Using food as a tool to teach science to 3 grade students in Appalachian Ohio

The Food, Math, and Science Teaching Enhancement Resource (FoodMASTER) Initiative is a compilation of programs aimed at using food as a tool to teach mathematics and science. In 2007-2008, a foods curriculum developed by professionals in nutrition and education was implemented in 10 3(rd)-grade classrooms in Appalachian Ohio; teachers in these classrooms implemented 45 hands-on foods activities that covered 10 food topics. Subjects included measurement; food safety; vegetables; fruits; milk and cheese; meat, poultry, and fish; eggs; fats; grains; and meal management. Students in four other classrooms served as the control group. Mainstream 3(rd)-grade students were targeted because of their receptiveness to the subject matter, science standards for upper elementary grades, and testing that the students would undergo in 4(th) grade. Teachers and students alike reported that the hands-on FoodMASTER curriculum experience was worthwhile and enjoyable. Our initial classroom observation indicated that the majority of students, girls and boys included, were very excited about the activities, became increasingly interested in the subject matter of food, and were able to conduct scientific observations.     

Supporting Latino high school students’ science motivational beliefs and engagement: examining the unique and collective contributions of family,teachers, and friends

Abstract

High school underrepresented minority students in the US are at an increased risk of dropping out of the STEM pipeline. Based on expectancy-value theory, we examined if Latino students’ perception of support from parents, siblings/cousins, teachers, and friends in 10th grade predicted their science ability self-concepts and values, which in turn predicted their classroom engagement. Survey data were collected from 104 Latino high school students and their science teachers. The findings suggest that adolescents’ perceptions of overall support and home-based support predicted adolescents’ science ability self-concepts at 10th grade while controlling for their 9th grade self-concepts. Although adolescents reported high support from teachers, teacher or school-based support alone was not a strong correlate of their motivational beliefs. Perceived support was indirectly related to classroom engagement through adolescents’ ability self-concepts. Feeling supported across home and school may be necessary to sustain adolescents’ science motivational beliefs and, in turn, their science classroom engagement.     

The Science of a Sundae: Using the Principle of Colligative Properties in Food Science Outreach Activities for Middle and High School Students

The opportunities for outreach activities for professionals and academics in food science are extensive, as too are the range of participants’ experience levels and platforms for delivery. Here, we present a set of activities that are readily adaptable for a range of students (ages 10 to 18) in multiple platforms (demonstration table and hands‐on workshop). Our activity, collectively called “The Science of a Sundae,” has three units, one for each of the three parts of a sundae: the caramel sauce, the cherry, and the ice cream. In each unit we use these familiar food items to illustrate how colligative properties (or, simply, “solutions” for younger students) impact the chemical, microbiological, and sensorial properties of food. We have used these activities to present to over 1000 students and their parents/chaperones. Grade levels of student participants have ranged from 5th grade through high school, and these activities have been presented in the form of a demonstration table at science events as well as a set of three 45‐minute workshops in a classroom setting. Educational impact of these activities was evaluated with 7th grade students (n = 77) who participated in the 3‐phase workshop. On average, students who took the posttest (after participation in the workshop) scored 36% higher than students who took the pretest (prior to participation in the workshop). These results and instructor observations suggest the merit of this lesson and its adaptability among ages and platforms.     

Fostering an Interest in Science in a Typically Underrepresented Population

ABSTRACT:  This "case study" details how food science was introduced into the classrooms of a typically underrepresented population. James Sarakatsannis, an 8th grade physical science teacher, was planning a unit that would use fast food to teach science to his classes, when he came across the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) website and a wealth of information available to teachers. Along with the valuable materials James found on the website to teach food science, he also found the "Find a Food Scientist" tool and invited 3 local food scientists into his classroom at John Philip Sousa Middle School in the inner city of Washington, D.C., where many of his students represent a typically underrepresented population in the field of food science. Food was a common medium that all of his students were familiar with and had an interest in, and it turned out to be a great tool to discuss various physical science topics in the classroom. The local food scientist visits were an excellent supplement to the topics he was already covering with the students in class. Many students developed a greater interest in science in general after the unit on food science. The unit also may have planted the seed for an education or career in food science somewhere down the line for the 70 13- to 16-year-old students in James's 2 8th grade physical science classes.     

Inquiry Learning in the Singaporean Context: Factors affecting student interest in school science

Recent research reveals that students' interest in school science begins to decline at an early age. As this lack of interest could result in fewer individuals qualified for scientific careers and a population unprepared to engage with scientific societal issues, it is imperative to investigate ways in which interest in school science can be increased. Studies have suggested that inquiry learning is one way to increase interest in science. Inquiry learning forms the core of the primary syllabus in Singapore; as such, we examine how inquiry practices may shape students' perceptions of science and school science. This study investigates how classroom inquiry activities relate to students' interest in school science. Data were collected from 425 grade 4 students who responded to a questionnaire and 27 students who participated in follow-up focus group interviews conducted in 14 classrooms in Singapore. Results indicate that students have a high interest in science class. Additionally, self-efficacy and leisure-time science activities, but not gender, were significantly associated with an increased interest in school science. Interestingly, while hands-on activities are viewed as fun and interesting, connecting learning to real-life and discussing ideas with their peers had a greater relation to student interest in school science. These findings suggest that inquiry learning can increase Singaporean students' interest in school science; however, simply engaging students in hands-on activities is insufficient. Instead, student interest may be increased by ensuring that classroom activities emphasize the everyday applications of science and allow for peer discussion.     

Using Bourdieu in practice? Urban secondary teachers’ and students’ experiences of a Bourdieusian-inspired pedagogical approach

This article discusses an attempt at a Bourdieusian-inspired form of praxis, developed and implemented in collaboration with nine London teachers, aimed at developing a socially just approach to engaging students with science. Data are discussed from nine months of classroom observations of nine secondary science classes from six inner London schools (approximately 200 students, aged 11–15), interviews and workshop data from the nine teachers and 13 discussion groups conducted with 59 students. The approach resulted in noticeable changes in practice, which were perceived by teachers and students to improve student engagement, cultivate a range of science-related dispositions and promote wider student participation and ‘voice’ in classes. Issues, limitations and possibilities for sociology of education are discussed.     

Experienced Teachers’ Strategies for Assessing Nature of Science Conceptions in the Elementary Classroom

This study explored the nature of science (NOS) assessments K-4 classroom teachers developed for measuring students’ understandings of NOS elements. We used the Views of Nature of Science Questionnaire-Form VNOS-D2 (Views of Nature of Science Elementary School Version 2) and interviews to verify that teachers’ conceptions of NOS were sufficient to enable them to teach and assess NOS. We collected copies of teachers’ action research designs, lesson plans, and assessment tools, conducted classroom observations and made field notes of their science instruction and assessments. We videotaped conversations at monthly workshops to note discussion surrounding teaching and assessing NOS in K-4 classrooms. We found that experienced teachers designed a variety of strategies for assessing NOS conceptions that differed by grade level.     

Designing Reflections on Practice: Helping Teachers Apply Cognitive Learning Principles in an SFT — Inquiry-Based Learning Program

The objective of this research into teacher education was to provide teachers with a deeper understanding of the cognitive goals of an inquiry-based learning program — Schools for Thought (SFT), and how these might be fostered using specific classroom activities. The classroom activities the workshops analyzed are derived from cognitive research aimed at fostering constructivist learning environments and include various strategies for facilitating collaborative learning and discussion among students (Bruer, 1993; Brown & Campione, 1994). The study documents 13 workshop sessions with teachers from grade 6,7, and 8. Teachers were asked to videotape segments of classroom activities in each of four phases of the SFT research cycle. The videotapes were edited by the authors and then discussed with teachers focusing on their effectiveness at implementing the cognitive goals for each unit phase. Analysis of these sessions reveal a shift in the focus of teachers' discussion from identifying procedures or the planning sequence of inquiry-based activities, to the usefulness these activities have for fostering specific cognitive and pedagogical goals. However, important differences remain in what researchers and teachers consider important when reflecting on teaching.     

Effects of the learning cycle upon student and classroom teacher performance

A great deal of research has been done regarding science in-service education and the conclusion can be drawn that positive results were generally achieved in workshop-participant attitude and implementation of instructional approaches into the classroom. One of the most important effects of an in-service workshop is upon the students of the teachers participating in an in-service program, but rarely, if ever, is this parameter assessed in the in-service evaluation design. This study investigated the relationships among (1) teacher's attitudes and implementation of in-service workshop developed science materials (learning cycles) and (2) elementary school student's conservation reasoning and language used to describe properties of objects. Data were gathered from over 100 students from grades K-5 and 16 teachers who had participated in an in-service program. A representative comparison group of students and teachers was selected which generally matched the teachers participating in the in-service workshop except for one variable–-the comparison group taught science traditionally, that is, by exposition. Data from the research indicated that the teachers involved in the science in-service workshop implemented the workshop-developed learning cycles into their science classes. Significantly greater gains in conservation reasoning and language usage occurred with the students of the teachers participating in the science in-service workshop as compared to students in the exposition classrooms.     

Video-based literacy coaching to develop teachers’ professional vision for dialogic classroom text discussions

This study explores how 4th and 5th grade teachers’ reflective practice developed as they participated in a remote video-based coaching intervention to implement dialogic classroom text discussions. Drawing on a professional vision framework, we analyzed teachers’ verbal and written reflections to examine how teachers’ noticing and reasoning about their videoed classroom interactions developed over time. Findings suggest teachers became more focused on the connection between their discussion moves and students’ thinking in video, and their reasoning about these interactions became more interpretive and in-depth over time. Implications for research on how teachers learn dialogic pedagogies are discussed.     

A comparison of elementary teacher attitudes and skills in teaching science in Australia and the United States

A study, originally don in Australia in 1983, was replicated in an urban-suburb in the Unitd States. The Australian project vivolved matched pairs of year-fiv teachers in one of two workshops. One workshop taught the skills of teaching electricity, while the other one discussed issues in gender equity in science education (active participation of both girls and boys, comparble student-teacher interactions, and research findings concerning equity). The U.S. study provided three types of workshops (skills, equity and skills, and equity) for comparable groups of fourth and fifth grade teachers. All teachers and their students were subsequently obseved during lessons involving an electricity unit, queried both students and teachers concerning the appropriateness of different fields of science for boys and girls and their interest and aptitudes in doing various types of science. Results from both studies suggest that gender differences in student attitudes toward science may be amellorated by specific types of teacher workshop. Specializations: Gender research, science teacher education, science education national policy. Specializations: Elementary and middle school science education, classroom research. Specializations: Secondary science education, data analysis.     

Considering science and language arts connections: A study of teacher cognition

The Elementary Science Integration Project (ESIP) brought together teachers knowledgeable about, and committed to, whole-language instruction with their science-oriented counterparts to explore connections between the disciplines and build from teachers' strengths. By recognizing commonalities, that both hands-on science and whole language center on inquiry and focus on children's learning processes, ESIP was designed to reveal the issues both groups of teachers see as important as they go about making classroom decisions. The ultimate goal of the project was to promote science as central to cross-curricular study, thus increasing the comfort level of teachers, the amount of time devoted to science in the classroom, and an interest in inquiry. This article described the project and identified the considerations teachers used to evaluate science–language-arts connections. Twenty expert and 7 novice teachers worked together over a 2-year period to construct and elaborate their own understandings of curricular integrátion, designing action research projects to explore their newfound understandings. Teachers kept journals and participated in extensive group discussions and interviews that provided the data sources for this article. Results revealed the influence of teachers' scholarly and pedagogical orientations on the way they think about science–language-arts connections and the influence of personal experiences in convincing teachers that science–language-arts connections are worth fostering in the classroom.     

Teacher design in teams as a professional development arrangement for developing technology integration knowledge and skills of science teachers in Tanzania

This study investigated the impact of teacher design teams as a professional development arrangement for developing technology integration knowledge and skills among in-service science teachers. The study was conducted at a secondary school in Tanzania, where 12 in-service science teachers participated in a workshop about technology integration in science teaching and worked in design teams to prepare technology-enhanced biology, chemistry and physics lessons. Through collaboration in design teams, teachers were able to make science animations using PowerPoint and record videos to use in their teaching. The designed lessons were taught in the classroom and reflected upon thereafter by all teachers. In order to determine the change in teachers’ technology integration knowledge and skills, data were collected before and after the professional development arrangement by using questionnaire, interview and observation data. Focus group discussion and reflection questionnaire data were used to assess teachers’ experience of working in design teams at the end of the professional development arrangement. Findings showed an increase in teachers’ technology integration knowledge and skills between pre- and post-measurements. Collaboration in design teams had the potential for teachers to share knowledge, skills, experience and challenges related to technology-enhanced teaching.     

Creating Participatory Discourse for Teaching and Research in Early Childhood Science

This paper presents the results of a study conducted with second grade students and pre-service teachers. This study examined the possibilities for engaging children in critical discourse about their classroom science experiences. At the heart of this discussion lies the desire to provide a space for teachers and children to develop relationships and to explore the learning of science together. Themes that emerged include: (1) on-going, focused, critical dialogue between children and teachers supported children in developing agency in the classroom, and (2) on-going conversations created the opportunity for children to reveal their ways of knowing and developing interpretations of the practice of science.     

Beginning student teachers' opinions about teaching primary science

Conclusions Beginning student teachers have already acquired very definite views about teaching science before they begin their teacher training course. These views are generally similar to the views espoused by science educators, but are contrary to the classroom practices of many teachers. Their views seem to have origins in what the students perceive to have been meaningful and enjoyable learning experiences for themselves in their own schooling; and to a lesser extent for children they have observed. Female students who have studied more science at high school tend to favour the use of worksheets in experimental work. Several interesting questions arise from these findings: When these students begin to teach as qualified teachers, will they still espouse the same opinions? If so, does that mean that there is a ‘new wave’ of teachers entering the service who are more committed to hands-on activity work than their older colleagues? If not, what aspects of the teacher training process have caused them to change their opinions? Will these present students be using hands-on strategies themselves after they have been teaching for some time? That is, do system and school constraints effectively prevent teachers from using such strategies? Can secondary science teachers do more to influence positively their students' opinions about teaching science, such as engendering more positive attitudes to science, incorporating more hands-on work, and relying less on printed worksheets in laboratory work? This exploratory work has highlighted the concern expressed by Morrissey (1981) in that there is a great need for long term longitudinal studies of student teachers' attitudes to teaching science, with a particular focus on their teaching behaviours after graduation.     

Understanding,assessing and developing children's mathematical thinking: the power of a one-to-one interview for preservice teachers in providing insights into appropriate pedagogical practices

At Australian Catholic University and Monash University, preservice mathematics teachers are required to conduct and analyse one-to-one mathematics assessment interviews with primary-aged children. The assessment tool is drawn from the Early Numeracy Research Project, where it was used with over 11,000 children in Victorian schools. The interview assesses content from Number, Measurement and Geometry, in an interactive, hands-on format, with children's responses and strategies determining the path through the interview protocol. Follow-up discussion in class enabled preservice teachers to explore appropriate pedagogies that build upon what had been learned from the interviews. The research described in this chapter sought to investigate the effectiveness of this process. Interviews and written questionnaires were the data sources. Analysis of the data suggested that teachers were more aware of the kinds of strategies that children use including their variety and relative level of sophistication, and that the interview and subsequent discussion stimulated preservice teachers to reflect upon appropriate classroom experiences for young mathematics learners.     

Constructing videocases to help novices learn to facilitate discussions in science and English: how does subject matter matter?

Learning to conduct interactive classroom discussions is a high priority for becoming an effective teacher, and most teachers view conducting productive classroom discussions as a complex undertaking. Because the dynamics of facilitating classroom discussions are multifaceted and hard to analyze in real time, there is a growing interest in how video allows preservice teachers to examine records of their practice to promote further growth. What prospective teachers actually take away from analysis of video, however, needs further exploration. In this study, we explored five preservice student teachers’ beliefs about conducting discussions and probed the potential of videocase construction for supporting teacher learning by investigating the following question: ‘To what extent and how does making a videocase help preservice teachers investigate their facilitation of a subject‐specific discussion?’ Results revealed that by constructing and talking about their videocases, all five preservice teachers gained insights about how they lead discussions. Studying video excerpts and articulating what they saw in them provided a context for looking more closely at their own roles and student roles within their discussion. They also recognized the complexities of leading discussions and acknowledged particular areas that need improvement. The teachers used the metaphorical language of ‘guiding’ their students down a pathway when they talked about leading classroom discussions. There were similarities and differences among teachers’ conceptions of good discussions in English and science, and their notions of ‘guiding’ were related to their subject matter goals. The study suggests, however, several areas that may require further attention in preservice teachers’ preparation in leading discussions. Although the teachers expressed views of discussion that aligned broadly with disciplinary views in English or science, their language lacked specificity in what it means to develop varied interpretations of texts in English or consensus based on argument and evidence in science. More specific video analysis focused on subject matter goals and corresponding conversational elements may help preservice teachers develop more nuanced, sophisticated views of how particular types of social interaction have the potential to help their students reach specific subject matter goals. We conclude that investigation is needed on larger numbers of preservice teachers’ videocase construction processes, and further inquiry is needed into how working with video analysis affects their actual performance in future discussion facilitation.     

Reforming Pedagogy: Inservice Teacher Education and Instructional Reform

To what extent can a large-scale national teacher-enhancement project help science teachers employ new pedagogical methods in the science classroom? In this study, data from 13 high school physics teachers who taught 23 classes with 401 students were examined to determine the extent to which a teacher-enhancement project can alter teachers’ pedagogy. Three groups of teachers were examined: experienced users of the new pedagogy, beginning users of the new pedagogy, and a group of comparison teachers who used traditional instructional methods. Results suggest the reform effort can increase the extent to which teachers engage students in experiments and use alternative assessment methods; however, helping teachers use constructivist discussion methods and discuss the nature of scientific inquiry appears to be more difficult. The implications for inservice teacher education are discussed.     

Impact of professional development on teacher practice: Uncovering connections

An Inquiry Learning Partnership (ILP) for professional development (PD) was formed between a university, science centre, and two urban school districts to offer 4–6th grade teachers specific science content and pedagogical techniques intended to integrate inquiry-based instruction in elementary classrooms. From pre/post content exams, PD surveys, focus group, and assessment data, teachers increased their science content knowledge, reported implementing inquiry practices in their classrooms and their students experienced modest gains on 5th grade standardized science achievement exams. While some teachers were transferring knowledge/skills gained in professional development to their classrooms, others encountered barriers to implementing PD. These obstacles included limited resources, time constraints, mandated curriculum pacing, language learning, and classroom management issues. Strategies to mitigate these barriers in order to maximize the impact of professional development need to be a priority in professional development reform.