed knowledge acquisition via texts on (1) PCK, (2) CK, (3) PK, (4) combination PCK/CK/PK. Treatment (5) served as control. Mixed ANOVAs showed large time effects for PCK and CK, but no interaction effect concerning knowledge facets between time and treatment for any of the treatments. Time effects might be due to pre-service teachers’ scientific reasoning on biology instruction that activated knowledge. An ANCOVA showed no significant effect of treatment on diagnostic activities either. We conclude that scientific reasoning about instructional quality is more effective for knowledge acquisition than text-work.

scholarly journals Investigating Pre-Service Biology Teachers’ Diagnostic Competences: Relationships between Professional Knowledge, Diagnostic Activities, and Diagnostic Accuracy

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 89
Author(s):  
Maria Kramer ◽  
Christian Förtsch ◽  
William J. Boone ◽  
Tina Seidel ◽  
Birgit J. Neuhaus
Keyword(s):  
Diagnostic Accuracy ◽  
Content Knowledge ◽  
Science Teachers ◽  
Assessment Tool ◽  
Professional Knowledge ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Biology Teachers ◽  
Pedagogical Content ◽  
Subject Specific ◽  
Diagnostic Competences

Teachers’ diagnostic competences are essential with respect to student achievement, classroom assessment, and instructional quality. Important components of diagnostic competences are teachers’ professional knowledge including content knowledge (CK), pedagogical knowledge (PK), and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), their diagnostic activities as a specification of situation-specific skills, and diagnostic accuracy. Accuracy is determined by comparing a teacher’s observation of classroom incidents with subject-specific challenges to be identified from scripted instructional situations. To approximate diagnostic situations close to real-life, the assessment of science teachers’ diagnostic competences requires a situated context that was provided through videotaped classroom situations in this study. We investigated the relationship between professional knowledge (PCK, CK, PK) of 186 pre-service biology teachers, their diagnostic activities, and diagnostic accuracy measured with the video-based assessment tool DiKoBi Assess. Results of path analyses utilizing Rasch measures showed that both PCK and PK were statistically significantly related to pre-service teachers’ diagnostic activities. Additionally, biology teachers’ PCK was positively related to diagnostic accuracy. Considering higher effect sizes of PCK compared to PK, the findings support previous findings indicating the importance of PCK, thus demonstrating its importance in the context of subject-specific diagnosis as well.

scholarly journals Preservice Biology Teachers’ Scientific Reasoning Skills and Beliefs about Nature of Science: How Do They Develop and Is There a Mutual Relationship during the Development?

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 558
Author(s):  
Daniela Mahler ◽  
Denise Bock ◽  
Till Bruckermann
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Nature Of Science ◽  
Scientific Reasoning ◽  
Professional Competence ◽  
Mutual Relationship ◽  
Biology Teachers ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Complex Picture ◽  
Scientific Reasoning Skills ◽  
Applied Paper

Scientific reasoning (SR) skills and nature of science (NOS) beliefs represent important characteristics of biology teachers’ professional competence. In particular, teacher education at university is formative for the professionalization of future teachers and is thus the focus of the current study. Our study aimed to examine the development of SR skills and NOS beliefs and their mutual relationship during teacher education. We applied paper-and-pencil tests to measure SR skills and NOS beliefs of 299 preservice biology teachers from 25 universities in Germany. The results of linear mixed models and planned comparisons revealed that both SR skills and NOS beliefs develop over the course of the study. Nevertheless, the development of SR skills and multiple aspects of NOS beliefs proceeds in different trajectories. Cross-lagged models showed a complex picture concerning the mutual relationship between SR skills and NOS beliefs during their development (both positive and negative). The current study contributes to the existing research because it is based on longitudinal data and allows—in contrast to cross-sectional research—conclusions about the development of SR skills and NOS beliefs.

scholarly journals Context Matters: Accounting for Item Features in the Assessment of Citizen Scientists’ Scientific Reasoning Skills

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 21
Author(s):  
Till Bruckermann ◽  
Tanja M. Straka ◽  
Milena Stillfried ◽  
Moritz Krell
Keyword(s):  
Scientific Reasoning ◽  
Reasoning Skills ◽  
Scientific Reasoning Skills

scholarly journals Choices of pre-service science teachers laboratory environments: Hands-on or hands-off?

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-51
Author(s):  
Hasan Ozgur Kapici ◽  
Hasan Akçay
Keyword(s):  
Science Teachers ◽  
Conceptual Understanding ◽  
Scientific Reasoning ◽  
Service Science ◽  
Attractive Alternative ◽  
Science And Technology Education ◽  
Virtual Lab ◽  
Online Laboratory ◽  
Hands On ◽  
Scientific Reasoning Skills

AbstractLearning in laboratories for students is not only crucial for conceptual understanding, but also contributes to gaining scientific reasoning skills. Following fast developments in technology, online laboratory environments have been improved considerably and nowadays form an attractive alternative for hands-on laboratories. The study was done in order to reveal pre-service science teachers’ preferences for hands-on or online laboratory environments. Participants of the study were 41 pre-service science teachers who were enrolled in a 13-week course on laboratory applications in science education. Findings showed that more than half of the pre-service science teachers would prefer to use hands-on laboratory environments for both conceptual teaching in their classrooms and to develop their students’ science process skills. The reasons behind their choices are discussed.Keywords: Online lab, hands-on lab, virtual lab, science and technology education, pre-service science teachers.* ADDRESS FOR CORRESPONDENCE: Hasan Özgur Kapıcı , Yıldız Teknik Ünivesitesi, Istanbul, TurkeyE-mail

scholarly journals Online Assessment of Scientific Reasoning Skills and Motivation to Learn Science among Grade 5 and 7 Students in Northern Namibia

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 68
Author(s):  
Linus Kambeyo ◽  
Benő Csapó
Keyword(s):  
Scientific Reasoning ◽  
Probabilistic Reasoning ◽  
Online Assessment ◽  
Motivation To Learn ◽  
Cronbach’S Alpha ◽  
Cronbach's Alpha ◽  
Grade 5 ◽  
Science Motivation ◽  
Reasoning Skills ◽  
Scientific Reasoning Skills

This study aimed to assess students’ scientific reasoning skills using an online assessment method and explore the relationship between their reasoning skills and motivation to learn science. Research participants were 270 Grade 5 and 346 Grade 7 students in the Oshana region of Namibia. The online reasoning skills test consisted of 36 items with 16 tasks assessing conservation, proportional, correlational and probabilistic reasoning, and logical operations in a science context. The five point Likert scale Science Motivation Questionnaire II consisted of 25 items with five subscales. Tasks were developed within and delivered by the eDia platform via the Internet. The reliability of the reasoning skills test was acceptable (Cronbach’s alpha=.74), and it was very good for the Science Motivation Questionnaire (Cronbach’s alpha=.91). The reasoning skill tasks were moderately difficult for the students: M=40.56%; SD=13.47%. One-parameter Rasch analyses showed that there were few items to differentiate students at the low skill levels. Task analysis showed major obstacles in students’ reasoning skills for science learning. Students reported that they were moderately motivated to learn science. A weak correlation was found between the tested scientific reasoning skills and motivation to learn science (r=.21, p<.01). The study suggests that the basic ICT infrastructures in Namibian schools should be improved to exploit the advantages of online assessment.

scholarly journals Development of Professional Care Program for Nurses in Dementia Wards and Its Educational Effects

2020 ◽  
Vol 35 ◽  
pp. 153331752095092
Author(s):  
Yoko Takeuchi ◽  
Mayumi Kato ◽  
Tatsuru Kitamura ◽  
Daisuke Toda ◽  
Yoshimi Taniguchi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Usual Care ◽  
Knowledge Acquisition ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Usual Care Group ◽  
Intervention Program ◽  
Sense Of Self ◽  
Professional Knowledge ◽  
Dementia Care ◽  
Care Group ◽  
Post Intervention

Purpose: To develop an education program for nurses specializing in dementia care, and to investigate its effects. Methods: An intervention study of nurses was conducted using a quasi-experiment with 3 randomly assigned groups. Participants were 51 nurses from a psychiatric hospital dementia ward, divided into an intervention program group (17 nurses), a knowledge-acquisition-only group (16 nurses), and a usual-care group (18 nurses) as controls. The program group intervention comprised 3 frameworks: motivation for achieving the task, acquisition of professional knowledge required for dementia care, and sharing of successful experiences based on professional knowledge. The knowledge-acquisition-only group received only the acquisition of professional knowledge framework, and the usual-care group received only the usual-care framework. The intervention period was 3 months. Results: Post-intervention, the program group had a significantly greater sense of self-efficacy associated with professional knowledge and significantly greater self-efficacy associated with practice compared with the knowledge-acquisition-only and the usual-care groups. Professional knowledge was acquired by 80% of the program group, compared with 70% of the knowledge-acquisition-only group. A co-occurrence network diagram of the multivariate analysis results produced by text mining of the descriptive data indicated that nurses provided care for symptoms specific to different diseases based on their pathological mechanisms. Conclusion: Program implementation led to the acquisition of deeper knowledge and greater self-efficacy by sharing expertise-based practices and successful experiences, compared with desk-based learning in a single workshop lecture, suggesting the program’s usefulness in clinical practice.

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