A Comparison of Student Teachers' Beliefs from Four Different Science Teaching Domains Using a Mixed Methods Design

The study presented in this paper integrates data from four combined research studies, which are both qualitative and quantitative in nature. The studies describe freshman science student teachers' beliefs about teaching and learning. These freshmen intend to become teachers in Germany in one of four science teaching domains (secondary biology, chemistry, and physics, respectively, as well as primary school science). The qualitative data from the first study are based on student teachers' drawings of themselves in teaching situations. It was formulated using Grounded Theory to test three scales: Beliefs about Classroom Organisation, Beliefs about Teaching Objectives, and Epistemological Beliefs. Three further quantitative studies give insight into student teachers' curricular beliefs, their beliefs about the nature of science itself, and about the student- and/or teacher-centredness of science teaching. This paper describes a design to integrate all these data within a mixed methods framework. The aim of the current study is to describe a broad, triangulated picture of freshman science student teachers' beliefs about teaching and learning within their respective science teaching domain. The study reveals clear tendencies between the sub-groups. The results suggest that freshman chemistry and—even more pronouncedly—freshman physics student teachers profess quite traditional beliefs about science teaching and learning. Biology and primary school student teachers express beliefs about their subjects which are more in line with modern educational theory. The mixed methods approach towards the student teachers' beliefs is reflected upon and implications for science education and science teacher education are discussed.     

A cross‐cultural comparison of teachers’ expressed beliefs about music education and their observed practices in classroom music teaching

Through interviews and observing day‐to‐day classroom practice, this study explores the beliefs of 10 music teachers in elementary schools in Vancouver and Hong Kong. The results demonstrate that the music teachers of the two localities hold similar cognitive beliefs about the essential elements of music education. However, they hold different beliefs about the value or impact of music education on the psychological or character development of students. Music teachers of Vancouver are found to be more student‐centred than their counterparts in Hong Kong, and this is reflected in both the curriculum and activities selected for classroom teaching. Though both groups of teachers place similar emphasis on western music, in Canada more classroom activities are based around the student’s personal enjoyment and expression. In Hong Kong, meanwhile, music education is viewed as a means of nurturing the student’s temperamental development. While students in Vancouver are allowed to express their personal musical preferences in classroom activities, in Hong Kong students are required to perform according to prescribed standard indicators of success. This is probably linked—albeit invisibly—to Chinese Confucian culture.     

Pedagogical transitions among science teachers: how does context intersect with teacher beliefs?

This paper examines attitudes to pedagogical change, among teachers within a second level science department in Ireland. It explores the beliefs and contextual constraints that mediate diversification from a primarily didactic pedagogical approach towards more student-led pedagogies. Using a multi-method approach incorporating observations of teaching, focus group interviews, one to one interviews and open-ended questionnaires, findings were analysed inductively to generate a number of themes. The findings suggest that a teacher’s sense of identity and beliefs are significant influences on their predisposition towards pedagogical change. Interestingly, the middle class, academic context of the school and the terminal Leaving Certificate state examination, were both identified as latent contextual barriers to pedagogical change. The implementation of curricular reform at Junior Cycle level in Ireland is ongoing, with a new science specification in place since September 2016. This specification has a significant student-led and skill-based emphasis and varied pedagogical approaches are necessary to effectively deliver this new curriculum. Professional development is available to assist teachers with the curricular reform. However, findings in this paper suggest that intrinsic beliefs and contextual constraints may limit access to, or meaningful engagement with such training, negating pedagogical change for some teachers and their students.     

Learning to teach science as inquiry in the rough and tumble of practice

This study examined the knowledge, beliefs and efforts of five prospective teachers to enact teaching science as inquiry, over the course of a one‐year high school fieldwork experience. Data sources included interviews, field notes, and artifacts, as these prospective teachers engaged in learning how to teach science. Research questions included 1) What were these prospective teachers' beliefs of teaching science? 2) To what extent did these prospective teachers articulate understandings of teaching science as inquiry? 3) In what ways, if any, did these prospective teachers endeavor to teach science as inquiry in their classrooms? 4) In what ways did the mentor teachers' views of teaching science appear to support or constrain these prospective teachers' intentions and abilities to teach science as inquiry? Despite support from a professional development school setting, the Interns' teaching strategies represented an entire spectrum of practice—from traditional, lecture‐driven lessons, to innovative, open, full‐inquiry projects. Evidence suggests one of the critical factors influencing a prospective teacher's intentions and abilities to teach science as inquiry, is the teacher's complex set of personal beliefs about teaching and of science. This paper explores the methodological issues in examining teachers' beliefs and knowledge in actual classroom practice. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 44: 613–642, 2007.     

Teacher deliberation within the context of Singaporean curricular change: pre- and in-service PE teachers’ perceptions of outdoor education

The study featured in this paper investigates pre- and in-service Physical Education (PE) teachers' diverse views of OE (Outdoor Education) against the backdrop of numerous curricular changes underpinning Singaporean education. We highlight the potential challenges Singaporean schools and teachers may face in implementing the newly formalized OE curriculum. Findings revealed the teachers' prioritization of high elements and adventure activities within residential camps. Then, the teachers linked these ‘risky’ and ‘unfamiliar’ activities with transferrable learning outcomes, mostly in line with students' personal and social development. The more experienced teachers in the cohort tended to advocate that OE could be situated within local school and community environs. Yet, this envisioning of OE within a place-based learning model reflected limited understanding of this concept. We conclude by suggesting that curriculum designers and teacher educators should draw upon pre- and in-service PE teachers' perceptions of OE. It is imperative that these teachers' key concerns and beliefs, which currently structure their work in this recently formalized subject area, are used to contextualize the extensive curricular change and professional learning endeavors that are being implemented by the education ministry.     

OPERATIONALIZING IDENTITY IN ACTION: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF DIRECT VERSUS PROBABILISTIC MEASURES OF CURRICULAR ROLE IDENTITY FOR INQUIRY-BASED SCIENCE TEACHING

Teachers’ curricular role identities are those dimensions of their professional identities concerned with the use of curriculum materials. In a previous study, we developed and tested a survey instrument designed to measure preservice elementary teachers’ development of curricular role identity for science teaching through their use of science curriculum materials. In this follow-up study, a revised version of the survey was administered to a second group of preservice elementary teachers in the same science methods course, and data were analyzed within and across years. Results from this study suggest that preservice teachers articulated important similarities and differences between the curricular role identities for science teaching they attributed to themselves and to more experienced elementary teachers. Over time, they were often able to begin to appropriate the curricular role identities for science teaching that they attributed to more experienced elementary teachers. However, findings from the second survey administration also suggest that preservice teachers’ curricular role identities for science teaching are more stable when characterized by their actual curriculum design practices than when characterized by comparative, probabilistic means. These findings have important implications for science teacher education and curriculum development, as well as the operationalization of curricular role identity in education research.     

Inside a beginning immigrant science teacher’s classroom: an ethnographic study

Teaching is a highly personal endeavor shaped by ‘funds of knowledge’ and beliefs about teaching, learning, and students. This case study examines how one Asian immigrant teacher’s personal expectations and beliefs influenced his expectations of students and the teaching and instructional strategies he employed. His expectations of students’ behavior and their failure to conform to his expectations influenced him to utilize more traditional, didactic instructional practices and responses to classroom management dilemmas. It is generally assumed that immigrant and minority students will benefit from exposure to teachers from similar backgrounds, and that ethnically diverse teachers can better prepare minority students for the multicultural workplace and global economy. This study focuses on the role a teacher’s background and experiences play in development of their beliefs about teaching and learning, their expectations of students, and the instructional decisions they make regarding teaching and learning. This study suggests that teachers draw on their personal histories and cultural understandings to create classroom practices which are molded by microcosms of personal ‘funds of knowledge’ and beliefs about teaching and learning. In contrast to conventional wisdom and unquestioned myths, this study emphasizes the importance of knowing that teachers’ cultural backgrounds do not necessarily qualify them to provide the most appropriate instructional environment for students from similar cultural backgrounds. This study suggests that all teachers need to learn to recognize and negotiate the unique social elements culturally diverse students bring to the classroom.     

Harnessing Teacher Potential as Israel Education Curriculum Developers

In this article I investigate how one group of teachers deliberated about Israel education with the intention to “modify the myth” as they engaged in curriculum reform. I begin from the idea that curriculum development should be an in-house endeavor that encourages faculty to embrace their roles as curricular decision-makers. Participants readily shared insights and suggestions from personal experiences and practices and explored goal language for teaching a critical Israel. However, moving from individual reflection to practical decision-making proved complicated due to factors stemming from personal and professional identities, school structure and culture. I consider implications for harnessing teacher potential as Israel education curriculum developers.     

美国教师教育中的服务学习

自20世纪90年代初开始,服务学习在美国的教师教育中得以广泛开展。美国教师教育中的服务学习在课程设置上有独立设计课程、融入其他课程、融入教育实习之中、设置辅修专业以及纳入社团活动等类型;在实施上分为课程说明、调查需求、拟定计划、培训知能、实施服务、开展反思、评鉴与庆贺等步骤;在价值上,能够对职前教师的社会责任感、专业服务精神、教育教学理论和技能以及个性发展、生涯规划和参与教育改革的意愿等产生积极的影响。     

Reviews

This study examines six US social studies teachers’ beliefs and curricular decisions that impact their teaching about Asia. Using interview data, the study seeks to understand the forces that influence what, how, and when teachers teach about Asia in their secondary classes, if and how they position Asians as ‘others’, and what bearing that has on how these teachers represent Asia in the curriculum. As the study investigates these topics in light of the wider social perceptions of Asia in US society, it uses cultural studies as a major theoretical framework. Major findings show that there is a significant gap between teachers’ personal goals for instruction and students’ perceptions about Asia, the latter of which are often influenced by mass media and popular culture. The study provides a new perspective on understanding the nature and social function of the school curriculum as producer of the collective perception of other peoples and cultures.     

Hindu,Muslim and Sikh religious education teachers’ use of personal life knowledge: the relationship between biographies,professional beliefs and practice

The article reports the findings of a qualitative study of Hindu, Muslim and Sikh teachers of religious education and the relationship between their biographies, professional beliefs and use of personal life knowledge in English, secondary school classrooms. This relationship was explored through a study of five beginning teachers and provided evidence of the role that their personal knowledge played in enabling them to support the learning of pupils in white majority and Muslim majority state schools. It also indicated the need for teacher education courses to provide opportunities for teachers to explore the relationship between their personal and professional lives and the potential dilemmas and dangers of sharing their personal knowledge and experiences with pupils. In the context of international concern to identify criteria for selecting beginning teachers, the article highlights the importance of initiatives aimed at increasing the ethnic/religious diversity of the teaching force.     

论教师的课程意识及其唤醒

与传统课程改革不同,目前在我国兴起的新课程改革,其重要理念是要求教师能够积极主动参与。为此,教师课程意识的觉醒是十分重要的。课程意识是教师对其在课程决策与发展中地位与作用的敏感性、批判性、反思性意识。当前,教师有三种课程意识形态,即天真意识、惯性意识与批判意识。为唤醒教师课程意识,必须赋予教师专业自主权,并通过叙事、合作传记、价值之思等途径来实现。     

Career change teachers: pragmatic choice or a vocation postponed?

For the last decade, international bodies have warned of a teacher shortage and sought to find ways of attracting more applicants to the profession. This article reports on a pilot study undertaken at one Australian university which asked why some applicants to preservice teaching courses had given up existing careers in order to become teachers. It then asked if their career change had been successful. Using open-ended questions and interviews, this paper recorded the view of 35 teachers who had been in teaching for 2–5?years. The findings suggest that reasons for selecting teaching as a second career are more complex and nuanced than existing research suggests, combining pragmatic, deeply personal and spiritual elements. It also found a significant connection between career change teachers’ satisfaction with their new occupation and the status of their occupation, indicating that further study of career change teachers’ experiences and personal beliefs is warranted.     

Examining features of how professional development and enactment of educative curricula influences elementary science teacher learning

This research examines factors influencing elementary science teacher learning as they participate in professional development with and enactment of educative curricula in comparison with learning following limited professional development and enactment of traditional curricula. Using a randomized cluster design (125 teachers and 2,694 students in 4th—5th grades) that met the What Works Clearinghouse standards without reservations, teacher learning was conceptualized using four outcomes. Data were analyzed using standard single-level multiple regression models and possible mediation models for the teacher outcomes were considered using piecewise multiple regression and path analytic approaches. Treatment group teachers experienced greater increases in content knowledge, views of science inquiry, beliefs about reform-based teaching, and teaching self-efficacy than comparison group teachers. The findings indicate that what teachers learn from the combination of professional development and teaching with educative curriculum varies according to what their knowledge and beliefs are on entering the experience. Surprisingly, high entry-level self-efficacy was associated not only with lower learning gains for the teachers, but also for their students. Finally, teachers' space science learning and that of their students are implicated as mediators of the positive effect of the professional development and educative curriculum enactment on teacher beliefs about reform science teaching. This work refines and extends a theoretical framework of teachers' participatory relationship with curricula.     

Teacher efficacy: An investigation of Economics teachers

Abstract

In an era of unprecedented curriculum change it is not surprising that many South African teachers have begun to question their ability to affect learner performance. Teachers have to engage with a changing learner culture, with new curriculum content and are under pressure to embrace different teaching strategies without fully understanding the theoretical principles on which they are based. In this paper the authors explore high-school Economics teachers' beliefs about their capacities to influence learning. This paper is based on a quantitative empirical investigation into Economics teachers' efficacy beliefs about the teaching of Economics. Economics teachers from each of the 45 Department of Education delineated districts in KwaZulu-Natal province were selected to be participants in the study. We argue that while Economics teachers perceive their role as important in the learning process, male teachers in particular see the teacher as the dominant influence on learner performance, and are more confident than female teachers of their knowledge and teaching abilities.     

Student and novice teachers’ stories about collaborative learning implementation

Despite the research evidence on the effectiveness of collaborative learning (CL), the implementation of this teaching strategy has not yet found a profound place in teaching practice. As a consequence, several studies have investigated teachers’ motives regarding and experiences with the use of CL. Most of these studies concern however senior teachers, whereas new generations of teachers are important actors in the process of educational innovation. Hence, it is crucial to explore novice teachers’ stories about CL implementation: what motivates them to implement this teaching strategy, what hinders them and how do they handle the challenges they are confronted with? The answers to these questions may provide useful information for improving the teacher education curriculum regarding CL. In this respect, the present study intends to study pre-service and beginning teachers’ experiences with CL in classroom practice, after a formal training pertaining to CL as part of their teacher education programme. The aim is to identify the main challenges student and novice teachers encounter when they want to implement CL in their teaching practice, and how they position themselves in these challenges. A qualitative case study design with in-depth interviews in the Flemish context (Belgium) was used to gain access to the particular experiences of each teacher, and to the processes of interpretation and meaning-making that go with those experiences. Participants were interviewed individually one week before graduation (n?=?15). After at least half a year of experience in the teaching profession, 10 participants were interviewed for a second time. In the present study, we present the results from a cross-case analysis, using the method of constant comparative analysis to identify similarities or differences, and to capture recurring patterns within the data. The findings reveal several dilemmas that illustrate the conflicting options teachers are facing in relation to their colleagues, their pupils, the curriculum and in the classroom context when they intend to implement CL. In particular, the following dilemmas were identified: two dilemmas related to professional autonomy (student teachers: teacher autonomy vs. pre-service performance assessment; novice teachers: teacher autonomy vs. institutional conformity), further dilemmas related to teachers’ beliefs about pupils’ readiness for CL vs. evidence about pupils’ readiness for CL, investing in innovation vs. curriculum and job pressure, and pedagogical intentions vs. contextual constraints. In most conflicting situations, student and novice teachers position themselves in the challenge by opting for non-implementation.     

Teachers and science curriculum materials: where we are and where we need to go

Curriculum materials serve as a key conceptual tool for science teachers, and better understanding how science teachers use these tools could help to improve both curriculum design and theory related to teacher learning and decision-making. The authors review the literature on teachers and science curriculum materials. The review is organised around three main questions: What do teachers do when using science curriculum materials?, What happens when teachers use science curriculum materials? and Why do teachers make the decisions they do? For each question, the authors first summarise the findings of two key reviews from the mathematics education literature, then situate the findings from science education in juxtaposition with those findings. The review uncovers that relatively little is understood about the mechanism underlying how teachers interact with curriculum materials. To try to address this gap, complementing and extending the field’s existing understandings of the teacher–curriculum relationship, the authors make four propositions, grounded in the literature on self-regulation. The propositions reflect a mechanism for teacher curricular decision-making. The self-regulation perspective also helps to develop more targeted support for science teachers aimed at the uptake, adaptation and enactment of curriculum materials in ways that are intended, and that teachers themselves experience as an improvement in their teaching. The authors conclude with a call for research that further explores the ways in which individual science teachers’ decision-making is situated within the wider sociocultural context.     

Examining the immigrant experience: helping teachers develop as critical educators

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine ways that a multicultural perspective using critical literacy practices engaged practicing teachers to rethink and re-vision oppressive hegemonic structures and attitudes regarding immigrant students and their families and helped them to develop as critical educators. In the context of a professional development master’s program, 57 teachers experienced a curriculum strand focused on immigration issues and provided extensive feedback responding to the curriculum. The data were analyzed to assess in what ways using current and controversial issues helped teachers to develop their capacities to understand and critique the world in more complex ways and what impact these experiences had on their teaching practice. Evidence suggests that the majority of teachers were receptive to the curriculum although some teachers exhibited resistance. Resistance appeared to be minimized and teachers’ development supported using curricular experiences that “put a face to the issue,” that put learners “in others’ shoes,” that engaged teachers’ emotions, and that made clear how policies, practices, and attitudes directly and indirectly impact the lives of children and their families.     

An ethical analysis of how ESL teachers construct their professional identities through the use of information technology in teaching

While there is growing recognition of the mutually shaping relationship between teaching with information technology (IT) and teachers’ beliefs, skills and self-efficacy, there has been a paucity of research attention on the construction of teacher identity during actual IT-assisted in-class teaching and out-of-class networking with students, in a full institutional and social context. This study investigates how a group of secondary school English as a second language (ESL) teachers regulated their teaching and practices and constructed their identities in relation to governmental requirements for the use of IT in teaching. Teachers from seven government-subsidised schools in Hong Kong were interviewed about their experiences of using IT in teaching. We frame the reported practices of these teachers as a process of construction of identity, formed in the context of the ‘governmentality’ supporting current examination-oriented educational policy. Observing from the perspective of what has been termed ‘governmentality’ and an ethical framework for self-formation of personal identity makes it possible to see these teachers’ professional identities constructed through the use of IT practices within the contradictory conditions of professional/personal demands, compliance/resistance, school promotion/peer non-cooperation, advantage/disadvantage in use of IT, use of IT/content and pedagogical knowledge. This study has implications for developing a more supportive and rational environment for the use of IT in teaching, in which more autonomy and identity options—rather than constraints—can be provided for teachers in the digital era. This study also informs practitioners and policy makers in other educational settings experiencing a similar IT boom in teaching.