Assessing Pedagogical Content Knowledge of Inquiry Science Teaching

导言。探究性科学教学是指反映科学家用来发现和建构新知识的调查态度和技术的教学方法(教育学)。本科生通常会根据他们的科学知识内容进行评估。我们改善科学教育的国家努力的一个补充部分是有效评估教师探究性科学教学的教学知识的能力。目前，还没有这样的评估工具。本项目正在开发一个经过现场验证的客观评估工具，用于测试本科生职前小学教师的科学探究教学教学知识(POSIT，科学探究教学教学测试)。评估项目既可以用于终结性评估，也可以作为本科教学的形成性工具。智力上的优点。美国教育部最近呼吁，教育修订应以研究和科学证据为依据。这个项目有助于达到这一标准。它包括一个仔细的测试发展计划，然后是两轮试点和修订，最后是一个用于研究POSIT有效性的盲目现场测试课堂观察部分。该项目的智力价值在于它在设计中连贯地结合了创新和以研究为基础的特征--一个包括真实性、基于问题的学习、认识论、例证、方法论以及总结性和形成性功能的设计。该项目的重点是一个明确的目标--正如NSF、国家研究委员会和美国科学促进会所阐述的那样，服务于国家需求。这个项目也是跨学科的。参与的有十所大学，几个地理和人口结构不同的公立学区，以及一个全国性的专家小组。最终的工具将符合《学生评价标准》和《教育和心理测试标准》的更广泛影响。教师在课堂上实际做的事情，才是教学评估的“黄金标准”。假设正在接受针对这样一个标准的盲目测试。一旦它被开发出来，并通过观察课堂实践来对照标准进行验证，任何本科院校的教育工作者都可以使用它来评估和改进科学教师教育计划。通过增加有良好资质的教师来教授科学，改善教师毕业生的准备和质量将有助于改善服务于代表性不足人群的学校中的不平等现象。POST也将对寻求改善科学教师的教育和实践的科学教育研究人员具有价值。教授本科生和研究生SMET课程的教授可能会发现POSIT很有用。以前的研究表明，考虑如何最好地向年轻人教授科学，可以激励科学教授改进他们自己的教学实践。项目目标1)为反映探究教学法的项目制定标准，以指导项目的开发和评估。2)根据基础科学教学的实际情况，符合探究性项目标准，编制、试点、修订一套基于问题的K-8科学课程目标项目。3)在本科、职前教师中试行反映种族和性别多样性的测试项目。4)建立标准化的评分和考试管理指导。5)建立可靠性的初步估计。6)结合教师课堂探究式教学的实际实践，研究了该工具的预测能力。7)通过互联网、会议报告和期刊文章传播评估项目和项目报告。

Introduction. Inquiry science teaching refers to teaching methods (pedagogy) that reflect the investigative attitudes and techniques that scientists use to discover and construct new knowledge. Undergraduate students are routinely assessed for their science content knowledge. A complementary component of our national effort to improve science education is the ability to effectively assess teachers' pedagogical knowledge of inquiry science teaching. Currently, such an assessment tool is not available. This project is developing a field-validated, objective assessment tool for testing undergraduate pre-service elementary teachers' pedagogical knowledge of inquiry science teaching (POSIT, the Pedagogy of Science Inquiry Teaching test). The assessment items can be used both in summative evaluation and as a formative tool in undergraduate instruction. Intellectual merit. The U.S. Department of Education has recently called for educational revisions to be informed by research and scientifically based evidence. This project helps to meet that standard. It involves a careful plan for test development followed by two rounds of piloting and revision, concluding with a blinded field-test classroom observation component for studying the validity of POSIT. The intellectual merit of the project lies in its coherent combination of innovative and research-based features in its design -- a design that includes features of authenticity, problem-based learning, epistemology, exemplification, methodology, and summative and formative functions. The project is focused with a clear goal - one that serves a national need as articulated by NSF, the National Research Council and the AAAS. This project is also interdisciplinary. Participating are ten universities, several geographically and demographically diverse public school districts, and a national panel of experts. The final instrument will conform to The Student Evaluation Standards and the Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing Broader impact. The "gold standard" for pedagogy assessment is what teachers actually do in the classroom. POSIT is being blind-tested against such a standard. Once it has been developed and validated against the criteria by observation of classroom practice, educators at any undergraduate institution could use it to evaluate and improve science teacher education programs. Improving the preparation and quality of teacher graduates will help ameliorate inequalities in schools that serve underrepresented populations, by increasing the number of teachers well qualified to teach science. POSIT will also be of value to researchers in science education seeking to improve the education and practice of science teachers. Professors teaching undergraduate and graduate SMET courses may find POSIT useful. Previous research indicates that science professors can be motivated to improve their own teaching practice as a consequence of considering how science is best taught to young people. Project Goals1) Develop criteria for items reflecting the pedagogy of inquiry to guide item development and evaluation. 2) Compose, pilot, and revise a set of problem-based objective items for K-8 science curricula, based on realistic teaching vignettes of elementary science teaching, and meeting inquiry item criteria. 3) Pilot the test items with undergraduate, pre-service teachers reflecting racial and gender diversity. 4) Establish standardized scoring and test administration directions. 5) Establish initial estimates of reliability. 6) Validate the instrument by studying its predictive power with respect to actual teacher practice of inquiry teaching in classrooms. 7) Disseminate assessment items and project reports via the Internet, conference presentations, and journal articles.