Beyond the Campus: A Model for Integrating Informal Science Expertise into the Preparation of Preservice Science Teachers

跨学科(99)本项目旨在将布朗克斯动物园为在职教师设计的两个现有课程调整为雷曼学院、布鲁克林学院、亨特学院和新罗谢尔学院的职前教师教育课程。保护生物学课程被改造成一门为期一学期、时长45小时的课程，让职前小学教师深入了解生命科学，重点是保护生物学。环境科学课程适用于职前小学教师，让他们不仅具备环境科学内容的背景知识，而且还掌握与其他必修学科协调一致地教授科学的技能和知识。对环境科学的关注借鉴了许多学科，是说明跨学科整合科学方法的理想工具。智力价值该项目解决了以下问题：非正式科学机构的成功培训计划可以以何种方式和程度进行调整，以向多面手的职前小学教师提供适当的科学教育知识和技能？以及，非正式科学机构和当地大学之间能否形成有效的教育合作，以促进教学变革并提高学生的科学知识？更广泛的影响该项目的主要成果是：(1)为纽约市地区不同种族的本科生制定了环境科学和保护生物学的职前计划；(2)向美国各地的大学和非正式科学机构传播了一项全面记录的评估研究；以及(3)展示了非正式科学机构如何在任职前教师培训方面与大学建立重要的合作伙伴关系的国家模式。

Interdisciplinary (99) This project aims to adapt two existing programs designed for in-service teachers at the Bronx Zoo to become pre-service teacher education courses for Lehman College, Brooklyn College, Hunter College and the College of New Rochelle. The conservation biology program is adapted to become a semester-long, 45-hour course to give pre-service elementary school teachers an in-depth look at life science with a focus on conservation biology. The environmental science program is adapted for pre-service elementary school teachers to give them not only a background in environmental science content but also the skills and knowledge to teach science comfortably and in tandem with other required disciplines. The focus on environmental science, which draws from many disciplines, is an ideal vehicle to illustrate methods for integrating science across the disciplines.Intellectual Merit The project addresses the questions: In what ways, and to what extent, can a successful training program from an informal science institution be adapted to provide generalist pre-service elementary teachers with appropriate science education knowledge and skills? And, can an effective educational collaboration be formed among an informal science institution and local universities to promote pedagogical change and improve the science knowledge of students?Broader Impacts The main outcomes of the project are: (1) the development of pre-service programs in environmental science and conservation biology for New York City area undergraduate students of diverse ethnicities; (2) a thoroughly documented evaluation study that is disseminated to universities and informal science institutions across the U.S., and (3) a national model demonstrating how informal science institutions can form significant partnerships with universities in pre-service teacher preparation.