The importance of place in indigenous science education

In this issue of Cultural Studies of Science Education, Mack and colleagues (Mack et al. 2011) seek to identify the necessary components of science education in Indigenous settings. Using a review of current research in informal science education in Indigenous settings, along with personal interviews with American educators engaged in these programs, the authors suggest some effective practices to use Indigenous ways of knowing to strengthen science programming. For the past 4 years, we have been interested in the importance of place in culturally relevant science education. We have explored the role of place and have used Gruenewald’s critical pedagogy of place (2003) to examine the importance of place in a variety of Indigenous contexts. In response to Mack and colleagues, in this paper we explore the importance of place as a means to reinhabituate Indigenous youth who live in urban, First Nation, and rural Costa Rican contexts.     

A cross-case analysis of three Native Science Field Centers

Native Science Field Centers (NSFCs) were created to engage youth and adults in environmental science activities through the integration of traditional Native ways of knowing (understanding about the natural world based on centuries of observation including philosophy, worldview, cosmology, and belief systems of Indigenous peoples), Native languages, and Western science concepts. This paper focuses on the Blackfeet Native Science Field Center, the Lakota Native Science Field Center, and the Wind River Native Science Field Center. One of the long-term, overarching goals of these NSFCs was to stimulate the interest of Native American students in ways that encouraged them to pursue academic and career paths in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. A great deal can be learned from the experiences of the NSFCs in terms of effective educational strategies, as well as advantages and challenges in blending Native ways of knowing and Western scientific knowledge in an informal science education setting. Hopa Mountain—a Bozeman, Montana-based nonprofit—partnered with the Blackfeet Community College on the Blackfeet Reservation, Fremont County School District #21 on the Wind River Reservation, and Oglala Lakota College on the Pine Ridge Reservation to cooperatively establish the Native Science Field Centers. This paper presents a profile of each NSFC and highlights their program components and accomplishments.     

How might Native science inform “informal science learning”?

This article examines the literature on Native science in order to address the presumed binaries between formal and informal science learning and between Western and Native science. We situate this discussion within a larger discussion of culturally responsive schooling for Indigenous youth and the importance of Indigenous epistemologies and contextualized knowledges within Indigenous communities.

Youth Disciplinary Identification During Participation in Contemporary Project-Based Science Investigations in School

Recent science educational policy reform efforts call for a shift toward practice-focused instruction in kindergarten–Grade 12 science education. We argue that this focus on engaging students in epistemic practices of science opens up new possibilities for the design of learning environments that support the stabilization of learners’ science-linked identities. Learning environments often assume that youth come to them without relevant identity resources to contribute or that the learning environment has no bearing on the disciplinary identification of individuals. We conducted this research while developing a year-long course to teach high school biology by engaging youth in interest-driven projects focused on contemporary topics. We explored how engaging youth in the epistemic practices of science in culturally expansive ways supported their science-linked identification. We propose a model grounded in social practice theory that describes aspects of students’ stabilization of disciplinary identities. We found that (a) deepening participation in scientific practices is linked to whether or not youth have opportunities to coordinate their engagement with their existing identities; and (b) material, relational, and ideational identity resources and qualities of the learning environment mediate how youth stabilize disciplinary identities in interactional moments.     

Science education through informal education

To develop the pedagogic efficiency of informal education in science teaching, promoting a close cooperation between institutions is suggested by Monteiro, Janerine, de Carvalho, and Martins. In their article, they point out effective examples of how teachers and educators work together to develop programs and activities at informal education places such as science museums. Their study explored and discussed the viability and relevancy of school visits to museums and possibilities to enhance the connection between students’ visits in informal contexts and their learning in schools. Given that students learn science by crossing the boundaries of formal and informal learning contexts, it is critical to examine ways of integrated and collaborative approach to develop scientific literacy to help students think, act and communicate as members of problem solving communities. In this forum, we suggest the importance of students’ lifeworld contexts in informal learning places as continuum of Monteiro, Janerine, de Carvalho, and Martins’ discussion on enhancing the effectiveness of informal learning places in science education.     

Negotiating Sociolinguistic Borderlands—Native Youth Language Practices in Space,Time, and Place

Drawing on the work of Philip Deloria (2004) and recent explorations of “American Indian languages in unexpected places” (Webster & Peterson, 2011a), this article challenges received expectations of Native American languages and language users as “rural” and physically distant and of “urban” Indigenous language practices as anomalous. With a focus on Native American youth, I develop the notion of sociolinguistic borderlands—spatial, temporal, and ideological spaces of sociolinguistic hybridity and diversity—as a lens into the grounded realities of language in the lives of contemporary Native youth. The article first contextualizes the current situation of Native American languages and language users within dynamic linguistic ecologies, then presents 4 ethnographic vignettes that illustrate the ways in which youth use their knowledge and claims to heritage languages to negotiate, cross, and occupy sociolinguistic borderlands. I conclude by suggesting the ways in which language planners and educators can reorganize received expectations about youth language practices and ideologies, thereby opening new possibilities for Indigenous language reclamation and youth self-empowerment.     

Urban youths’ hybrid positioning in science practices at the margin: a look inside a school–museum–scientist partnership project and an after-school science program

In what ways do urban youths’ hybridity constitute positioning and engagement in science-as-practice? In what ways are they “hybridizing” and hence surviving in a system that positions them as certain types of learners and within which they come to position themselves often as other than envisioned? To answer these questions, I draw from two ethnographic case studies, one a scientist–museum–school partnership initiative, and the other, an after-school science program for girls only, both serving poor, ethnically and linguistically diverse youth in Montreal, Canada. Through a study of the micro dialectics from the perspective of youth, I show what we can learn from examples of doing science in a formal and informal educational context supportive of marginalized science practices resembling in part, at least, science-as-practice. Through an integration of the findings with current discourses of relevance in science education such as funds of knowledge and youth centered, co-opted science, I contribute to the formulation of a global pedagogy of science education and in particular, what such may imply in the eyes of youth in French Canada.     

Youths’ navigations of botanical gardens: bids for recognition,ways to desettle practice

How can we ‘desettle’ the colonial discourse and worldview of botanical gardens and its practices in teaching about plants? How can we move towards engaging deeply with who we are and think we are in relation to place, land, and the world, grounded in an intricate sense of harmony? How can we move our work in botanic gardens beyond regarding land, plants, and nature as commodities for causal consumption, or as places to rapidly observe but typically not touch? I explore these three questions in this paper through a weaving together of some of the literature on education and informal learning in botanical gardens and narratives from my research with urban youth of color in the Botanical Garden of Montreal. In doing so, I make evident youths’ navigations of botanical gardens and their bids for recognition as other than detached from nature. Together, these narratives help to rethink taken for granted practices of education about plants in gardens grounded in Western views of science and lack of a more serious engagement with holistic perspectives of humans in and with nature.     

Rethinking diversity in learning science: The logic of everyday sense‐making

There are many ways to understand the gap in science learning and achievement separating low‐income, ethnic minority and linguistic minority children from more economically privileged students. In this article we offer our perspective. First, we discuss in broad strokes how the relationship between everyday and scientific knowledge and ways of knowing has been conceptualized in the field of science education research. We consider two dominant perspectives on this question, one which views the relationship as fundamentally discontinuous and the other which views it as fundamentally continuous. We locate our own work within the latter tradition and propose a framework for understanding the everyday sense‐making practices of students from diverse communities as an intellectual resource in science learning and teaching. Two case studies follow in which we elaborate this point of view through analysis of Haitian American and Latino students' talk and activity as they work to understand metamorphosis and experimentation, respectively. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of this new conceptualization for research on science learning and teaching. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 38: 529–552, 2001     

‘Drawing the Leaves Anyway’: Teachers Embracing Children’s Different Ways of Knowing in Preschool Science Practice

This study explores if and how teachers combine practices of science and of preschool (children 1–5 years old) into preschool science practice. Views of knowing may differ between science practices, traditionally associated with masculinity and rationality, and preschool practices, traditionally associated with femininity and caring. Recognising this, we have chosen to focus on how teachers’ talk constructs and relates to possible ways of gaining knowledge and reaching explanations of phenomena in preschool science. The analysis builds on two concept pairs often associated with gender as well as knowing: objective-subjective and logical-intuitive. The analysed material consists of 11 group interviews where preschool teachers talk about activities concerning science content. Our results show that several ways of knowing are possible in work with science content in preschool. These include ways of knowing more associated with subjectivity, such as ‘individual liking’ and ‘whole-body perception’, as well as more associated with objectivity, such as ‘noticing differences and similarities’. Furthermore, the results show that the teachers’ talk moves readily between possibilities associated with femininity (subjective and intuitive) and masculinity (objective and logical). This indicates that the teachers in this study have found ways to handle science in preschool that goes against presumed tensions between science and preschool practices. The results contribute to more nuanced ways of describing and thinking about science in preschool and pave the way for further development of science education in early childhood education.     

The Influence of Informal Science Education Experiences on the Development of Two Beginning Teachers’ Science Classroom Teaching Identity

In case studies of two first-year elementary classroom teachers, we explored the influence of informal science education (ISE) they experienced in their teacher education program. Our theoretical lens was identity development, delimited to classroom science teaching. We used complementary data collection methods and analysis, including interviews, electronic communications, and drawing prompts. We found that our two participants referenced as important the ISE experiences in their development of classroom science identities that included resilience, excitement and engagement in science teaching and learning–qualities that are emphasized in ISE contexts. The data support our conclusion that the ISE experiences proved especially memorable to teacher education interns during the implementation of the No Child Left Behind policy which concentrated on school-tested subjects other than science.     

Spontaneous Play and Imagination in Everyday Science Classroom Practice

In science education, students sometimes create and engage in spontaneous science-oriented play where ideas about science and scientists are put to use. However, in previous research, little attention has been given to the role of informal spontaneous play in school science classrooms. We argue that, in order to enhance our understanding of learning processes in school science practices, research that investigates play as an aspect of everyday culture is needed. The aim of this paper is to explore students’ informal play as part of activity in lower secondary school science. The empirical study was conducted in two Swedish compulsory schools in grade 6. Data were collected throughout a teaching unit called ‘The Chemistry of Food’ during a 10-week period using video and audiotape recordings of classroom work. Our analyses show that the play students engage in involves the transformations of given tasks. We find that students’ spontaneous collective play offers opportunities for them to explore the epistemic values and norms of science and different ways of positioning in relation to science. Our findings contribute to the understanding of how learning in the school science classroom is socially and culturally–historically embedded and how individual students’ engagement through play may transform and transcend existing classroom practices.     

Applications of Augmented Reality in Informal Science Learning Sites: a Review

The importance of increasing interest in the STEM disciplines has been noted in a number of recent national reports. While many previous studies have focused on such efforts inside of the formal classroom, comparatively few have looked closely at informal learning environments. We investigate the innovative use of technology in informal learning by reviewing research on the incorporation of augmented reality (AR) at exhibit-based informal science education (ISE) settings in the literature. We report on the common STEM-focused topics that are covered by current AR applications for ISE learning, as well as the different devices used to support these applications. Additionally, we report on the prevalence of positive learning outcomes and engagement factors commonly associated with the use AR applications in informal environments. This review aims to foster continued development and implementation of AR technology in exhibit-based ISE settings by informing the community of recent findings and promoting additional rigorous research for the future.     

Designing for expansive science learning and identification across settings

In this study, we present a case for designing expansive science learning environments in relation to neoliberal instantiations of standards-based implementation projects in education. Using ethnographic and design-based research methods, we examine how the design of coordinated learning across settings can engage youth from non-dominant communities in scientific and engineering practices, resulting in learning experiences that are more relevant to youth and their communities. Analyses highlight: (a) transformative moments of identification for one fifth-grade student across school and non-school settings; (b) the disruption of societal, racial stereotypes on the capabilities of and expectations for marginalized youth; and (c) how youth recognized themselves as members of their community and agents of social change by engaging in personally consequential science investigations and learning.     

Impact of Culturally Aligned Supports on Native Hawaiian High School Students’ College Attendance: A Qualitative Perspective

The contemporary education system in the United States is inadequate in the provision of services to assure that all students exit high school with the knowledge and skills necessary to enter postsecondary education or the workforce. This is particularly true for indigenous youth (Tanabe & Mobley, 2011). According to scholars, dual enrollment appears to be an appropriate solution for assisting indigenous youth to perform better in high school and to be better prepared to enter postsecondary education and the workforce (Rodriguez, Hughes, & Belfield, 2012; Vargas, Roach, & David, 2014). As demonstrated in this study, promoting dual enrollment programs, for Native Hawaiian youth, along with mentorship and financial assistance, has a positive impact on post high school outcomes. Thus, after describing the goals and model of Project Ho‘oku‘i, this article reports on the experiences and perceptions of Native Hawaiian youth who participated in a dual enrollment program (i.e., enrolled in high school and postsecondary education simultaneously). This study utilized grounded theory methodology. Focus groups, with semi-structured open-ended questions, were conducted with 103 participants over a 24-month period. The findings of the research comprise two major themes that are concerned with Native Hawaiian students’ educational Progress at large and address the issue of relationality, including the practice of self-sufficiency in sorting through future career options and learning one’s sense of self-in-society, in particular its relational aspects.     

The Role of Informal Support Networks in Teaching the Nature of Science

This study reports the participation of 13 secondary science teachers in informal support networks and how that participation was associated with their nature of science (NOS) teaching practices 2 to 5 years after having graduated from the same science teacher education program. The nine teachers who participated in informal support networks taught the NOS at high/medium levels, while the four non-participating teachers taught the NOS at low levels. The nine high/medium NOS implementation teachers credited the informal support networks for maintaining/heightening their sense of responsibility for teaching NOS and for helping them navigate institutional constraints that impede effective NOS instruction. Several high/medium NOS instruction implementers initially struggled to autonomously frame and resolve the complexities experienced in schools and thus drew from the support networks to engage in more sophisticated forms of teacher decision-making. In contrast, the NOS pedagogical decisions of the four teachers not participating in support networks were governed primarily by the expectations and constraints experienced in their schools. Implications of this study include the need for reconsidering the structure of teacher mentorship programs to ensure they do not promote archaic science teaching practices that are at odds with reform efforts in science education.

     

Race And Ethnicity: Powerful Cultural Forecasters Of Science Learning And Performance

This article addresses the impact of race and ethnicity on students' science learning in US schools. Specifically, it discusses (a) the constructs of race, ethnicity, and culture, and the racial and ethnic student composition in US public schools; (b) effective classroom practices for curriculum, instruction, and assessment related to race and ethnicity; and (c) future policy and practice regarding race and ethnicity in science education. We discuss the science learning and teaching of African American, Latino, and Asian American students. Even though Asian American students are viewed as the model minority, some struggle with science learning, because their languages and cultures are seen as hurdles. As there is little defendable science education research related to Native Americans at the precollege level, we remain silent in this area.     

Environmental Action as Context for Youth Development

This study explored the practices of teachers, nonformal science educators, community organizers, youth program managers, and other educators facilitating youth participation in local environmental action, as well as the experiences of some of the youth involved. We conducted narrative interviews with 33 educators facilitating youth environmental action in communities throughout the United States and group interviews with 46 youth participating in nine environmental action programs in New York State. Through interpretation of educators' stories and youths' reflections, we discovered strong parallels with theory and empirical research in the youth development literature suggesting environmental action is a valuable context for positive youth development.     

The value and potential of multisited ethnography for science education research: a review of Jrène Rahm’s Science in the Making at the Margin

Rahm sought to illuminate how children and youth make meaning of science in three out-of-school time programs, and the identity work that is done through the trajectory of their youth toward their young adulthood. Through using multisited ethnography, she asserts that we can learn more about what the youth say about their science learning and science literacy development in these programs. She has revealed through her rich data the potential value of multisited ethnography for science education research. A similar theme of insider/outsider status to science emerged in each of the three sites. The nature of the data collected in Rahm’s multisited ethnography allowed for the unveiling of the similarities in this theme, but also made evident the nuanced ways that this theme presented itself differently across the three sites. The additional potential came through in the varied data Rahm could have delved into and did not. A unique characteristic of ethnographic research, that is not necessarily present in other research methods, is that a wide array of varied data is collected. An analysis of documents, images, and observational field notes, which go beyond interview data, may provide deeper understandings previously untouched in science education.