Final Paper
How Popular Culture Impacts Transescents’ Perception and Understanding of Science
Geary Don Crofford[1]
Thursday December 13, 2007
HSCI 5533 History of Modern Science
Dr. Katherine Pandora[2]
Introduction
Ask American elementary and secondary school students to draw a scientist and most will provide a rendering of a stereotypical Hollywood version of a “mad scientist”. Their representation is usually male, with unkempt hair, glasses or goggles, a lab coat, positioned in a laboratory, and often performing some type of dangerous or radical experiment. A 1983 study[3] of 4807 students reported these results, and this and other studies also indicated the popular media may have a great degree of influence on youngsters’ perceptions of science and the scientific community and how they relate to them personally. Why is this so, and what implications does it have for the public’s understanding of science and scientists, and the general population’s scientific literacy? Where did these stereotypes originate, and how can a science educator combat these perceptions, or conversely, employ them in their instructional strategies?
A more recent study[4] found that Hollywood movies of the 20th century often present and reinforce many, if not all, of the traits of the “mad scientist”. 82% of the scientists portrayed in the films covered in this study were male, and most were white and American, as well. The majority of scientists were portrayed as studying the life sciences, as somewhat socially inept, and many times performing their work secreted away in a remote location, often to the detriment of society in some way. This study was a quantitative analysis of 222 films of all genres, covering eight decades of moviemaking. Another study[5] specifically looked at the images of scientists as represented in six Hollywood comedy films from 1961 to 1965. This study found scientists depicted as either objects of mockery or fear, with far more intellect than practical intelligence. The recognition and esteem of the scientists in these movies was mitigated by either buffoonish behavior or the threat his (all scientists portrayed were male) research presented to humanity.
The literature indicates popular culture has a profound impact on our perception of science, and the National Science Foundation has publicly expressed concern about the distortion and dilution of the public’s knowledge of science by the fictional media. Conversely, television programs such as The Magic School Bus are applauded for exposing children to meaningful scientific concepts that are effectively and accurately presented. What implications does this have for the science educator, positive or negative, and how should a teacher strive to take advantage of beneficial popular culture, or defeat the Hollywood stereotypes?
Students in the middle years of their education, meaning sixth through ninth grade, are also referred to as transescents. This name refers not just to their schooling, but also their physical, cognitive, social, and emotional development. They are literally “in-between” childhood and adulthood, and the science teachers at these grade levels can have a particularly profound effect on their students’ understanding of science, and help develop and reinforce a positive attitude toward science. These middle years are especially crucial because just as the students are spending less time with their families, they are also exposed to many significant external influences, including their peers and all types of popular culture. Immersing these students in the proper combinations and amounts of accurate and beneficial media sources, both in and outside the classroom, may be one potential answer to address this dilemma, along with exposure to working scientists who may serve as positive role models, as well as the utilization of appropriate technology.
The Importance of a Scientifically Literate Society
As our society becomes more technologically oriented it becomes increasingly important to develop and maintain a scientifically literate population that is comfortable with most aspects of science and technology, as well as individuals that are skilled in specific areas of science and mathematics to provide a talent pool to help the United States keep its competitive edge in this domain. Voters need to be able to make informed decisions about candidates and their positions on science and technology related issues. Citizens also need to have at least a basic understanding of the health, environmental, and medical issues they may face throughout their lives. Inquiry-based, constructivist, and process-oriented science presented by positive role models, the development of critical thinking skills coupled with a solid base in science knowledge, and adherence to both process and content science education standards such as the National Science Education Standards (NSES) and in Oklahoma, the Priority Academic Student Skills (PASS) may all help ensure the quality of science and mathematics education for all students, and especially transescents.
The “deficit model” attempts to explain the gap between scientists and the general public in terms of the lack of scientific knowledge on the part of the public. This model holds that scientists attempt in vain to pass down their knowledge to a public that is either apathetic, cannot comprehend the knowledge, or both. Whether or not this true, education holds the key to narrow this deficit, or prevent one from developing in the future. I feel part of the issue is simple human nature to ridicule or reject that which we do not understand. Not everyone can be a molecular biologist or nuclear engineer, but the public, beginning with transescence or even before, can be made both knowledgeable and comfortable enough with science to avoid rejecting it out of hand. Facilitating acceptance of and even enthusiasm for science is one of the science educator’s prime objectives, in my opinion. The mass media is going to continue to become a bigger part of all of our lives, and educators need to accept this and find ways to use it to their advantage, as well as overcome the negative aspects of popular culture as it relates to science and science education.
Minorities and Women and the Sciences
There also looms the dilemma of the underrepresentation of women and minorities in the sciences, what if any role the popular media play in this, and how science teachers may address this deficiency. A recent study[6] demonstrated from a review of over 60 feature films that the portrayal of women scientists can be grouped into six categories, none of which promoted a realistic or desirable role model for impressionable transescent females. These categories were described as ranging from the “old maid” to the “loner”. Despite this, The New York Times reported recently that for the first time, the top two winners of the prestigious Siemens Competition in Math, Science and Technology were female students, and also for the first time there were more female than male finalists. The erroneous idea that women are not as capable as men in math and science was even espoused by a former president of Harvard, demonstrating just how deeply ingrained this notion is in our culture.
The idea of “social precognition” holds that the media mirror our perceptions of ourselves, including our role in and understanding of science. Is it possible that Hollywood is actually discouraging women and minorities from engaging in science careers? As a member of the Cherokee Nation, and having taught in both a rural NE Oklahoma school in which the population was 86% indigenous and a US-Mexico border school that was 75% Hispanic, I have a personal stake and experience in addressing and helping to remediate this underrepresentation of minorities. In fact, immigration of Spanish-speaking minorities, and how they will be served by our educational system will be one of the most significant issues facing our country this century. I know from my own experience that many students do not receive their first significant science instruction until their middle years. Many of these students do not even finish high school, let alone pursue higher education, and especially not in math or science. Multi-media and technology more specifically geared to assist these students may help address this unfortunate cycle of lack of education and poverty in many segments of our society. Exposure to appealing, qualified female and minority scientists in real-world research settings may also be a factor in overcoming these students’ apathy or even antagonism toward science.
Can Television Be Used to Promote a Positive Image of Science?
Television viewing has a tremendous impact on children’s ideas and knowledge of the world, including science. From Beakman’s World to Mr. Wizard to Bill Nye: the Science Guy to Steve Irwin: Crocodile Hunter, television has specifically taken aim at addressing science concepts and issues, with mixed results. Some shows are accurate and engaging in their portrayal of science, while others lean more toward the dramatic, distorted perspective, apparently for sheer entertainment value. In biology, evolution is always a pre-eminent topic, and one study has looked specifically at television wildlife programming’s attempts to explain evolution.[7] This study found that “blue-chip” programming with higher production values often was less effective than “presenter-led” programming of lesser production values in properly addressing issues such as creationism, evolution, and global warming. Much of my own early exposure to science, outside of my personal reading for pleasure, was watching Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom as a child, and I partially attribute my own personal interest in biology and wildlife to this series.
Music and sound is another facet of programming that may be useful, and was used to great effect in the television series Bill Nye: The Science Guy. I personally have used episodes of this series with tremendous results, particularly as reviews, expansions, or applications of a concept taught previously. The students always seemed to have a better understanding of a science topic after viewing episodes of this show, and the production and entertainment value combined seamlessly to hold their attention. The correct science programming, employed in the proper context within an inquiry-based educational process that incorporates the nature of science, can be an effective tool for the teacher.
Can Movies Enhance Students’ Perception and Understanding of Science?
Using any category of popular media to teach science is controversial, potentially ineffective, and even damaging. However, if utilized properly, educators can effectively take advantage of the entertainment value of Hollywood films to spark both interest in and understanding of science, according to a paper by Christopher Rose.[8] This scientist has actually developed a course he calls “Biology in the Movies” which incorporates biology-based films including GATTACA, The Boys from Brazil, and The Fly. He successfully uses the movies as starting points to pique the students’ interest in culturally pertinent topics such as cloning and transgenic manipulations. It is also interesting to analyze how biology has been portrayed in Hollywood movies over the decades of the 20th century, and how those portrayals have reflected advances in the discipline itself, particularly in the case of the three celluloid versions of The Island of Dr. Moreau.[9] One may easily trace advances in biology through these movies, ranging from 1933 to 1996, in the form of how the films’ “manimals” are created. The progression is from vivisection and blood transfusions to hormonal manipulations to direct genetic modification through recombinant DNA technology, as well as microchip implantation. Scientists may also facilitate the plausibility and purposeful portrayal of science in film and television by acting as consultants directly on the sets during production, even though according to one study this does not necessarily mean that corresponding scientific “accuracy” promotes the public’s understanding of science.[10] It also seems that the more fiction one is exposed to, the lower their regard for science in general. The impact of visual images on everyone, but youngsters in particular, cannot be overestimated.[11]Fictional Hollywood films are the most common venue through which the public is exposed to images of science, and their importance cannot be understated.
Is the Internet the Key to Promoting Science Literacy Now and in the Future?
Despite movies’ historical importance as a common venue for exposure to science concepts and practitioners, the Internet is rapidly becoming the most pervasive electronic medium for addressing students’ misconceptions, lack of interest in, and general attitudes toward science, according to two recent studies.[12] These reports analyzed the content of state-of-the-art science Web sites and popular non-science teen Web sites, and then used this information along with insights from teen focus groups to ascertain how best to construct science Web sites to attract teens. The results indicated that transescents seek entertainment, and not education, from the Web, and that teachers are the critical gatekeepers for educational Internet use. The study concluded that science Web sites can be fun and still teach science effectively, and that partnerships between schools and entities such as NASA could play an important role in developing the Web as an educational tool.
At the University of Oklahoma, the K-20 Center is currently involved in developing video games as a form of “informal learning” in science. There are numerous video games on the market now that incorporate aspects of science ranging from molecular biology to physics, and the potential of this avenue of learning is virtually limitless. Museums, planetariums, exhibits, television programming, and film may all play a role in addressing scientific illiteracy and malaise, both independently and in joint ventures, including Internet sites and gaming. Of all of these intersections of the public and science, the Internet may be the one that ultimately has the greatest impact, both in and out of the classroom. The Internet, for instance, allows teachers and students to engage directly in authentic research being carried out by practicing scientists, as in the case of “Pintail Partners”.[13]The Sam Noble Museum Oklahoma Museum of Natural History at the University of Oklahoma is at the forefront of giving science teachers the opportunity to learn to use and incorporate technology into their instruction through professional development activities it develops and sponsors. The museum’s education department also emphasizes giving teachers and students opportunities to engage in authentic research experiences with practicing scientists. My own participation in this type of professional development directly led to my pursuit of a terminal degree in Instructional Leadership and Academic Curriculum with an emphasis in Science Education here at the University of Oklahoma, and to engage in research that seeks to demonstrate a link between science teacher self-efficacy, student achievement, and these types of professional development and student programs.
My personal teaching philosophies were profoundly changed by the summer program I participated in two years ago, and I feel I can compound that impact by training teachers of science who may then pass what they have learned on to their students, and to their colleagues. Interacting with actual scientists, both in person and through the Web, often negates the negative stereotypes children have of scientists, and they come away possibly wishing to emulate the role models they met and learned from. In fact, I feel strongly that such programs are possibly the single most effective way to defeat the cartoonish or off-putting images of science and scientists that children may have been inculcated with by film, television, and other aspects of popular culture. Practicing scientists have a responsibility to work with science educators to help facilitate these positive interactions with students, for the benefit of science as a discipline and society in general.
Using the History of Science to Defeat Science Stereotypes
How may the history, sociology, and philosophy of science be utilized in this endeavor? Doing away with “cook book” science, and reducing lecturing and use of the text books may in and of itself make science more interesting to the transescent. Incorporating more history, philosophy, and sociology of science and developing and implementing more cross-curricular lessons with other subjects including mathematics, language, and social studies may also help students understand how science plays a role in almost all aspects of their lives. The difficulty often lies within the science instruction itself, as science teachers are often guilty of perpetuating their own stereotypes of science.[14] Despite this, others have argued that history of science has no place in the classroom. [15] It has also been stated that misrepresenting the history of science can be as damaging as not representing it at all.[16] Humanizing science may have benefits for the students as well.[17] These ideas specifically address the Hollywood stereotype of the scientist as a social misfit locked away in a remote laboratory carrying out arcane and unauthorized experiments that may jeopardize mankind’s future. The positive and varied aspects of science, and science (or science and mathematics education) as a career, could be emphasized to the transescent student and change how they see their “hypothetical future selves”. The adventurous nature of scientists such as Jane Goodall or Alfred Russel Wallace could be emphasized, as could the “hidden” heroes such as Rosalind Franklin, and great ethnic scientists such as George Washington Carver.
Another consideration is our country’s rapidly increasing Hispanic population and the absence of much scholarship concerning the history of science in Central and South America. Francisco Hernandez produced a crucial natural history of the New World that was originally published in the Aztec language. Some prominent Mexican scientists include Carlos Frenk in cosmology, Nobel Prize winner Mario Molina, the discoverer of vanadium Andres Manuel Del Rio, and the inventor of the first oral contraceptive, Luis Miramontes. Interestingly, given the nature of this paper, it was Guillermo Gonzalez Camerena, a Mexican, who devised the mechanism behind the first color television. There are historically more than enough great Latin scientists and mathematicians to present to Hispanic students as role models to emulate.
Athletics, Television, and Science: A Combination with Educational Potential?
The National Football League’s annual Super Bowl is traditionally one of television’s top attractions, and not just in the United States but throughout the world. The “March Madness” of the NCAA basketball tournament captivates our nation’s attention for several weeks every spring. We are all familiar with the University of Oklahoma football team and its significance in our local culture. Is it possible to capitalize on the popularity of these activities and appropriate them to the educational domain to demonstrate to students the inherent nature of science in this, and virtually all aspects of our lives? The intersections and “mixed border zones” between science and sports range from the physics and mathematics of moving people or objects to the training, physiological, and medical aspects of the athletes’ bodies. Many young people participate in competitive athletic events; enjoy watching televised sports, or both. The cultural and sociological aspects of this “ritualized warfare” are deeply ingrained in all of us, and if a science teacher can effectively link science to this natural competitive drive wonders might be achieved in terms of making science and mathematics relevant and interesting to transescents.
I have used sport and athletic concepts effectively in my own science and mathematics lesson plans over the years, including teaching positive and negative numbers in relation to the yard markers on a football field. I have also taught successful sport-related lessons on batting averages, winning percentages, velocity, force, and momentum, among other topics. I have seen many students of all ages complete excellent, even award winning, science fair and symposium research projects rooted in some aspect of athletic competition, as these topics seemed to motivate them when others could or would not. There are even examples of sport and science productively combining on television, including Sport Science, which is a popular show currently airing on the Fox networks, which incorporates scientific explanations and analysis of sporting phenomena with great effect. Connecting science concepts to prior knowledge and innate topics of interest for the students makes their perception of the subject more positive, and deepens their understanding.
Conclusion
I recently read an interview with Al Gore in Rolling Stone magazine, and I could not help but be struck by how some of his points concerning the environment, and our politics and society in general, paralleled and illuminated some of the themes of my paper. Mr. Gore referenced Thomas Kuhn’s The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, and another, earlier book by Joseph Schumpeter. The books’ commonality was the idea of a “change in consciousness”, or “paradigm shift” in their respective realms of science and business. Mr. Gore believes these recognitions of new patterns to explain things that seem mysterious to an “old” way of thinking are necessary to address some of the problems our country is currently facing, and will face in the future. I believe science educators need to help bring about this type of fundamental change in the viewpoints of our students, possibly by incorporating some of the strategies I have explained here. Mr. Gore went on to express his belief in the importance of the Internet as a type of “free and universal library” that can serve many beneficial purposes, including those mentioned in this paper. He explains how the age of print lasted 500 years, and gave way to television for the last 60, and yet the Internet is poised to override that medium and be everything it is now, and more. As an aside, I do not believe Al Gore invented the Internet, and he did not make that claim in this particular article!
The issue of the image of science and the scientific community, and in particular its perception by middle year students and their desire to enter science-based careers, or at least be scientifically literate, is a complex and challenging one. Funding for technology to address the issues raised in this paper is available through a wide variety of granting entities. I advocate giving teachers the grant-writing skills and freedom of opportunities to pursue their own classroom funds through these avenues, and develop and apply their own personal initiatives, and incorporate effective professional development programs they have been exposed to. Pre-service teachers in university-level teacher preparation programs need to be guided in utilizing popular culture, technology, and interaction with real scientists and mathematicians in the most effective manner possible in their future classrooms. Partnerships with entities such as NASA that have a vested interest in a scientifically literate population are potentially fruitful venues to achieve the goal of making science interesting and exciting and dispose of negative stereotypes. Inclusion of admirable scientific role models, meaningful history of science, accurate and relevant mass media presentations, and proper utilization of newer technologies such as the Internet and video games may all contribute to effecting a positive change in transescent students’ attitudes toward science and the scientific community. Classroom teachers are at the forefront of instituting these changes and bear great responsibility in the process, along with working scientists, parents, administrators, school boards, and university teacher-preparation programs.
[1] College of Education, University of Oklahoma, Norman OK 73072, USA.
[2] Department of the History of Science, University of Oklahoma, Norman OK 73072, USA.
[3] D. W. Chambers (1983). Stereotypic images of the scientist: the draw-a-scientist test. Science Education, 67, 255-65.
[4] Weingart, P., Muhl, C., & Pansegrau, P. (2003). Of power maniacs and unethical geniuses: science and scientists in fiction film. Public Understanding of Science, 12, 279-287.
[5] Terzian, S. G., & Grunzke, A. L. (2007). Scrambled eggheads: ambivalent representations of scientists in six Hollywood film comedies from 1961 to 1965. Public Understanding of Science, 16, 407-419.
[6] Flicker, E. (2003). Between brains and breasts-women scientists in fiction film: on the marginalization and sexualization of scientific competence. Public Understanding of Science, 12, 307-318.
[7] Dingwall, R., & Aldridge, M. (2006). Television wildlife programming as a source of popular scientific information: a case study of evolution. Public Understanding of Science, 15, 131-152.
[8] Rose, C. (2003). How to teach biology using the movie science of cloning people, resurrecting the dead, and combining flies and humans. Public Understanding of Science, 12, 289-296.
[9] Jorg, D. (2003). The good, the bad, and the ugly: Dr. Moreau goes to Hollywood. Public Understanding of Science, 12, 297-305.
[10]Kirby, D. A. (2003). Scientists on the set: science consultants and the communication of science in visual fiction. Public Understanding of Science, 12, 261-278.
[11] Figuring It Out: Science, Gender, and Visual Culture. Ed. Ann B. Shteir and Bernard Lightman. (Hanover and London, Dartmouth College Press, 2006).
[12] Weingold, M. F., & Treise, D. (2004). Attracting teen surfers to science web sites. Public Understanding of Science, 13, 229-248.
[13] Thomas J. (2007). Ducks and STEM education for elementary classroom teachers: case study research leading to a new professional development model. Draft not yet published; contact Julie Thomas, Oklahoma State University, College of Education, Stillwater OK 74078.
[14] Henry H. Bauer, Scientific Literacy and the Myth of the Scientific Method, (Urbana and Chicago, University of Illinois Press, 1994).
[15] Douglas Allchin, "Why Respect for History-and Historical Error-Matters.", Science & Education 15 (2006): 91-111
[16] Anton Lawson, "What Does Galileo's Discovery of Jupiter's Moons Tell Us About the Process of Scientific Discovery?" Science & Education 11 (2002): 1-24.
[17] Hsingchi A. Wang and David D. Marsh, "Science Instruction with a Humanistic Twist: Teacher's Perception and Practice in Using the History of Science in Their Classrooms", Science & Education, 2002, 11:169-189.
Monday, December 10, 2007
Friday, November 16, 2007
Book Review
Golan, Tal. (2004). Laws of Men and Laws of Nature: The History of Scientific Expert Testimony in England and America. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. Pp. 325. ISBN-10 0-674-02580-6 (pbk.). $22.95
Abstract:
Tal Golan’s book Laws of Men and Laws of Nature: The History of Scientific Expert Testimony in England and America is a relatively brief and thoroughly engaging treatment of an important yet mostly neglected topic, and should be of interest to students, teachers, and practitioners of both science and law.
Book Review:
In light of the public’s recent interest in the intersections of science and the law, as well as the incorporation of forensics into many science classes, Tal Golan’s Laws of Men and Laws of Nature: The History of Scientific Expert Testimony in England and America (2004, Harvard University Press) is a fascinating, well-written, and thoroughly researched perspective on this neglected topic, covering the last few centuries. Comprised (disappointingly) of only six chapters, it is a relatively brief, yet engrossing and clever history that leaves the reader wanting more, particularly from this author, who has an engaging but scholarly writing style. Chronological and yet contextual in style, the first chapter of the book deals with the earliest appearances of science in matters of law in Europe, while chapters two and three address legal and scientific issues in Victorian England and later across the Atlantic in America, as the industrial revolution brings about a deluge of litigation. The remaining chapters are concerned with, in order, the development, utilization, and acceptance into the courts of microscopic blood analysis techniques, x-ray images, and polygraph technology.
According to Golan, recurrent themes that seemed to resonate vividly concerning scientific expert testimony in American and English courts of law, both in the Victorian and modern eras, were the conundrum of conflicting scientific opinions, as well as the financial issue of whether scientists should be paid for their testimony or not. In addition, the ability of jurors, judges, and lawyers to understand and effectively utilize scientific concepts in courts of law to achieve fair and accurate legal outcomes was an essential issue. For science educators, this book should reinforce that a general public that is equipped with a fair degree of scientific literacy, coupled with critical thinking skills, is a highly desired and valuable product. This principle is the same over the centuries and across the oceans, regardless of whether a case involves heating whale oil, patent litigation over a chemical process, medical malpractice, advances in microscopy, x-ray technology, DNA, or polygraph tests.
The “professionalization” of science was a hastened tremendously in Victorian times. Meetings, journals, societies, correspondences between scientists, and industrialization of scientific developments all contributed to this, but surprisingly the paid testimony of scientists in court cases seemed to also be one of the most prominent factors. Up to this point in time, the practice of science was mostly limited to landed gentlemen and aristocracy who took up science as a way to spend their otherwise idle time, since they did not have to work for a living, and this group seemed particularly critical of what they perceived as the “prostitution” of science in the courtroom. This divide, particularly in England, between the wealthy gentlemen who indulged their spare time as scientists and those who actually made their living from testifying, collecting, writing, and experimenting, continued to grow. In America, on the other hand, the use of science to make a living or even achieve great wealth was not seen as being a danger to the “purity” of science and its quest for knowledge and understanding of the natural world.
Another major theme of this book is the visual nature of much of the scientific evidence and testimony in a legal setting, and the potential for variability, or even unscrupulousness, in its interpretation. The author discusses how photographs, microscopic evidence, and x-ray exposures could be interpreted from both a subjective and objective view point. Is such evidence to be taken at face value for what it represents, or should the human element of the production and interpretation of this type of evidence be given precedence? Who is qualified to obtain such evidence, and further, to interpret and explain it? Golan’s answer is that some types of visual evidence, such as surveillance camera footage, can stand alone and essentially speak for it self, while other types, such as x-ray images, require a trained and trusted specialist to produce the image and clarify its meaning. Golan discusses in an enlightening manner how new technologies such as lie-detectors were gradually accepted by the courts and society in general, and how scientific court room testimony sometimes contributed to the creation of entirely new disciplines and specializations in science and medicine, with new knowledge often originating when experiments were recreated for the benefit of the courts.
Was it the adversarial nature of the courts, or the moral and ethical degradation of the scientists involved that created the greatest problems for expert scientific testimony over the centuries? The apparent conflict between the procedures of law and methods of science seem to Golan to be the root cause, especially that lawyers, judges, and jurors who lacked scientific backgrounds and knowledge were being asked to decide cases on their scientific merit. The author goes further, expounding that scientists were not entirely at fault, when they appeared to be at odds on the witness stand. The vagaries of science, from differing methods and interpretations, are part of what make it a unique enterprise. One never “closes the books” on any scientific topic, believing that we know everything there is to know about it. The reproducibility and nature of continuous questioning in science served to instigate many of the apparent conflicts with the absolute nature of law and the legal system. This is not to say that there were not some devious charlatans or even legitimate, well-meaning scientists who in effect did indeed sell their testimony to the highest bidder at times.
One of the few reservations about this book was the absence of any in-depth treatment on DNA technology and its role in the modern courtroom. It is also possible the author did the reader a disservice by not presenting and discussing at least some of the major cases in which the “mad doctors” of insanity trials played a role. Golan unfortunately glosses over these potentially significant episodes by stating they are covered sufficiently elsewhere, and it would have been enlightening to see how the “soft sciences” played out in court, especially in relation to how the “hard sciences” were involved, both in the Victorian and modern ages. Of course, Golan devotes an entire chapter to the development and early use of lie-detectors or polygraph machines, which again seems incongruous to me, in terms of discussing one aspect of psychology and the law and not the other. Nevertheless, chapters five and six, on the use of x-ray images and polygraph results in court, illuminate the greatest difference in the early and later chapters. As the twentieth century dawned, new technologies like these created a demand for specialists to administer, supervise, and explain the results in court and likewise for the courts to accept them as the valid procedures and evidence they were. This continues even today with new medical imaging, DNA, and other forensic technologies.
Overall Laws of Men and Laws of Nature is a fascinating and informative read on a mostly neglected yet important topic, and it will definitely enhance anyone’s knowledge of the history of expert scientific testimony in courts of law. For science educators, this reading also reinforces that teachers have the responsibility of being sure their students understand that science is an inquiry-based and dynamic process, and not just a static collection of facts. Just as there is historically no one definitive “scientific method”, students must be aware that science is open-ended, accomplished through a variety of techniques, its results are subject to interpretation, and its theories are subject to change as new data become available. Scientists, science teachers and students, and productive and responsible citizens in general should all be open-minded and receptive of new thoughts and points of view on any given topic. At the same time, the population should also be scientifically literate and prepared to think critically and be skeptics if necessary. Golan’s book brings to mind the long-running advertisements that suggest that “four of five dentists recommend product X”. Students need to be aware that these dentists and their opinions, like many of the scientific expert witnesses and their testimony in this book, should be subject to scrutiny and must be considered in the context in which they and their opinions are presented. This includes the dynamic nature of science, possible financial entanglements, and the social and legal climate of the time and place in question. This book is heartily recommended for science educators, students, attorneys and anyone interested in forensics, law, or science.
Abstract:
Tal Golan’s book Laws of Men and Laws of Nature: The History of Scientific Expert Testimony in England and America is a relatively brief and thoroughly engaging treatment of an important yet mostly neglected topic, and should be of interest to students, teachers, and practitioners of both science and law.
Book Review:
In light of the public’s recent interest in the intersections of science and the law, as well as the incorporation of forensics into many science classes, Tal Golan’s Laws of Men and Laws of Nature: The History of Scientific Expert Testimony in England and America (2004, Harvard University Press) is a fascinating, well-written, and thoroughly researched perspective on this neglected topic, covering the last few centuries. Comprised (disappointingly) of only six chapters, it is a relatively brief, yet engrossing and clever history that leaves the reader wanting more, particularly from this author, who has an engaging but scholarly writing style. Chronological and yet contextual in style, the first chapter of the book deals with the earliest appearances of science in matters of law in Europe, while chapters two and three address legal and scientific issues in Victorian England and later across the Atlantic in America, as the industrial revolution brings about a deluge of litigation. The remaining chapters are concerned with, in order, the development, utilization, and acceptance into the courts of microscopic blood analysis techniques, x-ray images, and polygraph technology.
According to Golan, recurrent themes that seemed to resonate vividly concerning scientific expert testimony in American and English courts of law, both in the Victorian and modern eras, were the conundrum of conflicting scientific opinions, as well as the financial issue of whether scientists should be paid for their testimony or not. In addition, the ability of jurors, judges, and lawyers to understand and effectively utilize scientific concepts in courts of law to achieve fair and accurate legal outcomes was an essential issue. For science educators, this book should reinforce that a general public that is equipped with a fair degree of scientific literacy, coupled with critical thinking skills, is a highly desired and valuable product. This principle is the same over the centuries and across the oceans, regardless of whether a case involves heating whale oil, patent litigation over a chemical process, medical malpractice, advances in microscopy, x-ray technology, DNA, or polygraph tests.
The “professionalization” of science was a hastened tremendously in Victorian times. Meetings, journals, societies, correspondences between scientists, and industrialization of scientific developments all contributed to this, but surprisingly the paid testimony of scientists in court cases seemed to also be one of the most prominent factors. Up to this point in time, the practice of science was mostly limited to landed gentlemen and aristocracy who took up science as a way to spend their otherwise idle time, since they did not have to work for a living, and this group seemed particularly critical of what they perceived as the “prostitution” of science in the courtroom. This divide, particularly in England, between the wealthy gentlemen who indulged their spare time as scientists and those who actually made their living from testifying, collecting, writing, and experimenting, continued to grow. In America, on the other hand, the use of science to make a living or even achieve great wealth was not seen as being a danger to the “purity” of science and its quest for knowledge and understanding of the natural world.
Another major theme of this book is the visual nature of much of the scientific evidence and testimony in a legal setting, and the potential for variability, or even unscrupulousness, in its interpretation. The author discusses how photographs, microscopic evidence, and x-ray exposures could be interpreted from both a subjective and objective view point. Is such evidence to be taken at face value for what it represents, or should the human element of the production and interpretation of this type of evidence be given precedence? Who is qualified to obtain such evidence, and further, to interpret and explain it? Golan’s answer is that some types of visual evidence, such as surveillance camera footage, can stand alone and essentially speak for it self, while other types, such as x-ray images, require a trained and trusted specialist to produce the image and clarify its meaning. Golan discusses in an enlightening manner how new technologies such as lie-detectors were gradually accepted by the courts and society in general, and how scientific court room testimony sometimes contributed to the creation of entirely new disciplines and specializations in science and medicine, with new knowledge often originating when experiments were recreated for the benefit of the courts.
Was it the adversarial nature of the courts, or the moral and ethical degradation of the scientists involved that created the greatest problems for expert scientific testimony over the centuries? The apparent conflict between the procedures of law and methods of science seem to Golan to be the root cause, especially that lawyers, judges, and jurors who lacked scientific backgrounds and knowledge were being asked to decide cases on their scientific merit. The author goes further, expounding that scientists were not entirely at fault, when they appeared to be at odds on the witness stand. The vagaries of science, from differing methods and interpretations, are part of what make it a unique enterprise. One never “closes the books” on any scientific topic, believing that we know everything there is to know about it. The reproducibility and nature of continuous questioning in science served to instigate many of the apparent conflicts with the absolute nature of law and the legal system. This is not to say that there were not some devious charlatans or even legitimate, well-meaning scientists who in effect did indeed sell their testimony to the highest bidder at times.
One of the few reservations about this book was the absence of any in-depth treatment on DNA technology and its role in the modern courtroom. It is also possible the author did the reader a disservice by not presenting and discussing at least some of the major cases in which the “mad doctors” of insanity trials played a role. Golan unfortunately glosses over these potentially significant episodes by stating they are covered sufficiently elsewhere, and it would have been enlightening to see how the “soft sciences” played out in court, especially in relation to how the “hard sciences” were involved, both in the Victorian and modern ages. Of course, Golan devotes an entire chapter to the development and early use of lie-detectors or polygraph machines, which again seems incongruous to me, in terms of discussing one aspect of psychology and the law and not the other. Nevertheless, chapters five and six, on the use of x-ray images and polygraph results in court, illuminate the greatest difference in the early and later chapters. As the twentieth century dawned, new technologies like these created a demand for specialists to administer, supervise, and explain the results in court and likewise for the courts to accept them as the valid procedures and evidence they were. This continues even today with new medical imaging, DNA, and other forensic technologies.
Overall Laws of Men and Laws of Nature is a fascinating and informative read on a mostly neglected yet important topic, and it will definitely enhance anyone’s knowledge of the history of expert scientific testimony in courts of law. For science educators, this reading also reinforces that teachers have the responsibility of being sure their students understand that science is an inquiry-based and dynamic process, and not just a static collection of facts. Just as there is historically no one definitive “scientific method”, students must be aware that science is open-ended, accomplished through a variety of techniques, its results are subject to interpretation, and its theories are subject to change as new data become available. Scientists, science teachers and students, and productive and responsible citizens in general should all be open-minded and receptive of new thoughts and points of view on any given topic. At the same time, the population should also be scientifically literate and prepared to think critically and be skeptics if necessary. Golan’s book brings to mind the long-running advertisements that suggest that “four of five dentists recommend product X”. Students need to be aware that these dentists and their opinions, like many of the scientific expert witnesses and their testimony in this book, should be subject to scrutiny and must be considered in the context in which they and their opinions are presented. This includes the dynamic nature of science, possible financial entanglements, and the social and legal climate of the time and place in question. This book is heartily recommended for science educators, students, attorneys and anyone interested in forensics, law, or science.
Summer Science Institutes Literature Review
Introduction
The Need for More Effective Science Teaching
Every week the news media is full of stories describing concerns about America’s competitiveness in a global economy and decline in our standing as a world leader in science and technology. Entities ranging from the president to the National Science Board to local school boards and even individual teachers have pointed to the lack of student proficiency on national and international tests of mathematics and science and the decline of students pursuing science and engineering degrees from universities nationwide as a cause for economic and societal apprehension and concern. It is also evident that some of the most critical and fastest growing occupations are dependent upon a knowledge base in science and mathematics. Solutions to these concerns include starting students as early as possible in inquiry-based science programs taught by proficient and knowledgeable teachers comfortable with the use of technology and the nature of science and inquiry. This can partially be brought about by effective constructivist, inquiry-based professional development workshops and institutes and with mentorship by practicing scientists particularly in the summer months and in association with institutions such as natural history museums, school districts, and universities.
Science teacher self-efficacy, science literacy, and understanding of the nature of science all seem to be strongly linked to an understanding of the nature of inquiry (Akerson and Hanuscin, 2006). Professional development workshops and institutes with an emphasis on research activities and constructivist, inquiry-based science likewise seem to be the most effective and practical ways to bring this about (Radford, 1998). Both pre-service and in-service teachers seem to benefit from these types of activities, particularly in the summer and in association with institutions such as museums and universities, as do their schools and their individual students (Melber and Cox-Peterson, 2005). Loucks-Horsley and Matsumoto (1999) have emphasized the link between effective professional development and its impact on student achievement. It is imperative to undertake more studies of this type to reinforce and support this viewpoint, and then to design and implement workshops of this nature and encourage as much active participation by our nation’s science teachers as possible (Johnson, 2007).
Discussion
Science Professional Development Models
Low science teacher self-efficacy, failure to employ learning cycles in lesson development, technology deficits, and a lack of understanding of the nature of inquiry in scientific disciplines may contribute to lowered student achievement. Relevant components of competent science teaching may be increased through effective professional development workshops and summer science institutes. Methods of remediation in summer science workshops may include participation in generating and carrying out learning cycles, authentic scientific research projects with an expert mentor, utilization of appropriate technologies, and presentations on the effectiveness and types of learning cycles. It may also be possible to follow up in subsequent months and years with the targeted teachers, schools, and even monitor specified corresponding levels of student achievement. General models of science professional development used previously include curriculum development, mentoring, lesson study, teacher-directed study groups, action-research programs, and immersion experiences (Loucks-Horsley, et al, 2003).
This model proposes to incorporate elements of immersion, technology, curriculum generation and development, and mentoring of research projects by practicing scientists to create and implement a truly effective professional development model for K-12 science educators. Howe and Stubbs (1996) developed a useful and promising constructivist/sociocultural model for the professional development of science teachers. The central vehicle of their model is a series of institutes where teachers first listen to scientists present recent research findings and then write classroom activities using and adapting the information and ideas presented. Their results indicate that many of these teachers have now become empowered to assume responsibility for their own professional development, and even assume positions of leadership in their schools, districts, and state organizations. In another study (Westerlund, et al, 2002) clearly indicated that a professional development model of prolonged engagement in research activity mentored by practicing scientists can be successful at promoting teacher change towards more inquiry teaching, enhance their knowledge of science content, and increase their enthusiasm for teaching science. Morrison and Estes (2007) stated that using scientists and real-world scenarios in professional development for middle school science teachers was an effective strategy for encouraging them to teach science as a process and help them strengthen their science content understanding. A study from Australia found that a professional development model mentoring of elementary school teachers by university science professors has positive short-term implications for implementing constructivist science teaching strategies and facilitating the understanding of science content by the teachers (Koch and Appleton, 2007).
Problems with Traditional Science Teaching Methods and Professional Development Activities
The literature suggests that students need to “learn more than can be absorbed from simply reading about science-they need to do science, becoming critical thinkers and evaluators of what they observe and learn” to compete in today’s rapidly changing world (Rhoton and Bowers, 2001, p. 13). The state of Oklahoma’s Priority Academic Student Skills (PASS) and the National Science Education Standards (NSES) recommend an inquiry approach to science teaching. Unfortunately many new and even experienced teachers feel ill-equipped to meet this challenge. Many K-12 school teachers have never been involved in a science inquiry investigation (Kielborn & Gilmer, 1999). Teachers use textbooks or cookbook type laboratories to teach science to their students. Textbook readings, note-taking, and cookbook lab activities give students the impression that science is scripted and that every experiment provides the correct answer. These types of activities do not accurately reflect the investigative and historically varied nature of scientific inquiry and do not require students to develop the critical thinking skills needed to compete in our changing world.
Evidence of Effectiveness of Inquiry-Based Science Professional Development
There is much in the scientific educational research literature to support the idea that inquiry-based science instruction can be extremely effective. Chun and Oliver (2000) found significant gains in science teacher self-efficacy during a two-year study involving participation in inquiry-based professional development workshops. In 2004, Jarvis and Pell demonstrated similar increases in science teachers’ attitudes and cognition and corresponding student achievement gains during and after professional development activities. Likewise, a seven-year study in Iowa found tremendous gains in student achievement when science teachers designated as team leaders undertook ongoing training in constructivist teaching strategies advocated by the National Science Education Standards (Kimble, Yager, and Yager, 2006). Raudenbush, Rowan, and Cheong (1992) found that the level of teacher preparation was a strong predictor of self-efficacy in the science classroom, and engaging in highly collaborative environments such as professional development workshops and institutes helped to facilitate this. Luft (2001) noted that an inquiry-based professional development program positively impacted both the beliefs and practices of secondary science teachers. Supovitz and Turner (2000) indicated a strong link between the quantity of professional development in which teachers participate and the level of inquiry-based teaching practice and investigative classroom culture. Another study found that professional development linking theory and practice through curriculum decision making had a profound influence on decisions concerning classroom environments, especially when the teachers were engaged and mentored by university scientists and science educators, and informed by theoretical perspectives of science teaching (Parke and Coble, 1998).
Summary/Conclusion
This review of the literature supports a professional development model that expects to 1) increase the scientific literacy and efficacy of K-12 school teachers by providing authentic scientific inquiry experiences with technology that promote an understanding of the nature of inquiry in scientific disciplines and 2) present teachers with an approach to science teaching that translates this genuine inquiry experience into classroom practice. Clearly, the evidence provided by prior research suggests that such a model should be effective in achieving these goals. The author’s own personal experience also suggests that this type of professional development, with an emphasis on authentic, mentored research and generation of inquiry-based curricula, can have a profound impact on both a personal, as well as a school or district-wide basis. This involves shifting from a traditional didactic and textbook-driven science curriculum to a more inquiry-based, constructivist one and professional development institutes and workshops are the most practical and appropriate means to achieve these goals.
References
Akerson, V. L., & Hanuscin, D. L. (2007). Teaching nature of science through inquiry: results of a 3-year professional development program. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 44, 653-680.
Chun, S., & Oliver, J. (2000). A quantitative examination of teacher self-efficacy and knowledge of the nature of science. 2000 Annual Meeting of the Association for the Education of Teachers in Science.
Howe, A. C., & Stubbs, H. S. (1996). Empowering science teachers: a model for professional development. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 8, 167-182.
Jarvis, T., & Pell, A. (2004). Primary teachers’ changing attitudes and cognition during a two-year in-service programme and their effect on pupils. International Journal of Science Education, 26, 1787-1811.
Johnson, C. C. (2007). Effective science teaching, professional development and No Child Left Behind: barriers, dilemmas, and reality. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 18, 133-136.
Johnson, C. C., Kahle, J. B., & Fargo J. D. (2006). A study of the effect of sustained, whole –school professional development on student achievement in science. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 10, 1-12.
Kielborn, T., Gilmer, P., & Southeastern Regional Vision for Education (SERVE), T. (1999). Meaningful science: teachers doing inquiry + teaching science. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED434008) Retrieved June 13, 2007, from ERIC database.
Kimble, L. L., Yager, R. E., & Yager, S. O. (2006). Success of a professional-development model in assisting teachers to change their teaching to match the more emphasis conditions urged in the National Science Education Standards. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 17, 1007-1021.
Koch, J. & Appleton, K. (2007). The effect of a mentoring model for elementary science professional development. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 18, 209-231.
Loucks-Horsley, S., Love, N., Stiles, S. E., Mundry, S., & Hewson, P. W. (2003). Designing professional development for teachers of science and mathematics: second edition. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Loucks-Horsley, S. & Matsumoto, C. (1999). Research on professional development for teachers of mathematics and science: the state of the scene. School Science and Mathematics, 99, 213-233.
Luft, J. A. (2001). Changing inquiry practices and beliefs: the impact of an inquiry-based professional development programme on beginning and experienced secondary science teachers. International Journal of Science Education, 23, 517-534.
Melber, L. M., & Cox-Peterson, A. M., (2005). Teacher professional development and informal learning environments: investigating partnerships and possibilities. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 16, 103-120.
Morrison, J. A., & Estes, J. C. (2007). Using scientists and real-world scenarios in professional development for middle school science teachers. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 18, 165-184.
Parke, H. M. & Coble, C. R. (1998). Teachers designing curriculum as professional development: a model for transformational science teaching. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 34, 773-789.
Radford, D. L. (1998). Transferring theory into practice: a model for professional development for science education reform. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 35, 73-88.
Raudenbush, S. W., Rowan, B., & Cheong, Y. F., (1992). Contextual effects on the self-perceived efficacy of high school teachers. Sociology of Education, 65, 150-167.
Rhoton, J., Bowers, P., & National Science Teachers Association, A. (2001). Professional development planning and design. Issues in science education. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED449040) Retrieved June 13, 2007, from ERIC database.
Supovitz, J. A. & Turner, H. M. (2000). The effects of professional development on science teaching practices and classroom culture. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 37, 963-980.
Westerlund, J. F., Garcia, D. M., Koke, J. R., Taylor, T. A., & Mason, D. S. (2002). Summer scientific research for teachers: the experience and its effect. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 13, 63-83.
The Need for More Effective Science Teaching
Every week the news media is full of stories describing concerns about America’s competitiveness in a global economy and decline in our standing as a world leader in science and technology. Entities ranging from the president to the National Science Board to local school boards and even individual teachers have pointed to the lack of student proficiency on national and international tests of mathematics and science and the decline of students pursuing science and engineering degrees from universities nationwide as a cause for economic and societal apprehension and concern. It is also evident that some of the most critical and fastest growing occupations are dependent upon a knowledge base in science and mathematics. Solutions to these concerns include starting students as early as possible in inquiry-based science programs taught by proficient and knowledgeable teachers comfortable with the use of technology and the nature of science and inquiry. This can partially be brought about by effective constructivist, inquiry-based professional development workshops and institutes and with mentorship by practicing scientists particularly in the summer months and in association with institutions such as natural history museums, school districts, and universities.
Science teacher self-efficacy, science literacy, and understanding of the nature of science all seem to be strongly linked to an understanding of the nature of inquiry (Akerson and Hanuscin, 2006). Professional development workshops and institutes with an emphasis on research activities and constructivist, inquiry-based science likewise seem to be the most effective and practical ways to bring this about (Radford, 1998). Both pre-service and in-service teachers seem to benefit from these types of activities, particularly in the summer and in association with institutions such as museums and universities, as do their schools and their individual students (Melber and Cox-Peterson, 2005). Loucks-Horsley and Matsumoto (1999) have emphasized the link between effective professional development and its impact on student achievement. It is imperative to undertake more studies of this type to reinforce and support this viewpoint, and then to design and implement workshops of this nature and encourage as much active participation by our nation’s science teachers as possible (Johnson, 2007).
Discussion
Science Professional Development Models
Low science teacher self-efficacy, failure to employ learning cycles in lesson development, technology deficits, and a lack of understanding of the nature of inquiry in scientific disciplines may contribute to lowered student achievement. Relevant components of competent science teaching may be increased through effective professional development workshops and summer science institutes. Methods of remediation in summer science workshops may include participation in generating and carrying out learning cycles, authentic scientific research projects with an expert mentor, utilization of appropriate technologies, and presentations on the effectiveness and types of learning cycles. It may also be possible to follow up in subsequent months and years with the targeted teachers, schools, and even monitor specified corresponding levels of student achievement. General models of science professional development used previously include curriculum development, mentoring, lesson study, teacher-directed study groups, action-research programs, and immersion experiences (Loucks-Horsley, et al, 2003).
This model proposes to incorporate elements of immersion, technology, curriculum generation and development, and mentoring of research projects by practicing scientists to create and implement a truly effective professional development model for K-12 science educators. Howe and Stubbs (1996) developed a useful and promising constructivist/sociocultural model for the professional development of science teachers. The central vehicle of their model is a series of institutes where teachers first listen to scientists present recent research findings and then write classroom activities using and adapting the information and ideas presented. Their results indicate that many of these teachers have now become empowered to assume responsibility for their own professional development, and even assume positions of leadership in their schools, districts, and state organizations. In another study (Westerlund, et al, 2002) clearly indicated that a professional development model of prolonged engagement in research activity mentored by practicing scientists can be successful at promoting teacher change towards more inquiry teaching, enhance their knowledge of science content, and increase their enthusiasm for teaching science. Morrison and Estes (2007) stated that using scientists and real-world scenarios in professional development for middle school science teachers was an effective strategy for encouraging them to teach science as a process and help them strengthen their science content understanding. A study from Australia found that a professional development model mentoring of elementary school teachers by university science professors has positive short-term implications for implementing constructivist science teaching strategies and facilitating the understanding of science content by the teachers (Koch and Appleton, 2007).
Problems with Traditional Science Teaching Methods and Professional Development Activities
The literature suggests that students need to “learn more than can be absorbed from simply reading about science-they need to do science, becoming critical thinkers and evaluators of what they observe and learn” to compete in today’s rapidly changing world (Rhoton and Bowers, 2001, p. 13). The state of Oklahoma’s Priority Academic Student Skills (PASS) and the National Science Education Standards (NSES) recommend an inquiry approach to science teaching. Unfortunately many new and even experienced teachers feel ill-equipped to meet this challenge. Many K-12 school teachers have never been involved in a science inquiry investigation (Kielborn & Gilmer, 1999). Teachers use textbooks or cookbook type laboratories to teach science to their students. Textbook readings, note-taking, and cookbook lab activities give students the impression that science is scripted and that every experiment provides the correct answer. These types of activities do not accurately reflect the investigative and historically varied nature of scientific inquiry and do not require students to develop the critical thinking skills needed to compete in our changing world.
Evidence of Effectiveness of Inquiry-Based Science Professional Development
There is much in the scientific educational research literature to support the idea that inquiry-based science instruction can be extremely effective. Chun and Oliver (2000) found significant gains in science teacher self-efficacy during a two-year study involving participation in inquiry-based professional development workshops. In 2004, Jarvis and Pell demonstrated similar increases in science teachers’ attitudes and cognition and corresponding student achievement gains during and after professional development activities. Likewise, a seven-year study in Iowa found tremendous gains in student achievement when science teachers designated as team leaders undertook ongoing training in constructivist teaching strategies advocated by the National Science Education Standards (Kimble, Yager, and Yager, 2006). Raudenbush, Rowan, and Cheong (1992) found that the level of teacher preparation was a strong predictor of self-efficacy in the science classroom, and engaging in highly collaborative environments such as professional development workshops and institutes helped to facilitate this. Luft (2001) noted that an inquiry-based professional development program positively impacted both the beliefs and practices of secondary science teachers. Supovitz and Turner (2000) indicated a strong link between the quantity of professional development in which teachers participate and the level of inquiry-based teaching practice and investigative classroom culture. Another study found that professional development linking theory and practice through curriculum decision making had a profound influence on decisions concerning classroom environments, especially when the teachers were engaged and mentored by university scientists and science educators, and informed by theoretical perspectives of science teaching (Parke and Coble, 1998).
Summary/Conclusion
This review of the literature supports a professional development model that expects to 1) increase the scientific literacy and efficacy of K-12 school teachers by providing authentic scientific inquiry experiences with technology that promote an understanding of the nature of inquiry in scientific disciplines and 2) present teachers with an approach to science teaching that translates this genuine inquiry experience into classroom practice. Clearly, the evidence provided by prior research suggests that such a model should be effective in achieving these goals. The author’s own personal experience also suggests that this type of professional development, with an emphasis on authentic, mentored research and generation of inquiry-based curricula, can have a profound impact on both a personal, as well as a school or district-wide basis. This involves shifting from a traditional didactic and textbook-driven science curriculum to a more inquiry-based, constructivist one and professional development institutes and workshops are the most practical and appropriate means to achieve these goals.
References
Akerson, V. L., & Hanuscin, D. L. (2007). Teaching nature of science through inquiry: results of a 3-year professional development program. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 44, 653-680.
Chun, S., & Oliver, J. (2000). A quantitative examination of teacher self-efficacy and knowledge of the nature of science. 2000 Annual Meeting of the Association for the Education of Teachers in Science.
Howe, A. C., & Stubbs, H. S. (1996). Empowering science teachers: a model for professional development. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 8, 167-182.
Jarvis, T., & Pell, A. (2004). Primary teachers’ changing attitudes and cognition during a two-year in-service programme and their effect on pupils. International Journal of Science Education, 26, 1787-1811.
Johnson, C. C. (2007). Effective science teaching, professional development and No Child Left Behind: barriers, dilemmas, and reality. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 18, 133-136.
Johnson, C. C., Kahle, J. B., & Fargo J. D. (2006). A study of the effect of sustained, whole –school professional development on student achievement in science. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 10, 1-12.
Kielborn, T., Gilmer, P., & Southeastern Regional Vision for Education (SERVE), T. (1999). Meaningful science: teachers doing inquiry + teaching science. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED434008) Retrieved June 13, 2007, from ERIC database.
Kimble, L. L., Yager, R. E., & Yager, S. O. (2006). Success of a professional-development model in assisting teachers to change their teaching to match the more emphasis conditions urged in the National Science Education Standards. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 17, 1007-1021.
Koch, J. & Appleton, K. (2007). The effect of a mentoring model for elementary science professional development. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 18, 209-231.
Loucks-Horsley, S., Love, N., Stiles, S. E., Mundry, S., & Hewson, P. W. (2003). Designing professional development for teachers of science and mathematics: second edition. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Loucks-Horsley, S. & Matsumoto, C. (1999). Research on professional development for teachers of mathematics and science: the state of the scene. School Science and Mathematics, 99, 213-233.
Luft, J. A. (2001). Changing inquiry practices and beliefs: the impact of an inquiry-based professional development programme on beginning and experienced secondary science teachers. International Journal of Science Education, 23, 517-534.
Melber, L. M., & Cox-Peterson, A. M., (2005). Teacher professional development and informal learning environments: investigating partnerships and possibilities. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 16, 103-120.
Morrison, J. A., & Estes, J. C. (2007). Using scientists and real-world scenarios in professional development for middle school science teachers. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 18, 165-184.
Parke, H. M. & Coble, C. R. (1998). Teachers designing curriculum as professional development: a model for transformational science teaching. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 34, 773-789.
Radford, D. L. (1998). Transferring theory into practice: a model for professional development for science education reform. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 35, 73-88.
Raudenbush, S. W., Rowan, B., & Cheong, Y. F., (1992). Contextual effects on the self-perceived efficacy of high school teachers. Sociology of Education, 65, 150-167.
Rhoton, J., Bowers, P., & National Science Teachers Association, A. (2001). Professional development planning and design. Issues in science education. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED449040) Retrieved June 13, 2007, from ERIC database.
Supovitz, J. A. & Turner, H. M. (2000). The effects of professional development on science teaching practices and classroom culture. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 37, 963-980.
Westerlund, J. F., Garcia, D. M., Koke, J. R., Taylor, T. A., & Mason, D. S. (2002). Summer scientific research for teachers: the experience and its effect. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 13, 63-83.
Friday, August 10, 2007
Summer Science Professional Development Workshops and Science Teacher Self-Efficacy and Knowledge of the Nature of Inquiry
Every week the news media is full of stories describing concerns about America’s competitiveness in a global economy and decline in our standing as a world leader in science and technology. Entities ranging from the president to the National Science Board to local school boards and even individual teachers have pointed to the lack of student proficiency on national and international tests of mathematics and science and the decline of students pursuing science and engineering degrees from universities nationwide as a cause for economic and societal apprehension and concern. It is also evident that some of the most critical and fastest growing occupations are dependent upon a knowledge base in science and mathematics. Solutions to these concerns include starting students as early as possible in inquiry-based science programs taught by proficient and knowledgeable teachers comfortable with the nature of science and inquiry, and this can partially be brought about by effective inquiry-based professional development workshops and institutes, particularly in the summer months.
Possible Methods of Remediation
Low science teacher self-efficacy and lack of understanding of the nature of inquiry in scientific disciplines may contribute to lowered student achievement because of less effective teaching. Relevant components of competent science teaching may be increased through effective professional development workshops and summer science institutes. Methods of remediation in summer science workshops may include participation in generating and carrying out Learning Cycles, authentic scientific research projects with an expert mentor, and presentations on the effectiveness and types of Learning Cycles. A Learning Cycle is a teaching philosophy in which the students gather data, the teacher helps them develop the concept of interest, and then together they expand and apply the concept. Instruments to be administered to judge the effectiveness of a workshop may include a Demographic Information Survey, the Science Teacher Efficacy Belief Instrument (STEBI-B Pre/Post), a qualitative Nature of Inquiry Pre/Post component, and a Summative Post-workshop Survey. It may also be possible to follow up in subsequent months and years with the targeted teachers, schools, and even specific, corresponding levels of student achievement.
Problems with Traditional Science Teaching Methods
The literature suggests that students need to “learn more than can be absorbed from simply reading about science-they need to do science, becoming critical thinkers and evaluators of what they observe and learn” to compete in today’s rapidly changing world (Rhoton and Bowers, 2001, p. 13). The state of Oklahoma’s Priority Academic Student Skills (PASS) and the National Science Education Standards (NSES) recommend an inquiry approach to science teaching. Unfortunately many new and even experienced teachers feel ill-equipped to meet this challenge. Most K-12 school teachers have never been involved in a science inquiry investigation (Kielborn & Gilmer, 1999). Teachers use textbooks or cookbook type laboratories to teach science to their students. Textbook readings, note-taking, and cookbook lab activities give students the impression that science is scripted and that every experiment provides the correct answer. These types of activities do not accurately reflect the investigative and historically varied nature of scientific inquiry and do not require students to develop the critical thinking skills needed to compete in our changing world. This study expects to 1) increase the scientific literacy and efficacy of K-12 school teachers by providing authentic scientific inquiry experiences that promote an understanding of the nature of inquiry in scientific disciplines and 2) present teachers with an approach to science teaching that translates this genuine inquiry experience into classroom practice.
Evidence of Effectiveness of Inquiry-Based Science Professional Development Workshops
There is much in the scientific educational research literature to support positive answers to the questions posed above. A reliable measure of science teacher self-efficacy is necessary to evaluate the pre- and post-effects of workshops and other training methods, and the Science Teaching Efficacy Belief Instrument (STEBI-B) has been used by many of the studies cited here, as well as in others (Enochs and Riggs, 1990). Chun and Oliver (2000) found significant gains in science teacher self-efficacy during a two-year study involving participation in inquiry-based professional development workshops. In 2004, Jarvis and Pell demonstrated similar increases in science teachers’ attitudes and cognition and corresponding student achievement gains during and after professional development activities. Likewise, a seven-year study in Iowa found tremendous gains in student achievement when science teachers designated as team leaders undertook ongoing training in constructivist teaching strategies advocated by the National Science Education Standards (Kimble, Yager, and Yager, 2006). Raudenbush, Rowan, and Cheong (1992) found that the level of teacher preparation was a strong predictor of self-efficacy in the science classroom, and engaging in highly collaborative environments such as professional development workshops and institutes helped to facilitate this.
Discussion
Science teacher self-efficacy seems to be strongly linked to an understanding of the nature of inquiry, and by extension so does greater student achievement in science. Professional development workshops and institutes with an emphasis on research activities and inquiry-based science likewise seem to be one of the most effective and practical ways to bring this about. Both preservice and inservice teachers seem to benefit from these types of activities, as do their schools and their individual students. It is imperative to undertake more studies of this type to reinforce and support this viewpoint, and then to design and implement workshops of this nature and encourage as much active participation by our nation’s science teachers as possible.
Purpose of Research
The objective of this research project is to evaluate the effectiveness of a summer science professional development workshop in increasing the scientific literacy and efficacy of participating K-12 school teachers, and increase the use of inquiry-based curricula in K-12 classrooms. The research questions to be posed are: 1) Does participation in a professional development experience with authentic scientific research and inquiry-based teaching components increase science teaching efficacy among K-12 teachers? 2) Does participation in a professional development experience with authentic scientific research and inquiry-based teaching components increase use of inquiry-based approaches in classroom instruction among K-12 teachers? 3) Does participation in a professional development experience with authentic scientific research and inquiry-based teaching components change attitudes of K-12 teachers towards teaching science and the nature of inquiry?
References
Akerson, V. L., & Hanuscin, D. L. (2007). Teaching Nature of Science through Inquiry: Results of a 3-Year Professional Development Program. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 44, 653-680.
Chun, S., & Oliver, J. (2000). A Quantitative Examination of Teacher Self-Efficacy and Knowledge of the Nature of Science. 2000 Annual Meeting of the Association for the Education of Teachers in Science.
Enochs, L., & Riggs, I. (1990). Further Development of an Elementary Science Teaching Efficacy Belief Instrument: A Preservice Elementary Scale. School Science and Mathematics, 90, 694-706.
Jarvis, T., & Pell, A. (2004). Primary teachers’ changing attitudes and cognition during a two-year in-service programme and their effect on pupils. International Journal of Science Education, 26, 1787-1811.
Johnson, C. C., Kahle, J. B., & Fargo J. D. (2006). A Study of the Effect of Sustained, Whole –School Professional Development on Student Achievement in Science. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 10, 1-12.
Kielborn, T., Gilmer, P., & Southeastern Regional Vision for Education (SERVE), T. (1999). Meaningful Science: Teachers Doing Inquiry + Teaching Science. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED434008) Retrieved June 13, 2007, from ERIC database.
Kimble, L. L., Yager, R. E., & Yager, S. O. (2006). Success of a Professional-Development Model in Assisting Teachers to Change Their Teaching to Match the More Emphasis Conditions Urged in the National Science Education Standards. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 17, 1007-1021.
Raudenbush, S. W., Rowan, B., & Cheong, Y. F., (1992). Contextual Effects on the Self-perceived Efficacy of High School Teachers. Sociology of Education, 65, 150-167.
Rhoton, J., Bowers, P., & National Science Teachers Association, A. (2001). Professional Development Planning and Design. Issues in Science Education. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED449040) Retrieved June 13, 2007, from ERIC database.
Possible Methods of Remediation
Low science teacher self-efficacy and lack of understanding of the nature of inquiry in scientific disciplines may contribute to lowered student achievement because of less effective teaching. Relevant components of competent science teaching may be increased through effective professional development workshops and summer science institutes. Methods of remediation in summer science workshops may include participation in generating and carrying out Learning Cycles, authentic scientific research projects with an expert mentor, and presentations on the effectiveness and types of Learning Cycles. A Learning Cycle is a teaching philosophy in which the students gather data, the teacher helps them develop the concept of interest, and then together they expand and apply the concept. Instruments to be administered to judge the effectiveness of a workshop may include a Demographic Information Survey, the Science Teacher Efficacy Belief Instrument (STEBI-B Pre/Post), a qualitative Nature of Inquiry Pre/Post component, and a Summative Post-workshop Survey. It may also be possible to follow up in subsequent months and years with the targeted teachers, schools, and even specific, corresponding levels of student achievement.
Problems with Traditional Science Teaching Methods
The literature suggests that students need to “learn more than can be absorbed from simply reading about science-they need to do science, becoming critical thinkers and evaluators of what they observe and learn” to compete in today’s rapidly changing world (Rhoton and Bowers, 2001, p. 13). The state of Oklahoma’s Priority Academic Student Skills (PASS) and the National Science Education Standards (NSES) recommend an inquiry approach to science teaching. Unfortunately many new and even experienced teachers feel ill-equipped to meet this challenge. Most K-12 school teachers have never been involved in a science inquiry investigation (Kielborn & Gilmer, 1999). Teachers use textbooks or cookbook type laboratories to teach science to their students. Textbook readings, note-taking, and cookbook lab activities give students the impression that science is scripted and that every experiment provides the correct answer. These types of activities do not accurately reflect the investigative and historically varied nature of scientific inquiry and do not require students to develop the critical thinking skills needed to compete in our changing world. This study expects to 1) increase the scientific literacy and efficacy of K-12 school teachers by providing authentic scientific inquiry experiences that promote an understanding of the nature of inquiry in scientific disciplines and 2) present teachers with an approach to science teaching that translates this genuine inquiry experience into classroom practice.
Evidence of Effectiveness of Inquiry-Based Science Professional Development Workshops
There is much in the scientific educational research literature to support positive answers to the questions posed above. A reliable measure of science teacher self-efficacy is necessary to evaluate the pre- and post-effects of workshops and other training methods, and the Science Teaching Efficacy Belief Instrument (STEBI-B) has been used by many of the studies cited here, as well as in others (Enochs and Riggs, 1990). Chun and Oliver (2000) found significant gains in science teacher self-efficacy during a two-year study involving participation in inquiry-based professional development workshops. In 2004, Jarvis and Pell demonstrated similar increases in science teachers’ attitudes and cognition and corresponding student achievement gains during and after professional development activities. Likewise, a seven-year study in Iowa found tremendous gains in student achievement when science teachers designated as team leaders undertook ongoing training in constructivist teaching strategies advocated by the National Science Education Standards (Kimble, Yager, and Yager, 2006). Raudenbush, Rowan, and Cheong (1992) found that the level of teacher preparation was a strong predictor of self-efficacy in the science classroom, and engaging in highly collaborative environments such as professional development workshops and institutes helped to facilitate this.
Discussion
Science teacher self-efficacy seems to be strongly linked to an understanding of the nature of inquiry, and by extension so does greater student achievement in science. Professional development workshops and institutes with an emphasis on research activities and inquiry-based science likewise seem to be one of the most effective and practical ways to bring this about. Both preservice and inservice teachers seem to benefit from these types of activities, as do their schools and their individual students. It is imperative to undertake more studies of this type to reinforce and support this viewpoint, and then to design and implement workshops of this nature and encourage as much active participation by our nation’s science teachers as possible.
Purpose of Research
The objective of this research project is to evaluate the effectiveness of a summer science professional development workshop in increasing the scientific literacy and efficacy of participating K-12 school teachers, and increase the use of inquiry-based curricula in K-12 classrooms. The research questions to be posed are: 1) Does participation in a professional development experience with authentic scientific research and inquiry-based teaching components increase science teaching efficacy among K-12 teachers? 2) Does participation in a professional development experience with authentic scientific research and inquiry-based teaching components increase use of inquiry-based approaches in classroom instruction among K-12 teachers? 3) Does participation in a professional development experience with authentic scientific research and inquiry-based teaching components change attitudes of K-12 teachers towards teaching science and the nature of inquiry?
References
Akerson, V. L., & Hanuscin, D. L. (2007). Teaching Nature of Science through Inquiry: Results of a 3-Year Professional Development Program. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 44, 653-680.
Chun, S., & Oliver, J. (2000). A Quantitative Examination of Teacher Self-Efficacy and Knowledge of the Nature of Science. 2000 Annual Meeting of the Association for the Education of Teachers in Science.
Enochs, L., & Riggs, I. (1990). Further Development of an Elementary Science Teaching Efficacy Belief Instrument: A Preservice Elementary Scale. School Science and Mathematics, 90, 694-706.
Jarvis, T., & Pell, A. (2004). Primary teachers’ changing attitudes and cognition during a two-year in-service programme and their effect on pupils. International Journal of Science Education, 26, 1787-1811.
Johnson, C. C., Kahle, J. B., & Fargo J. D. (2006). A Study of the Effect of Sustained, Whole –School Professional Development on Student Achievement in Science. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 10, 1-12.
Kielborn, T., Gilmer, P., & Southeastern Regional Vision for Education (SERVE), T. (1999). Meaningful Science: Teachers Doing Inquiry + Teaching Science. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED434008) Retrieved June 13, 2007, from ERIC database.
Kimble, L. L., Yager, R. E., & Yager, S. O. (2006). Success of a Professional-Development Model in Assisting Teachers to Change Their Teaching to Match the More Emphasis Conditions Urged in the National Science Education Standards. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 17, 1007-1021.
Raudenbush, S. W., Rowan, B., & Cheong, Y. F., (1992). Contextual Effects on the Self-perceived Efficacy of High School Teachers. Sociology of Education, 65, 150-167.
Rhoton, J., Bowers, P., & National Science Teachers Association, A. (2001). Professional Development Planning and Design. Issues in Science Education. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED449040) Retrieved June 13, 2007, from ERIC database.
Monday, June 11, 2007
Literature Review Outline and Reference List
Summer Science Professional Development Workshops and Science Teacher Self-Efficacy
I. Low science teacher self-efficacy and lack of understanding of inquiry, the nature of science, and concept development in lesson design may contribute to lowered student achievement and less effective teaching
II. Relevant components of effective science teaching that may be increased through effective professional development workshops
a. High science teacher self-efficacy
b. Understanding of the nature of science
c. Understanding of the nature of inquiry
d. Effective concept development through proper lesson design
e. More use of inquiry-based components in the classroom
III. Methods of remediation in summer science workshops
a. Participation in generating and carrying out Learning Cycles
b. Authentic scientific research projects with an expert mentor
c. Presentations on effectiveness and types of Learning Cycles
IV. Instruments to be administered to evaluate effectiveness of workshops
a. Demographic Information Survey
b. Qualitative Inquiry Component
c. Qualitative Lesson Design and Concept Development
d. Nature of Science Scale (NOSS)
e. Science Teacher Efficacy Belief Instrument (STEBI-B)
f. Understanding the Learning Cycle (ULC)
g. Summative Participant Survey (SPS)
V. Discussion
Annotated Reference List:
Chun, S., & Oliver, J. (2000). A Quantitative Examination of Teacher Self-Efficacy and Knowledge of the Nature of Science. 2000 Annual Meeting of the Association for the Education of Teachers in Science. This study indicated that teacher self-efficacy and beliefs about the nature of science are not easily changed, but increases in both were shown over the course of this three year study.
Enochs, L., & Riggs, I. (1990). Further Development of an Elementary Science Teaching Efficacy Belief Instrument: A Preservice Elementary Scale. School Science and Mathematics, 90, 694-706. This paper showed the STEBI-B to be a valid and reliable instrument for determining science teachers’ self-efficacy, and compared the self-efficacy level of scientists, science teachers, and philosophers.
Jarvis, T., & Pell, A. (2004). Primary teachers’ changing attitudes and cognition during a two-year in-service programme and their effect on pupils. International Journal of Science Education, 26, 1787-1811. This two year study demonstrated increases in the science teachers’ confidence, self-efficacy, attitudes to managing science in the classroom and understanding of science when participating in the workshops.
Kimble, L. L., Yager, R. E., & Yager, S. O. (2006). Success of a Professional-Development Model in Assisting Teachers to Change Their Teaching to Match the More Emphasis Conditions Urged in the National Science Education Standards. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 17, 1007-1021. This paper showed how science teachers’ use of constructivist strategies increased in the classroom after in-service training, and a corresponding rise in student achievement.
Raudenbush, S. W., Rowan, B., & Cheong, Y. F., (1992). Contextual Effects on the Self-perceived Efficacy of High School Teachers. Sociology of Education, 65, 150-167. This study showed how self-efficacy can vary from teacher to teacher, and how it can be related to the level of students being taught, amount of control over key working conditions, and working in highly collaborative environments.
I. Low science teacher self-efficacy and lack of understanding of inquiry, the nature of science, and concept development in lesson design may contribute to lowered student achievement and less effective teaching
II. Relevant components of effective science teaching that may be increased through effective professional development workshops
a. High science teacher self-efficacy
b. Understanding of the nature of science
c. Understanding of the nature of inquiry
d. Effective concept development through proper lesson design
e. More use of inquiry-based components in the classroom
III. Methods of remediation in summer science workshops
a. Participation in generating and carrying out Learning Cycles
b. Authentic scientific research projects with an expert mentor
c. Presentations on effectiveness and types of Learning Cycles
IV. Instruments to be administered to evaluate effectiveness of workshops
a. Demographic Information Survey
b. Qualitative Inquiry Component
c. Qualitative Lesson Design and Concept Development
d. Nature of Science Scale (NOSS)
e. Science Teacher Efficacy Belief Instrument (STEBI-B)
f. Understanding the Learning Cycle (ULC)
g. Summative Participant Survey (SPS)
V. Discussion
Annotated Reference List:
Chun, S., & Oliver, J. (2000). A Quantitative Examination of Teacher Self-Efficacy and Knowledge of the Nature of Science. 2000 Annual Meeting of the Association for the Education of Teachers in Science. This study indicated that teacher self-efficacy and beliefs about the nature of science are not easily changed, but increases in both were shown over the course of this three year study.
Enochs, L., & Riggs, I. (1990). Further Development of an Elementary Science Teaching Efficacy Belief Instrument: A Preservice Elementary Scale. School Science and Mathematics, 90, 694-706. This paper showed the STEBI-B to be a valid and reliable instrument for determining science teachers’ self-efficacy, and compared the self-efficacy level of scientists, science teachers, and philosophers.
Jarvis, T., & Pell, A. (2004). Primary teachers’ changing attitudes and cognition during a two-year in-service programme and their effect on pupils. International Journal of Science Education, 26, 1787-1811. This two year study demonstrated increases in the science teachers’ confidence, self-efficacy, attitudes to managing science in the classroom and understanding of science when participating in the workshops.
Kimble, L. L., Yager, R. E., & Yager, S. O. (2006). Success of a Professional-Development Model in Assisting Teachers to Change Their Teaching to Match the More Emphasis Conditions Urged in the National Science Education Standards. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 17, 1007-1021. This paper showed how science teachers’ use of constructivist strategies increased in the classroom after in-service training, and a corresponding rise in student achievement.
Raudenbush, S. W., Rowan, B., & Cheong, Y. F., (1992). Contextual Effects on the Self-perceived Efficacy of High School Teachers. Sociology of Education, 65, 150-167. This study showed how self-efficacy can vary from teacher to teacher, and how it can be related to the level of students being taught, amount of control over key working conditions, and working in highly collaborative environments.
Thursday, March 29, 2007
A Learning Cycle: Forces
Forces: A Learning Cycle
Science Concept: A force is a push or a pull. Unbalanced forces cause motion, balanced forces do not.
Age/Grade of Students: 6-8th graders, mostly
10 to 14 years old.
TEACHER’S GUIDE
Forces: A Learning Cycle
Concept:
A force is a push or a pull. Unbalanced forces cause motion, balanced forces do not.
Materials:
Open area with 5-10 m diameter circle, rope, block of wood with hooks in opposite ends, two spring scales, gloves, helmets, paper, and pencil
Safety:
A soft or grassy surface is preferred, and helmets and gloves are recommended for both the “reverse sumo” and tug of war.
Procedures:
See Teacher’s and Student’s Guides
Assessment:
-Completion and class discussion of questions on student’s guide.
-Appropriate practice problems.
-Quiz or test.
-Completion of Expansion(s) with discussion and observation to facilitate and confirm student understanding.
TEACHER’S GUIDE
“A TUG OF WAR”
EXPLORATION PART A:
TEACHER NOTE: Explain each setup and have students make predictions before each game.
On the first setup evenly split the class into two separate teams.
On the second setup move 5 players from the red team and put them on the blue team to create a team with a larger number. (Numbers may vary depending on class size.)
On the third setup pick students who are the strongest and put them on the team with the lowest number of players. (Keep the ration the same as in the second setup.) For each setup, play 3 games and have students record their information between each trial.
Prediction 1:
Who do you think will win the most of three games? RED BLUE (circle one)
Why? Answers will vary. Students may say something about strength or size
because the numbers are the same.
Prediction 2:
Who do you think will win the most of three games? RED BLUE (circle one)
Why? Students will probably say the blue team will win because they have more
people.
Prediction 3:
Who do you think will win the most of three games? RED BLUE (circle one)
Why? Students will either predict the team with the strongest members OR the
team with the most members. Either will be accepted.
TEACHER’S GUIDE
Number on each team
Game 1
Game 2
Game 3
Team with most wins
Red _____
Blue_____
Red _____
Blue_____
Red _____
Blue_____
You may want to make a copy of the table for the overhead or put the table on the board.
When the teams were even who won the most games? Why? Answers will vary,
Explanation may be because a student is stronger or bigger.
When the teams were uneven who won the most games? Why? Students may
say the team that had the most people.
When the teams were divided by size, who won the most games? Why? Students
may say the team with the most members or the team with the stronger players.
Were your predictions correct or incorrect? Explain. Answers will vary.
TEACHER’S GUIDE
PUSHING EACH OTHERS “BUTT”ONS
EXPLORATION PART B:
TEACHER NOTE: The gym was suggested because it already has circles on the floor. You may also want to tape down a 2m X 2m square to use if you want more than one group to go at a time. Teacher will line up 2 students back-to-back at the center line. When the teacher blows the whistle the students will attempt to push each other out of bounds. The students may not use their hands to accomplish this and must stay back-to-back. If they fall or become disconnected they reconnect and begin again. The game ends when one student is pushed out of the circle or square. Have students record the winner in their table.
1. Who won the most games in your group? Explain why this happened.
Answers will vary depending on results.
2. Did the size of the person determine who won? Why or why not?
Answers will vary depending on results.
TEACHER’S GUIDE
IDEA
Go over the answers to the IDEA page.
Students may not come up with the idea that a force is a push or pull. Teacher may have to invent the term force. It needs to be stated that the change in motion that is experienced in these activities indicates that a force is present. For example, when the rope is not in motion and is stopped, a force is applied. Teacher should also express to students that even if the object is not moving a force may still be applied.
1. During the tug of war game, was the rope in motion before the rope was
touched? The rope was not in motion before it was touched.
2. How do you know if the rope was or was not in motion? We know the rope
was not in motion because the bandana was not moving toward or away from
the reference point.
3. What observations about the rope did you make when the game of tug of war
began? What caused this to happen? Answers may include the rope is
moving or starts moving. Students may say this is caused because they are
pulling on it. Some students may also bring the term force out at this time.
4. At any point in the game was the rope not in motion? If so, when and why?
The rope was not in motion when both teams were pulling with the same
strength on both ends.
5. In exploration A, what action was taking place? pulling
6. In exploration B, what action was taking place? pushing
7. Do the actions in the explorations have the ability to cause an object to move?
Yes, both pulling and pushing can cause an object to move or change
direction.
TEACHER’S GUIDE
IDEA CONT.,
8. Are the actions described above, considered to be forces? Explain. At this
point, hopefully students can say yes because pushing or pulling is applying
a force.
9. What idea do you have about forces? Students should say that a force is a
push or pull and can cause a change in motion.
10. Do forces always cause the object to move? Explain. Forces do not cause
objects to move. For example, in the tug of war game when the equal force is
being applied to both sides of the rope.
11. Give your definition of what a force is. Answers will vary but students should
state that a force is a push or a pull. Unbalanced forces cause motion,
balanced forces do not.
TEACHER’S GUIDE
“A BALANCING ACT”
EXPANSION
Teacher may want to make an overhead or put on the board the tables so that the results may be discussed as a group. Teacher also needs to explain the proper use of a spring scale.
Procedure:
1. Using the tape the teacher provides, tape a center line on the desk.
2. Place the object evenly on the center line.
3. Attach a spring scale to each side of the object.
4. Each person pulls with a force of 1 Newton.
5. Determine whether or not the object is in motion using the tape line as a reference point.
Student #1 Force
Student #2 Force
Did the object move?
Were forces equal?
Are the forces working in the same or opposite direction?
1N
1 N
Repeat activity with one student pulling with a force of 1 Newton while the other
Student does not apply a force.
Student #1 Force
Student #2 Force
Did the object move?
Were the forces equal?
Are the forces working in the same or opposite direction?
1N
0 N
Repeat activity with both students pulling with a force of 1 Newton on the same
side of the object.
Student #1 Force
Student #2 Force
Did the object move?
Were the forces equal?
Are the forces working in the same or opposite direction?
TEACHER’S GUIDE
Balance forces are when the forces are equal or unequal.
Balance forces cause motion or do not cause motion.
Unbalanced forces are when the forces are equal or unequal.
Unbalanced forces cause motion or do not cause motion.
Give a definition of balanced forces based on your information or observation.
Balanced forces are when equal forces are applied in opposite directions.
Give a definition of unbalanced forces based on your information or observation.
Unbalanced forces are unequal forces applied in opposite directions. Students
may also say when 2 forces applied in the same direction.
Give an example of a real life situation in which there are unbalanced forces.
Students may say kicking a soccer ball, closing a door, opening a drawer. Other
possible answers will be accepted.
Give an example of a real life situation in which there are balanced forces.
Answers may include leaning against a wall, telephone lines being held up or
other possible answers.
When the forces were applied in the same direction was it a balanced or
unbalanced force on the object? Explain. When forces are applied in the same
direction it will be an unbalanced force because there is nothing to prevent the
start of motion.
STUDENT’S GUIDE
“A TUG OF WAR”
EXPLORATION PART A:
Materials:
Tug of war rope
Gym or large area
Bandana
Procedure:
1. The rope is positioned so that the bandana is placed on the half court line.
2. Your teacher will divide the class into 2 EVEN teams.
3. Your teacher will assign your team a color and a specific end of the rope.
4. Your teacher will tell you when to start pulling.
5. When half of the team passes the center court line, the game is over and the teacher will instruct you to drop the rope.
6. Make a prediction before the game begins.
Prediction 1:
Who do you think will win the most of three games? RED BLUE (circle one)
Why? ____________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Now the teacher will divide the class into 2 different teams.
Prediction 2:
Who do you think will win the most of three games? RED BLUE (circle one)
Why? ____________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Now the teacher will divide the class into different teams again.
Prediction 3:
Who do you think will win the most of three games? RED BLUE (circle one)
Why? ____________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
STUDENT’S GUIDE
TUG OF WAR CONT.,
Complete the data table with the results of each game by filling in the team that won.
Number on each team
Game 1
Game 2
Game 3
Team with most wins
Red _____
Blue _____
Red _____
Blue _____
Red _____
Blue _____
1. When the teams were even who won the most games? Why? ___________________
_______________________________________________________________________
2. When the teams were uneven who won the most games? Why? _________________
________________________________________________________________________
3. When the teams were divided by size, who won the most games? Why? __________
________________________________________________________________________
4. Were your predictions correct or incorrect? Explain. __________________________
________________________________________________________________________
STUDENT’S GUIDE
PUSHING EACH OTHERS “BUTT”ONS
EXPLORATION PART B:
Procedure:
1. Find a partner (only 2 per group).
2. Your teacher will instruct you where to line up back to back.
3. When the teacher blows the whistle, begin pushing your partner. You must stay back to back and you may NOT use your hands.
4. Repeat the procedure 2 more times.
5. Record the name of the winner in the table below.
Student #1 __________________________ Student #2 ___________________________
Trial 1
Trial 2
Trial 3
Most Wins
Find 2 other groups and record their information below.
Student 1__________________ vs. Student 2 __________________ Winner __________
Student 1__________________ vs. Student 2 __________________ Winner __________
Who won the most games in your group? Explain why this happened.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Did the size of the person determine who won? Why or why not?
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
STUDENT’S GUIDE
IDEA
During the tug of war game, was the rope in motion before the rope was touched?
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
How do you know if the rope was or was not in motion? ____________________
__________________________________________________________________
What observations about the rope did you make when the game of tug of war
began? What caused this to happen? ___________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
At any point in the game was the rope not in motion? If so, when and why?
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
In the exploration A, what action was taking place? ________________________
__________________________________________________________________
In the exploration B, what action was taking place? ________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Do the actions in the explorations have the ability to cause an object to move?
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Are the actions described above, considered to be forces? Explain. ___________
__________________________________________________________________
STUDENT’S GUIDE
IDEA CONT.,
What idea do you have about forces? ___________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
Do forces always cause the object to move? Explain. ______________________
__________________________________________________________________
Give you definition of what a force is. __________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
STUDENT’S GUIDE
EXPANSION
Procedure:
1. Using the tape the teacher provides, tape a center line on the desk.
2. Place the object evenly on the center line.
3. Attach a spring scale to each side of the object.
4. Each person pulls with a force of 1 Newton.
5. Determine whether or not the object is in motion using the tape line as a reference point.
Student #1 Force
Student #2 Force
Did the object move?
Were forces equal?
Are the forces working in the same or opposite direction?
1N
1 N
Repeat activity with one student pulling with a force of 1 Newton while the other
Student does not apply a force.
Student #1 Force
Student #2 Force
Did the object move?
Were the forces equal?
Are the forces working in the same or opposite direction?
1N
0 N
Repeat activity with both students pulling with a force of 1 Newton on the same
side of the object.
Student #1 Force
Student #2 Force
Did the object move?
Were the forces equal?
Are the forces working in the same or opposite direction?
STUDENT’S GUIDE
Underline the bold word that completes the sentence correctly.
Balance forces are when the forces are equal or unequal.
Balance forces cause motion or do not cause motion.
Unbalanced forces are when the forces are equal or unequal.
Unbalanced forces cause motion or do not cause motion.
Give a definition of balanced forces based on your information or observation.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Give a definition of unbalanced forces based on your information or observation.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Give an example of a real life situation in which there are unbalanced forces.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Give an example of a real life situation in which there are balanced forces.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
When the forces were applied in the same direction was it a balanced or
unbalanced force on the object? Explain. _______________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Bibliographic Note:
Edmund Marek and Timothy Laubach, "Bridging the Gap between Theory and Practice: A Success Story from Science Education", (M. Gordon, T. O'Brien (eds.), Bridging Theory and Practice in Teacher Education, 47-59. copyright 2007 Sense Publishers.
Edmund Marek and Ann Cavallo, The Learning Cycle: Elementary School Science and Beyond, (Portsmouth NH, Heinemann, 1997).
PASS Objectives, Oklahoma State Board of Education, 2002.
National Science Education Standards from the National Academy of Sciences, 1995.
Science Concept: A force is a push or a pull. Unbalanced forces cause motion, balanced forces do not.
Age/Grade of Students: 6-8th graders, mostly
10 to 14 years old.
TEACHER’S GUIDE
Forces: A Learning Cycle
Concept:
A force is a push or a pull. Unbalanced forces cause motion, balanced forces do not.
Materials:
Open area with 5-10 m diameter circle, rope, block of wood with hooks in opposite ends, two spring scales, gloves, helmets, paper, and pencil
Safety:
A soft or grassy surface is preferred, and helmets and gloves are recommended for both the “reverse sumo” and tug of war.
Procedures:
See Teacher’s and Student’s Guides
Assessment:
-Completion and class discussion of questions on student’s guide.
-Appropriate practice problems.
-Quiz or test.
-Completion of Expansion(s) with discussion and observation to facilitate and confirm student understanding.
TEACHER’S GUIDE
“A TUG OF WAR”
EXPLORATION PART A:
TEACHER NOTE: Explain each setup and have students make predictions before each game.
On the first setup evenly split the class into two separate teams.
On the second setup move 5 players from the red team and put them on the blue team to create a team with a larger number. (Numbers may vary depending on class size.)
On the third setup pick students who are the strongest and put them on the team with the lowest number of players. (Keep the ration the same as in the second setup.) For each setup, play 3 games and have students record their information between each trial.
Prediction 1:
Who do you think will win the most of three games? RED BLUE (circle one)
Why? Answers will vary. Students may say something about strength or size
because the numbers are the same.
Prediction 2:
Who do you think will win the most of three games? RED BLUE (circle one)
Why? Students will probably say the blue team will win because they have more
people.
Prediction 3:
Who do you think will win the most of three games? RED BLUE (circle one)
Why? Students will either predict the team with the strongest members OR the
team with the most members. Either will be accepted.
TEACHER’S GUIDE
Number on each team
Game 1
Game 2
Game 3
Team with most wins
Red _____
Blue_____
Red _____
Blue_____
Red _____
Blue_____
You may want to make a copy of the table for the overhead or put the table on the board.
When the teams were even who won the most games? Why? Answers will vary,
Explanation may be because a student is stronger or bigger.
When the teams were uneven who won the most games? Why? Students may
say the team that had the most people.
When the teams were divided by size, who won the most games? Why? Students
may say the team with the most members or the team with the stronger players.
Were your predictions correct or incorrect? Explain. Answers will vary.
TEACHER’S GUIDE
PUSHING EACH OTHERS “BUTT”ONS
EXPLORATION PART B:
TEACHER NOTE: The gym was suggested because it already has circles on the floor. You may also want to tape down a 2m X 2m square to use if you want more than one group to go at a time. Teacher will line up 2 students back-to-back at the center line. When the teacher blows the whistle the students will attempt to push each other out of bounds. The students may not use their hands to accomplish this and must stay back-to-back. If they fall or become disconnected they reconnect and begin again. The game ends when one student is pushed out of the circle or square. Have students record the winner in their table.
1. Who won the most games in your group? Explain why this happened.
Answers will vary depending on results.
2. Did the size of the person determine who won? Why or why not?
Answers will vary depending on results.
TEACHER’S GUIDE
IDEA
Go over the answers to the IDEA page.
Students may not come up with the idea that a force is a push or pull. Teacher may have to invent the term force. It needs to be stated that the change in motion that is experienced in these activities indicates that a force is present. For example, when the rope is not in motion and is stopped, a force is applied. Teacher should also express to students that even if the object is not moving a force may still be applied.
1. During the tug of war game, was the rope in motion before the rope was
touched? The rope was not in motion before it was touched.
2. How do you know if the rope was or was not in motion? We know the rope
was not in motion because the bandana was not moving toward or away from
the reference point.
3. What observations about the rope did you make when the game of tug of war
began? What caused this to happen? Answers may include the rope is
moving or starts moving. Students may say this is caused because they are
pulling on it. Some students may also bring the term force out at this time.
4. At any point in the game was the rope not in motion? If so, when and why?
The rope was not in motion when both teams were pulling with the same
strength on both ends.
5. In exploration A, what action was taking place? pulling
6. In exploration B, what action was taking place? pushing
7. Do the actions in the explorations have the ability to cause an object to move?
Yes, both pulling and pushing can cause an object to move or change
direction.
TEACHER’S GUIDE
IDEA CONT.,
8. Are the actions described above, considered to be forces? Explain. At this
point, hopefully students can say yes because pushing or pulling is applying
a force.
9. What idea do you have about forces? Students should say that a force is a
push or pull and can cause a change in motion.
10. Do forces always cause the object to move? Explain. Forces do not cause
objects to move. For example, in the tug of war game when the equal force is
being applied to both sides of the rope.
11. Give your definition of what a force is. Answers will vary but students should
state that a force is a push or a pull. Unbalanced forces cause motion,
balanced forces do not.
TEACHER’S GUIDE
“A BALANCING ACT”
EXPANSION
Teacher may want to make an overhead or put on the board the tables so that the results may be discussed as a group. Teacher also needs to explain the proper use of a spring scale.
Procedure:
1. Using the tape the teacher provides, tape a center line on the desk.
2. Place the object evenly on the center line.
3. Attach a spring scale to each side of the object.
4. Each person pulls with a force of 1 Newton.
5. Determine whether or not the object is in motion using the tape line as a reference point.
Student #1 Force
Student #2 Force
Did the object move?
Were forces equal?
Are the forces working in the same or opposite direction?
1N
1 N
Repeat activity with one student pulling with a force of 1 Newton while the other
Student does not apply a force.
Student #1 Force
Student #2 Force
Did the object move?
Were the forces equal?
Are the forces working in the same or opposite direction?
1N
0 N
Repeat activity with both students pulling with a force of 1 Newton on the same
side of the object.
Student #1 Force
Student #2 Force
Did the object move?
Were the forces equal?
Are the forces working in the same or opposite direction?
TEACHER’S GUIDE
Balance forces are when the forces are equal or unequal.
Balance forces cause motion or do not cause motion.
Unbalanced forces are when the forces are equal or unequal.
Unbalanced forces cause motion or do not cause motion.
Give a definition of balanced forces based on your information or observation.
Balanced forces are when equal forces are applied in opposite directions.
Give a definition of unbalanced forces based on your information or observation.
Unbalanced forces are unequal forces applied in opposite directions. Students
may also say when 2 forces applied in the same direction.
Give an example of a real life situation in which there are unbalanced forces.
Students may say kicking a soccer ball, closing a door, opening a drawer. Other
possible answers will be accepted.
Give an example of a real life situation in which there are balanced forces.
Answers may include leaning against a wall, telephone lines being held up or
other possible answers.
When the forces were applied in the same direction was it a balanced or
unbalanced force on the object? Explain. When forces are applied in the same
direction it will be an unbalanced force because there is nothing to prevent the
start of motion.
STUDENT’S GUIDE
“A TUG OF WAR”
EXPLORATION PART A:
Materials:
Tug of war rope
Gym or large area
Bandana
Procedure:
1. The rope is positioned so that the bandana is placed on the half court line.
2. Your teacher will divide the class into 2 EVEN teams.
3. Your teacher will assign your team a color and a specific end of the rope.
4. Your teacher will tell you when to start pulling.
5. When half of the team passes the center court line, the game is over and the teacher will instruct you to drop the rope.
6. Make a prediction before the game begins.
Prediction 1:
Who do you think will win the most of three games? RED BLUE (circle one)
Why? ____________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Now the teacher will divide the class into 2 different teams.
Prediction 2:
Who do you think will win the most of three games? RED BLUE (circle one)
Why? ____________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Now the teacher will divide the class into different teams again.
Prediction 3:
Who do you think will win the most of three games? RED BLUE (circle one)
Why? ____________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
STUDENT’S GUIDE
TUG OF WAR CONT.,
Complete the data table with the results of each game by filling in the team that won.
Number on each team
Game 1
Game 2
Game 3
Team with most wins
Red _____
Blue _____
Red _____
Blue _____
Red _____
Blue _____
1. When the teams were even who won the most games? Why? ___________________
_______________________________________________________________________
2. When the teams were uneven who won the most games? Why? _________________
________________________________________________________________________
3. When the teams were divided by size, who won the most games? Why? __________
________________________________________________________________________
4. Were your predictions correct or incorrect? Explain. __________________________
________________________________________________________________________
STUDENT’S GUIDE
PUSHING EACH OTHERS “BUTT”ONS
EXPLORATION PART B:
Procedure:
1. Find a partner (only 2 per group).
2. Your teacher will instruct you where to line up back to back.
3. When the teacher blows the whistle, begin pushing your partner. You must stay back to back and you may NOT use your hands.
4. Repeat the procedure 2 more times.
5. Record the name of the winner in the table below.
Student #1 __________________________ Student #2 ___________________________
Trial 1
Trial 2
Trial 3
Most Wins
Find 2 other groups and record their information below.
Student 1__________________ vs. Student 2 __________________ Winner __________
Student 1__________________ vs. Student 2 __________________ Winner __________
Who won the most games in your group? Explain why this happened.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Did the size of the person determine who won? Why or why not?
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
STUDENT’S GUIDE
IDEA
During the tug of war game, was the rope in motion before the rope was touched?
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
How do you know if the rope was or was not in motion? ____________________
__________________________________________________________________
What observations about the rope did you make when the game of tug of war
began? What caused this to happen? ___________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
At any point in the game was the rope not in motion? If so, when and why?
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
In the exploration A, what action was taking place? ________________________
__________________________________________________________________
In the exploration B, what action was taking place? ________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Do the actions in the explorations have the ability to cause an object to move?
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Are the actions described above, considered to be forces? Explain. ___________
__________________________________________________________________
STUDENT’S GUIDE
IDEA CONT.,
What idea do you have about forces? ___________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
Do forces always cause the object to move? Explain. ______________________
__________________________________________________________________
Give you definition of what a force is. __________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
STUDENT’S GUIDE
EXPANSION
Procedure:
1. Using the tape the teacher provides, tape a center line on the desk.
2. Place the object evenly on the center line.
3. Attach a spring scale to each side of the object.
4. Each person pulls with a force of 1 Newton.
5. Determine whether or not the object is in motion using the tape line as a reference point.
Student #1 Force
Student #2 Force
Did the object move?
Were forces equal?
Are the forces working in the same or opposite direction?
1N
1 N
Repeat activity with one student pulling with a force of 1 Newton while the other
Student does not apply a force.
Student #1 Force
Student #2 Force
Did the object move?
Were the forces equal?
Are the forces working in the same or opposite direction?
1N
0 N
Repeat activity with both students pulling with a force of 1 Newton on the same
side of the object.
Student #1 Force
Student #2 Force
Did the object move?
Were the forces equal?
Are the forces working in the same or opposite direction?
STUDENT’S GUIDE
Underline the bold word that completes the sentence correctly.
Balance forces are when the forces are equal or unequal.
Balance forces cause motion or do not cause motion.
Unbalanced forces are when the forces are equal or unequal.
Unbalanced forces cause motion or do not cause motion.
Give a definition of balanced forces based on your information or observation.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Give a definition of unbalanced forces based on your information or observation.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Give an example of a real life situation in which there are unbalanced forces.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Give an example of a real life situation in which there are balanced forces.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
When the forces were applied in the same direction was it a balanced or
unbalanced force on the object? Explain. _______________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Bibliographic Note:
Edmund Marek and Timothy Laubach, "Bridging the Gap between Theory and Practice: A Success Story from Science Education", (M. Gordon, T. O'Brien (eds.), Bridging Theory and Practice in Teacher Education, 47-59. copyright 2007 Sense Publishers.
Edmund Marek and Ann Cavallo, The Learning Cycle: Elementary School Science and Beyond, (Portsmouth NH, Heinemann, 1997).
PASS Objectives, Oklahoma State Board of Education, 2002.
National Science Education Standards from the National Academy of Sciences, 1995.
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
“Interrogations”on Scientific American Articles
Abstract
Group oral quizzes based on notes students have taken from Scientific American articles are an effective means of developing, expanding, and applying science concepts.
Group oral quizzes based on notes students have taken from Scientific American articles are an effective means of developing, expanding, and applying science concepts.
Interrogations!!!
Don’t let the term “interrogations” scare you away from the idea of using relatively advanced science magazine and even journal articles to facilitate concept development and expansion in your learning cycles. This teaching method has been given this somewhat intimidating name at least somewhat affectionately by the students subjected to them, and many former students have reported back that as far as college preparation in high school was concerned, nothing helped them more than our friendly “interrogations”, regardless of their major.
I began my teaching career in 1988 in El Paso, Texas at Coronado High School, considered at the time the top academic high school in that area. After “paying my dues” for all of two years teaching mostly remedial math and science while “floating” from one classroom to another each period, I was fortunate enough to be able to move into teaching the Honors Biology I and II courses due to the retirement of Mr. Rayburn Ray. Mr. Ray was an educational icon at Coronado and around El Paso county, having taught there for 35 years. He and his courses were renowned for their rigor, his test scores were always among the best in the county and district, and a large number of his students went on to be successful in research, education, and medicine, often citing Mr. Ray as a prime influence and motivator who helped spark and drive their success. Although the El Paso school district provided specific and detailed curriculum guides keyed to state TAAS (Texas Assessment of Academic Skills) and national objectives for each course, there was still some latitude for the individual teachers to use specific teaching techniques and methods of their own preference. Mr. Ray left behind all of his teaching materials upon his retirement, taking only his coffee mug and a few other personal effects, and the only thing he insisted I do as he did was to maintain and continue to include what he and the students referred to as “interrogations”. He even went so far as to have me visit his classroom several times during my conference period the year before he left, so that I could observe the mechanics and protocol of the interrogations myself, so after he left I could do them correctly in my own classroom.
Scientific American articles have several advantages and positive features that make them useful in this format, particularly for advanced high school students with a solid background in basic science. This includes the progression in how they are written, from general to specific, and often including a relevant and fascinating historical context as well. The articles are a good bridge to introducing students to actual scientific papers from journals, because they are written by the actual researchers and deal with topics of advanced and current research, but as more of a science magazine they are less “science-centric” in that they are more easily understandable. The articles also often include outstanding graphics, tables, and charts that elucidate critical concepts from the article and the research it sprang from. Another plus concerning Scientific American is the occasional special issue, concerned only with articles pertaining to a specific topic such as AIDS or immunology, and featuring articles by several of the world’s experts in the particular topic. I have experimented with using lower-level articles from science sources such as National Geographic Reader, Owl, Muse, and Discovery for Kids for younger and/or less advanced students, with mixed but encouraging results, and I feel this is something that could be tested and developed further.
The basic mechanics and procedure of the interrogations are as follows. Upon completion of a unit in Honors Biology II (later AP and/or IB Biology), students are assigned one or more articles concerned with that topic. They are given from one day to up to week depending on the number of articles and their degree of difficulty and complexity to take notes on the article(s). On the day of the interrogation the students are divided randomly into groups ranging from two to no more than five or six. The classroom’s furniture is arranged into a horseshoe configuration with the teacher at the open end, and students are dispersed by groups, with their notes. The teacher must have prepared a series of questions and answers from the day’s article, progressing from easier and more general to more difficult and specific as the articles themselves are written. The teacher asks the first group a question, and the students may discuss among themselves who is going to answer, but not the actual answer to the question. Once a student is designated to answer, they may refer to their notes, but are encouraged to not read verbatim from them, but instead formulate an answer in their own words based on their notes. A grade is assigned subjectively by the teacher, and the students at the end receive a cumulative group grade. Questioning continues to the next group, and the same question may be repeated until it is answered to the teacher’s satisfaction. Because the students never know who is going to be in their group and they receive a group grade, there is a sense of cohesiveness and not wanting to let their classmates down that fuels the dissection, note taking, and understanding of the article. Questions and answers (whether right or wrong!) often serve as a springboard for further in-depth discussion of a topic as well. One 45-55 minute class period is usually required for a single interrogation, although more than one article may be served if they are shorter in length or content. Students are even encouraged to communicate with the article’s author(s), and this has even led to students undertaking summer internships with one of the researchers!
I believe this activity helps students to learn to think, which should be the goal of all educational processes, and most importantly think critically, employing several of the rational powers. It helps toward meeting the National Science Education Standards’ vision of a scientifically literate populace, specifically the K-12 Unifying Concepts and Processes Standards that “provide students with productive and insightful ways of thinking about and integrating a range of basic ideas that explain the natural and designed world”. In Oklahoma the PASS (Priority Academic Student Skills) for secondary science are met by this method because virtually any of the content standards may be addressed, as well as the literacy benchmarks and even some of the “Science Process and Inquiry” standards. This classroom technique is also ideally suited as an Expansion activity in a Learning Cycle, and could even be used to facilitate Concept Development. From Piaget’s point of view then, the organization of mental structures is facilitated by the use of articles in this way.
In conclusion these oral quizzes and discussions are in my opinion one of the most effective and enjoyable ways to teach, develop, and organize science concepts I have come across, and I hope you will give it, or your own variation of it, a try in your classroom soon.
Bibliographic Note:
Don’t let the term “interrogations” scare you away from the idea of using relatively advanced science magazine and even journal articles to facilitate concept development and expansion in your learning cycles. This teaching method has been given this somewhat intimidating name at least somewhat affectionately by the students subjected to them, and many former students have reported back that as far as college preparation in high school was concerned, nothing helped them more than our friendly “interrogations”, regardless of their major.
I began my teaching career in 1988 in El Paso, Texas at Coronado High School, considered at the time the top academic high school in that area. After “paying my dues” for all of two years teaching mostly remedial math and science while “floating” from one classroom to another each period, I was fortunate enough to be able to move into teaching the Honors Biology I and II courses due to the retirement of Mr. Rayburn Ray. Mr. Ray was an educational icon at Coronado and around El Paso county, having taught there for 35 years. He and his courses were renowned for their rigor, his test scores were always among the best in the county and district, and a large number of his students went on to be successful in research, education, and medicine, often citing Mr. Ray as a prime influence and motivator who helped spark and drive their success. Although the El Paso school district provided specific and detailed curriculum guides keyed to state TAAS (Texas Assessment of Academic Skills) and national objectives for each course, there was still some latitude for the individual teachers to use specific teaching techniques and methods of their own preference. Mr. Ray left behind all of his teaching materials upon his retirement, taking only his coffee mug and a few other personal effects, and the only thing he insisted I do as he did was to maintain and continue to include what he and the students referred to as “interrogations”. He even went so far as to have me visit his classroom several times during my conference period the year before he left, so that I could observe the mechanics and protocol of the interrogations myself, so after he left I could do them correctly in my own classroom.
Scientific American articles have several advantages and positive features that make them useful in this format, particularly for advanced high school students with a solid background in basic science. This includes the progression in how they are written, from general to specific, and often including a relevant and fascinating historical context as well. The articles are a good bridge to introducing students to actual scientific papers from journals, because they are written by the actual researchers and deal with topics of advanced and current research, but as more of a science magazine they are less “science-centric” in that they are more easily understandable. The articles also often include outstanding graphics, tables, and charts that elucidate critical concepts from the article and the research it sprang from. Another plus concerning Scientific American is the occasional special issue, concerned only with articles pertaining to a specific topic such as AIDS or immunology, and featuring articles by several of the world’s experts in the particular topic. I have experimented with using lower-level articles from science sources such as National Geographic Reader, Owl, Muse, and Discovery for Kids for younger and/or less advanced students, with mixed but encouraging results, and I feel this is something that could be tested and developed further.
The basic mechanics and procedure of the interrogations are as follows. Upon completion of a unit in Honors Biology II (later AP and/or IB Biology), students are assigned one or more articles concerned with that topic. They are given from one day to up to week depending on the number of articles and their degree of difficulty and complexity to take notes on the article(s). On the day of the interrogation the students are divided randomly into groups ranging from two to no more than five or six. The classroom’s furniture is arranged into a horseshoe configuration with the teacher at the open end, and students are dispersed by groups, with their notes. The teacher must have prepared a series of questions and answers from the day’s article, progressing from easier and more general to more difficult and specific as the articles themselves are written. The teacher asks the first group a question, and the students may discuss among themselves who is going to answer, but not the actual answer to the question. Once a student is designated to answer, they may refer to their notes, but are encouraged to not read verbatim from them, but instead formulate an answer in their own words based on their notes. A grade is assigned subjectively by the teacher, and the students at the end receive a cumulative group grade. Questioning continues to the next group, and the same question may be repeated until it is answered to the teacher’s satisfaction. Because the students never know who is going to be in their group and they receive a group grade, there is a sense of cohesiveness and not wanting to let their classmates down that fuels the dissection, note taking, and understanding of the article. Questions and answers (whether right or wrong!) often serve as a springboard for further in-depth discussion of a topic as well. One 45-55 minute class period is usually required for a single interrogation, although more than one article may be served if they are shorter in length or content. Students are even encouraged to communicate with the article’s author(s), and this has even led to students undertaking summer internships with one of the researchers!
I believe this activity helps students to learn to think, which should be the goal of all educational processes, and most importantly think critically, employing several of the rational powers. It helps toward meeting the National Science Education Standards’ vision of a scientifically literate populace, specifically the K-12 Unifying Concepts and Processes Standards that “provide students with productive and insightful ways of thinking about and integrating a range of basic ideas that explain the natural and designed world”. In Oklahoma the PASS (Priority Academic Student Skills) for secondary science are met by this method because virtually any of the content standards may be addressed, as well as the literacy benchmarks and even some of the “Science Process and Inquiry” standards. This classroom technique is also ideally suited as an Expansion activity in a Learning Cycle, and could even be used to facilitate Concept Development. From Piaget’s point of view then, the organization of mental structures is facilitated by the use of articles in this way.
In conclusion these oral quizzes and discussions are in my opinion one of the most effective and enjoyable ways to teach, develop, and organize science concepts I have come across, and I hope you will give it, or your own variation of it, a try in your classroom soon.
Bibliographic Note:
Scientific American
Edmund Marek and Ann Cavallo, The Learning Cycle: Elementary School Science and Beyond, (Portsmouth NH, Heinemann, 1997).
PASS Objectives, Oklahoma State Board of Education, 2002.
National Science Education Standards from the National Academy of Sciences, 1995.
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
The Nature of the Learner and the Learning Cycle
The Learning Cycle allows science to be taught as a process, not as a static collection of facts to be memorized. It also organizes the concepts and terms that are learned in a way that reduces the world around a student to a logical system. The central purpose of American education is, or should be, teaching the ability to think. That is, for the general populace to be able to follow step-wise instructions and evaluate data (Exploration), formulate an explanation and/or viewpoint and use appropriate terminology (Concept Development), and extend and apply it to their lives (Expansion). This correlates to the steps of the Learning Cycle, which are in parentheses above. As the student initially collects data the rational powers of comparing, inferring, and recalling are used. This data must be organized, classified, recalled, and analyzed, all of which are likewise rational powers. In the second phase of the Learning Cycle the student must interpret and draw generalizations from the data in order to develop the new concept, and calls upon the rational powers of inferring, comparing, recalling, and synthesizing. In the third phase of the Learning Cycle the student must expand the concept by explaining, predicting, and applying the generalizations, patterns, and models developed previously. This requires the rational powers of imagining, evaluating, and deducing as well as the others.
This teaching approach also correlates to Piaget's model of mental functioning, or how we learn, and there is neurobiological research that further supports the notion that this is how our brains operate as well. The first phase of the Learning Cycle lends to Piaget’s concept of Assimilation as new information (good data) is acquired from the environment. Disequilibrium occurs as the new data is temporarily in conflict with the student's current viewpoint. In Concept Development this conflict is reconciled as Accommodation, or an understanding of the new mental function, occurs. In Expansion the Organization of the new concept is locked in as the student practices and applies it through various means.
Human intelligence is a concept that can be difficult to define, or defined in various ways. For our purposes the intelligence of an individual can be defined as consisting of four components:
· Quality of Thought (Stages) Model
· Mental Functioning
· Mental Structures
· Mental Content
The four stages of cognition or quality of thought are in order, sensorimotor, which is from birth to roughly 2.5 years old and is characterized by object permanence and language development. This is followed by the preoperational stage from approximately 2 to 7 years of age in which children imitate, play, and talk but are also characterized by egocentrism and irreversibility. Next is the concrete operational stage from 6 or 7 years of age to between 15 and 20 in which the child begins to use the mental operations of seriation, classification, correspondence, reversal, decentering, and inductive and deductive reasoning. The final stage is called formal operational and in it hypothetico-deductive and abstract thought is finally realized. The four factors associated with cognitive development, or movement through the stages, are:
· Maturation
· Physical and Logical-Mathematical Experiences
· Social Interaction and Transmission
· Disequilibrium
It is changes in the mental structures and mental content that drive mental functioning in association with the Learning Cycle, as well as movement through the cognitive stages of development. In other words, mental structures are processes in the brain used to deal with incoming data, and differences in their nature and complexity distinguish one intellectual stage from another. Schemes are the basic unit of mental structures, and as new data is incorporated into existing structures assimilation occurs, as in the Exploration of a Learning Cycle. Disequilibrium, or the mismatch between pre-existing mental structures and what has occurred, causes new schemes to develop (also known as accommodation, associated with Concept Development of a Learning Cycle). These new schemes or structured need to be properly aligned and placed among previous ones, and this is essentially organization, and can be brought about in the Expansion phase of a Learning Cycle. Mental content is how a child believes he or she sees the world.
I feel strongly that the Learning Cycle allows the teacher to teach science as the process it is, and incorporates the rational powers as well as Piaget's model of mental functioning and knowledge of the cognitive stages of development and how one moves through them to give the student the best chance to truly develop the ability to think, which should be the purpose all education.
Bibliographic Note:
Edmund Marek and Timothy Laubach, "Bridging the Gap between Theory and Practice: A Success Story from Science Education", (M. Gordon, T. O'Brien (eds.), Bridging Theory and Practice in Teacher Education, 47-59. copyright 2007 Sense Publishers.
Edmund Marek and Ann Cavallo, The Learning Cycle: Elementary School Science and Beyond, (Portsmouth NH, Heinemann, 1997).
PASS Objectives, Oklahoma State Board of Education, 2002.
National Science Education Standards from the National Academy of Sciences, 1995.
This teaching approach also correlates to Piaget's model of mental functioning, or how we learn, and there is neurobiological research that further supports the notion that this is how our brains operate as well. The first phase of the Learning Cycle lends to Piaget’s concept of Assimilation as new information (good data) is acquired from the environment. Disequilibrium occurs as the new data is temporarily in conflict with the student's current viewpoint. In Concept Development this conflict is reconciled as Accommodation, or an understanding of the new mental function, occurs. In Expansion the Organization of the new concept is locked in as the student practices and applies it through various means.
Human intelligence is a concept that can be difficult to define, or defined in various ways. For our purposes the intelligence of an individual can be defined as consisting of four components:
· Quality of Thought (Stages) Model
· Mental Functioning
· Mental Structures
· Mental Content
The four stages of cognition or quality of thought are in order, sensorimotor, which is from birth to roughly 2.5 years old and is characterized by object permanence and language development. This is followed by the preoperational stage from approximately 2 to 7 years of age in which children imitate, play, and talk but are also characterized by egocentrism and irreversibility. Next is the concrete operational stage from 6 or 7 years of age to between 15 and 20 in which the child begins to use the mental operations of seriation, classification, correspondence, reversal, decentering, and inductive and deductive reasoning. The final stage is called formal operational and in it hypothetico-deductive and abstract thought is finally realized. The four factors associated with cognitive development, or movement through the stages, are:
· Maturation
· Physical and Logical-Mathematical Experiences
· Social Interaction and Transmission
· Disequilibrium
It is changes in the mental structures and mental content that drive mental functioning in association with the Learning Cycle, as well as movement through the cognitive stages of development. In other words, mental structures are processes in the brain used to deal with incoming data, and differences in their nature and complexity distinguish one intellectual stage from another. Schemes are the basic unit of mental structures, and as new data is incorporated into existing structures assimilation occurs, as in the Exploration of a Learning Cycle. Disequilibrium, or the mismatch between pre-existing mental structures and what has occurred, causes new schemes to develop (also known as accommodation, associated with Concept Development of a Learning Cycle). These new schemes or structured need to be properly aligned and placed among previous ones, and this is essentially organization, and can be brought about in the Expansion phase of a Learning Cycle. Mental content is how a child believes he or she sees the world.
I feel strongly that the Learning Cycle allows the teacher to teach science as the process it is, and incorporates the rational powers as well as Piaget's model of mental functioning and knowledge of the cognitive stages of development and how one moves through them to give the student the best chance to truly develop the ability to think, which should be the purpose all education.
Bibliographic Note:
Edmund Marek and Timothy Laubach, "Bridging the Gap between Theory and Practice: A Success Story from Science Education", (M. Gordon, T. O'Brien (eds.), Bridging Theory and Practice in Teacher Education, 47-59. copyright 2007 Sense Publishers.
Edmund Marek and Ann Cavallo, The Learning Cycle: Elementary School Science and Beyond, (Portsmouth NH, Heinemann, 1997).
PASS Objectives, Oklahoma State Board of Education, 2002.
National Science Education Standards from the National Academy of Sciences, 1995.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)