Enhancing Early Childhood Educators' Reflective Practice and Content Knowledge to Increase Children's Capacity for Science Talk

该项目旨在加强幼儿教育工作者(ECEs)的主要能力，包括(1)建立科学内容知识和信心，以指导幼儿的科学研究，(2)密切观察儿童与科学材料的互动，以及(3)将观察结果用于科学教学的反思、规划和实践。ECEs明白，有效的科学教学需要与科学概念和实践相关的内容知识和教学知识。然而，幼儿教育中心，特别是农村社区，表示缺乏科学内容知识，对在其早期护理和教育环境中纳入与科学有关的对话缺乏信心，他们认为这可能是与科学内容有关的专业培训有限的结果。为了满足幼儿教育工作者更多地了解科学概念和实践的愿望，幼儿科学专业发展(PD)应该包括资源、支持和明确的指导，以便将科学谈话纳入幼儿环境中与儿童的日常互动中。PD模式还必须提高ECEs的科学含量知识和他们发现科学演讲机会的能力，并鼓励幼儿继续提出问题和进行科学调查。通过这一项目开发的幼儿科学发展计划将使ECEs成为基于扎实的科学概念和实践知识的反思性思考者，对他们的教学实践产生重大影响，进而影响儿童的学习。农村ECEs往往缺乏足够的科学概念和实践教学培训，因此，他们没有能力规划和教授与科学有关的课程。这些ECE需要一种幼儿(EC)科学PD模式，该模式提供获取资源和从业者社区的途径。本项目旨在(1)利用加强幼儿科学内容知识和反思性实践的材料和资源，开发和测试EC科学PD模式的可行性，并在农村早期护理和教育环境中实施；(2)使用改进的PD模型，确定关键组成部分，探索幼儿对其教学实践、对科学概念和实践的知识、在实践中使用科学谈话的反思水平的变化，以及这些变化如何与儿童在早期护理和教育环境中使用科学谈话和科学调查相关联。在第一年，该团队将为农村社区开发和完善PD模型。在第二年，该团队将使用混合方法收敛设计来测试PD模型，在农村社区的一小群ECE中进行测试。这个项目将产生一个EC科学PD模式，使ECEs能够建立科学内容知识，并有效地利用反思性实践来改进他们的科学教学实践。发展与发展模式将使幼儿教育机构能够与其他幼儿教育机构合作--这是农村社区幼儿教育机构所表达的一项迫切需要--同时增强其将与科学有关的对话纳入其与幼儿互动的能力。与科学和欧共体专家合作开发的PD材料将提高ECEs让幼儿参与有意义的科学学习经历的能力，并进一步支持他们对科学主题的兴趣。与农村社区参与的学校/中心管理人员和家庭托儿所提供者的持续沟通也将建立更大的能力，以影响ECEs的反思和科学教学实践，这反过来将影响他们的整体教学质量。该项目所产生的知识将使欧洲经委会社区了解教与学科学概念和做法的变革性方法。此外，这项探索性研究将进一步让研究人员参与对话，讨论解决农村社区儿童早期帕金森病的多学科方法。该项目由发现研究预科-12项目(DRK-12)资助，该项目旨在通过研究和开发创新资源、模型和工具，显著提高预科-12学生和教师的科学、技术、工程和数学(STEM)的学习和教学。DRK-12计划中的项目建立在STEM教育的基础研究和先前的研究和开发工作的基础上，为拟议的项目提供了理论和经验上的证明。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This project aims to strengthen key capabilities in early childhood educators (ECEs), including the ability to (1) build science content knowledge and confidence in guiding young children's scientific investigation, (2) closely observe children's interactions with science materials, and (3) use those observations in the reflection, planning, and practice of science teaching. ECEs understand that effective science teaching and learning requires content knowledge related to science concepts and practices and pedagogical knowledge. However, ECEs, especially in rural communities, express a lack of science content knowledge and confidence in incorporating science-related conversations in their early care and education settings, and they believe this might be a result of limited professional training relevant to science content. To address ECEs' desire to know more about science concepts and practices, early childhood science professional development (PD) should include resources, support, and explicit guidance for integrating science talk into everyday interactions with children in early childhood settings. The PD model must also enhance ECEs' science content knowledge and their capacity to notice opportunities for science talk and encourage young children to continue to ask questions and conduct scientific investigations. An early childhood science PD developed through this project will empower ECEs to become reflective thinkers based on solid knowledge of science concepts and practices, significantly impacting their teaching practices and, in turn, children's learning.Rural ECEs often lack adequate training in teaching science concepts and practices and, thus, do not feel competent in planning and teaching science-related lessons. These ECEs need an early childhood (EC) science PD model that provides access to resources and a community of practitioners. This project aims to (1) develop and test the feasibility of an EC science PD model with materials and resources that strengthen ECEs' science content knowledge and reflective practice to be implemented in rural early care and education settings and (2) use a refined PD model with the critical components identified, explore the change in the level of ECEs' reflection on their teaching practices, knowledge of science concepts and practices, and use of science talk in their practices, along with how each of these changes is associated with children's use of science talk and scientific investigation in their early care and education settings. In year 1, the team will develop and refine a PD model for rural communities. In year 2, the team will use a mixed methods convergent design to test the PD model with a small group of ECEs in rural communities. This project will generate an EC science PD model that empowers ECEs to build science content knowledge and effectively use reflective practice to improve their science teaching practices. The PD model will allow ECEs to collaborate with other ECEs - a critical need expressed by ECEs in rural communities - while enhancing their capacity to incorporate science-related conversations in their interactions with young children. The PD materials, developed in collaboration with science and EC experts, will enhance ECEs' capacity to engage young children in meaningful science learning experiences and further support their interests in science topics. Ongoing communication with participating school/center administrators and family childcare home providers in rural communities will also build greater capacity to impact ECEs' reflection and science teaching practices, which will, in turn, influence their overall teaching quality. The knowledge generated from this project will inform ECE communities of transformational approaches to teaching and learning science concepts and practices. In addition, this exploratory study will further engage researchers in conversations about multidisciplinary approaches to addressing early childhood PD in rural communities. This project is funded by the Discovery Research preK-12 program (DRK-12) that seeks to significantly enhance the learning and teaching of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) by preK-12 students and teachers, through research and development of innovative resources, models, and tools. Projects in the DRK-12 program build on fundamental research in STEM education and prior research and development efforts that provide theoretical and empirical justification for proposed projects.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.