Integrating Inquiry-Based Science and Education Methods Courses in a "Science Semester" for Future Elementary Teachers

跨学科(99)在这个项目中，我们正在采用基于问题的学习和其他基于探究的方法，为小学教师教育专业创建一门将科学和教育方法整合在一起的课程(“科学学期”)。我们的目标是培养对科学和教育学的综合理解，未来的小学教师需要在课堂上有效地使用以探究为基础的方法。该项目响应了改善所有学生的科学教育的呼吁(美国科学促进会，1986年；“科学素养基准”，1993)，使职前教师在本科科学课程中的经验与K-12水平的改革更加一致(NRC，“国家科学教育标准”，1996；NSF，“塑造未来：对科学、数学、工程和技术本科教育的新期望”，1996，NSF96-139)。这项建议中的高级人员共同教授小学教师教育(ETE)专业所需的三门科学课程(生物、地球科学、物理科学)和一门基础科学教育方法课程。在这些课程中使用了各种积极的、协作的和基于探究的方法，但由于学生学位计划缺乏协调，它们的集体影响被削弱了。目前，学生们按照不同的顺序和广泛的分散时间学习这些课程。太多的学生没有意识到科学课程对他们未来教师职业生涯的价值，当他们在大三学习方法课程时，他们往往几乎没有保留之前学过的科学内容。这些与科学的插曲让学生很难学习科学内容，也很难将他们对科学的理解转化为有效的探究式教学策略。为了鼓励对科学概念和教学方法的综合理解，一套协调的科学和方法课程被设计为三年级的科学学期。传统学科的边界正在被跨越，以强调教师必须理解的共同主题，以教授基于标准的基础科学。设计采用了示范性的方法，既支持学习科学，也支持学习如何教授科学。学生们合作开展基于问题的多学科学习(PBL)活动，将科学概念放在真实的环境中并培养学习技能。“讲座”是一个大型的小组活动学习课程，帮助学生理解困难的概念，建立课堂活动之间的联系，并提出和总结PBL问题。调查实验室包括从基础科学工具包开始的活动，作为深入调查的起点，证明科学概念和教学方法在不同年龄段之间的连续性。在该方法中，学生批判性地探索基础科学教学的理论和实践，借鉴他们在科学课程中分享的探究性学习经验。小学教室中的实地实习是为了让学生在实际实践中为他们的科学和教育学研究奠定基础。参与的教职员工正在与外部评估者合作，以评估该项目的影响。计划和使用探究方法的能力在很大程度上取决于对科学概念的正确理解，因此评估的形成性方面考察了学生发展中的科学内容和教学知识(例如，探究教学的概念)。评估的总结性方面将检查完成科学学期的实习教师是否与完成传统(独立)科学和方法课程的教师教授科学不同。外部评估者使用对指导教师的结构化访谈、来自实习教师的调查数据以及从科学学期和传统小组中抽样的实习教师的课堂观察来检查他们是如何在科学课程中构思和使用探究式方法的。

Interdisciplinary (99) In this project we are adapting problem-based learning and other inquiry-based approaches to create a curriculum where science and education methods are integrated ("science semester") for elementary teacher education majors. Our goal is to foster integrated understandings of science and pedagogy that future elementary teachersneed to effectively use inquiry-based approaches in their classrooms. This projectresponds to calls to improve science education for all students (AAAS, "Science for All Americans," 1986; "Benchmarks for Science Literacy," 1993) by making preservice teachers' experiences in undergraduate science courses more consistent with reforms at the K-12 level (NRC, "National Science Education Standards," 1996; NSF, "Shaping the Future: New Expectations for Undergraduate Education in Science, Mathematics, Engineering, and Technology," 1996, NSF96-139).The senior personnel in this proposal collectively teach three science courses (biology, earth science, physical science) and an elementary science education methods course thatare required for elementary teacher education (ETE) majors. A variety of active, collaborative, and inquiry-based approaches are used in these courses, but their collective impact is weakened by the lack of coordination in the students' degree programs. Presently, students take the courses in variable sequences and at widely scattered times. Too many students fail to appreciate the value of science courses to their future careers as teachers, and when they reach the methods course in the junior year they often retain little of the science content studied earlier. These episodic encounters with science make it difficult for students to learn the content, and to translate their understandings of science into effective, inquiry-based teaching strategies.To encourage integrated understandings of science concepts and pedagogy, a coordinated set of science and methods courses are being designed as a junior-year science semester.Traditional subject matter boundaries are being crossed to stress shared themes thatteachers must understand to teach standards-based elementary science. The design is adapting exemplary approaches that support both learning science and learning how to teach science. Students work collaboratively on multidisciplinary problem-based learning (PBL) activities that place science concepts in authentic contexts and build learning skills. "Lecture" meetings are large group active learning sessions that help students understand difficult concepts, make connections between class activities, and launch and wrap-up PBL problems. Investigatory labs include activities from elementary science kits as launching points for in-depth investigations that demonstrate the continuity of science concepts and pedagogies across age levels. In the methodscourse students critically explore the theory and practice of elementary scienceteaching, drawing on their shared experiences of inquiry learning in the science courses. Field placements in elementary classrooms are built-in to allow students to ground their studies of science and pedagogy in actual practice. Participating faculty are collaborating with external evaluators to assess the impact of this project. The ability to plan for and use inquiry approaches depends strongly on sound understandings of science concepts, so formative aspects of the evaluation examine students' developing science content and pedagogical knowledge (e.g., conceptions of inquiry teaching). The summative aspect of the evaluation will examine whether student teachers who completed the science semester teach science differently than those who complete traditional (stand-alone) courses in science and methods. External evaluators use structured interviews of supervising teachers, survey data from the student teachers, and classroom observations of student teachers sampled from the science semester and traditional groups to examine how they conceive of and use inquiry-based approaches in their science lessons.