Learning from Action Research About Science Teacher Preparation

In this article, we present a case study of a beginning science teacher’s year-long action research project, during which she developed a meaningful grasp of learning from practice. Wendy was a participant in the middle grade science program designed for career changers from science professions who had moved to teaching middle grade science. An extended action research experience in the second year of induction proved valuable to her in learning how to modify her teaching to reach her goal, using evidence of student learning as her guide. This article closes with reflections on the value of extended action research within science teacher preparation, particularly early in one’s career, and explores the promise for ongoing practice-based professional development throughout a teacher’s career.     

Promoting higher levels of reflective writing in student journals

This paper traces the development over several years of an initiative involving student journals that was introduced into a tertiary science education course for pre‐service teachers to promote enhanced learning of how to teach science. Very soon after introducing the journals into course work the lecturer began engaging in ‘unplanned’ informal reflection (reflection‐in‐action and reflection‐on‐action) when she witnessed the shallow, often trivial nature of her students’ reflective writing and the lack of pedagogical insights they were gaining from the exercise. Motivated by her own ongoing scholarship the lecturer introduced purposeful coaching of reflective skills into her pedagogy to scaffold students’ learning and promote more useful reflection. The impact of these interventions on students’ reflective capabilities and learning were investigated using a formal action research cycle. Findings indicate that student teachers’ reflective skills improved and resulted in deeper and more focused thinking about how to teach science for learning.     

Development of professional knowledge in learning to teach elementary science

The purpose of this research was to understand how preservice elementary teacher experiences within the context of reflective science teacher education influence the development of professional knowledge. We conducted a case analysis to investigate one preservice teacher's beliefs about science teaching and learning, identify the tensions with which she grappled in learning to teach elementary science, understand the frames from which she identified problems of practice, and discern how her experiences played a role in framing and reframing problems of practice. The teacher, Barbara, encountered tensions in thinking about science teaching and learning as a result of inconsistencies between her vision of science teaching and her practice. Confronting these tensions between ideals and realities prompted Barbara to rethink the connections between her classroom actions and students' learning and create new perspectives for viewing her practice. Through reframing, she was able to consider and begin implementing alternative practices more resonant with her beliefs. Barbara's case illustrates the value of understanding prospective teachers' beliefs, their experiences, and the relationship between beliefs and classroom actions. Furthermore, the findings underscore the significance of offering reflective experience as professionals early in the careers of prospective teachers. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 36: 121–139, 1999     

Examining the Tasks of Teaching When Using Students' Mathematical Thinking

Recent research suggests that the examination of students' work may lead to changes in teaching practice that are more effective in terms of students' mathematical learning. However, the link between the examination of students' work and the teachers' actions in the classroom is largely unexamined, particularly at the secondary level. In this paper, I present the results of a study in which teachers had extensive opportunities to examine the development of students' conceptual models of exponential growth in the context of their own classrooms. I describe two related aspects of the practice of one teacher: (a) how she listened to students' alternative solution strategies and (b) how she responded to these strategies in her practice. The results of the analysis suggest that as the teacher listened to her students, she developed a sophisticated schema for understanding the diversity of student thinking. The actions of the teacher supported extensive student engagement with the task and led the students to revise and refine their own mathematical thinking. This latter action reflects a significant shift in classroom practice from the role of the teacher as evaluator of student ideas to the role of students as self-evaluators of their emerging ideas.     

A Community College Instructor’s Reflective Journey Toward Developing Pedagogical Content Knowledge for Nature of Science in a Non-majors Undergraduate Biology Course

Research supports an explicit-reflective approach to teaching about nature of science (NOS), but little is reported on teachers’ journeys as they attempt to integrate NOS into everyday lessons. This participatory action research paper reports the challenges and successes encountered by an in-service teacher, Sarah, implementing NOS for the first time throughout four units of a community college biology course (genetics, molecular biology, evolution, and ecology). Through the action research cycles of planning, implementing, and reflecting, Sarah identified areas of challenge and success. This paper reports emergent themes that assisted her in successfully embedding NOS within the science content. Data include weekly lesson plans and pre/post reflective journaling before and after each lesson of this lecture/lab combination class that met twice a week. This course was taught back to back semesters, and this study is based on the results of a year-long process. Developing pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) for NOS involves coming to understand the overlaps and connections between NOS, other science subject matter, pedagogical strategies, and student learning. Sarah found that through action research she was able to grow and assimilate her understanding of NOS within the biology content she was teaching. A shift in orientation toward teaching products of science to teaching science processes was a necessary shift for NOS pedagogical success. This process enabled Sarah’s development of PCK for NOS. As a practical example of putting research-based instructional recommendations into practice, this study may be very useful for other teachers who are learning to teach NOS.     

Collaborative Action Research on Technology Integration for Science Learning

This paper briefly reports the outcomes of an action research inquiry on the use of blogs, MS PowerPoint [PPT], and the Internet as learning tools with a science class of sixth graders for project-based learning. Multiple sources of data were essential to triangulate the key findings articulated in this paper. Corresponding to previous studies, the incorporation of technology and project-based learning could motivate students in self-directed exploration. The students were excited about the autonomy over what to learn and the use of PPT to express what they learned. Differing from previous studies, the findings pointed to the lack information literacy among students. The students lacked information evaluation skills, note-taking and information synthesis. All these findings imply the importance of teaching students about information literacy and visual literacy when introducing information technology into the classroom. The authors suggest that further research should focus on how to break the culture of “copy-and-paste” by teaching the skills of note-taking and synthesis through inquiry projects for science learning. Also, further research on teacher professional development should focus on using collaboration action research as a framework for re-designing graduate courses for science teachers in order to enhance classroom technology integration.     

Educational action research as the quest for virtue in teaching

Curriculum aims often remain unrealised aspirations. This is because the values and principles implicit in them fail to get articulated in forms that can effectively inform and guide the practice of teaching. Ideas such as ‘learner-centred education’, ‘independent/autonomous learning’, ‘self-directed learning’, ‘enquiry/discovery learning’, ‘collaborative learning’, ‘active learning’ and ‘learning with understanding’ refer to critical aspects of the learning process rather than its outcomes. While often enthusiastically embraced by teachers, they rarely get realised in appropriate forms of virtuous action. Such is the power of an outcomes-based model of teaching and learning to shape the practice of teaching. This paper cites examples of curriculum design that specify the pedagogical values and principles implicit in various educational aims, and shows how they can provide a basis for practical experiments by teachers in their classrooms and schools, in a quest to transform their teaching into concrete forms of virtuous action. Indeed, the paper depicts a number of actual action research projects in which teachers generated some common insights into how to transform their teaching into the practice of virtue in education. It also explores the role of theory-informed action research in developing teaching as a virtuous form of action.     

游戏化学习对学生学习兴趣影响的行动研究

文章采用行动研究的方法论,对困扰我们的学习兴趣问题进行了研究。该研究借助Wiki协作备课平台,通过行动、交流和反思,以课例研究的形式初步解决了学生的学习兴趣问题。由外在的教学情境改变到内在的教学策略的提升的行动过程,也让我们更加意识到对思维的挑战才是游戏与教学的契合点。     

论行动研究

行动研究作为质化研究的一种方法,具有专业发展性、循环性、反思性和批判性等特征。行动研究对于语言教学研究的重要价值在于,帮助了解真实课堂并从中发现有效学习与教学的方式;帮助认识和领悟语言教育教学中可量化物之外的其他重要内容;帮助发现和理解特定背景之下教师的行为、言语、感知及其内在联系。行动研究使语言教学研究真正成为一种实践的、真实的、具有影响力的、充满活力的研究。     

Facilitating Self-Study of Professional Development: Researching the Dynamics of Teacher Learning

In this study a teacher educator worked with two elementary teachers to facilitate a self-study of their learning during a professional development programme. The programme extended for 6 months and was underpinned by four learning processes—reflection, sharing, action and feedback. The two teachers documented their learning experiences and were interviewed several times during and after the study. At the end of the 6-month period, the teachers sketched and shared models of their learning and then collaborated to produce a joint model. Sue learned that she needed to start with a small change in her teaching and that her learning involved multiple factors that interacted to create change. Loraine learned that focusing on the teaching of science reminded her of childhood experiences and that it was important for her to analyse why she taught the way she did. Self-study helped the teachers to develop insights about how they learned and enabled them to better understand and manage their own professional development.     

Teacher Research,Action Research: the Logo Action Research Collaborative

Action research is a form of professional inquiry in which the teacher's role is seen as key to educational improvement. This paper describes methodologies developed by the Logo Action Research Collaborative – a national network linking 100 teachers at nine sites – that facilitate and support collaborative inquiry by teachers into their own teaching practices, in order to understand, improve, develop, and incorporate new forms of student assessment, teaching methods, and curriculum. The project focused on the Logo computer language, a powerful learning environment for problem‐solving and mathematical inquiry. The authors provide background information on action research as an evolving discipline. They identify three phases of a year‐long action research cycle, and describe key strategies developed by the project to support teachers in taking on a research frame of mind, identifying areas of concern, and undertaking and completing action research projects. The paper includes several illustrative examples of action research investigations undertaken by teachers, and demonstrates the benefits to the students and teachers involved. It closes by making a case for the potential contribution of action research to current educational reform initiatives and school restructuring.     

Professional Learning of K-6 Teachers in Science Through Collaborative Action Research: An Activity Theory Analysis

Primary/elementary teachers are uniquely positioned in terms of their need for ongoing, science-focused professional development. They are usually generalists, having limited preparation for teaching science, and often do not feel prepared or comfortable in teaching science. In this case study, CHAT or cultural–historical activity theory is used as a lens to examine primary/elementary teachers’ activity system as they engaged in a teacher-driven professional development initiative. Teachers engaged in collaborative action research to change their practice, with the objective of making their science teaching more engaging and hands-on for students. A range of qualitative methods and sources such as teacher interviews and reflections, teacher-created artifacts, and researcher observational notes were adopted to gain insight into teacher learning. Outcomes report on how the teachers’ activity system changed as they participated in two cycles of collaborative action research and how the contradictions that arose in their activity system became sources of professional growth. Furthermore, this research shows how the framework of activity theory may be used to garner insight into the activity and learning of teachers as both their professional activities and the context change over time.     

Learning to look through the eyes of our students: action research as a tool of inquiry

Abstract

The story we are about to tell occurred when Gayle was a middle school science teacher and graduate student in Joanne's seminar on the study of teaching. Gayle was trying to make sense of her science students' indifference toward the environment, an attitude that concerned her as an environmentalist. She turned her inquiry into an action research project that sought to answer the question, ‘What are the assumptions that my middle school students have about their relationship with the environment?’ Joanne was mentoring Gayle in her action research study, and at the same time exploring Gayle's perspective as an action researcher. Now, several years later, we are both action researchers and teacher educators and understand that we have been looking through the eyes of our students in order to become scholars of our own teaching.     

A blended learning approach for teaching computer programming: design for large classes in Sub-Saharan Africa

The challenge of teaching programming in higher education is complicated by problems associated with large class teaching, a prevalent situation in many developing countries. This paper reports on an investigation into the use of a blended learning approach to teaching and learning of programming in a class of more than 200 students. A course and learning environment was designed by integrating constructivist learning models of Constructive Alignment, Conversational Framework and the Three-Stage Learning Model. Design science research is used for the course redesign and development of the learning environment, and action research is integrated to undertake participatory evaluation of the intervention. The action research involved the Students’ Approach to Learning survey, a comparative analysis of students’ performance, and qualitative data analysis of data gathered from various sources. The paper makes a theoretical contribution in presenting a design of a blended learning solution for large class teaching of programming grounded in constructivist learning theory and use of free and open source technologies.     

Critique and Negativity: Towards the Pluralisation of Critique in Educational Practice,Theory and Research

There are many possible ways to approach the topic of educational theory and critique. One could inquire into the meaning of critical phenomena and subject‐matter in practical education and instruction, investigate the various forms of critique with the goal of determining the extent to which they assist in clarifying pedagogical action, or one could ask: ‘What is meant by critical educational research?’ and ‘How do the various approaches to this topic relate to one another?’. This article inquires into the relationship between critique and negativity. Such a distinction is relevant for the practical, theoretical and research‐oriented use of the various forms and subject matters of critique. This analysis of their relationship aims to clarify how the structure of human learning connects to that of pedagogical action; and, additionally, how the theoretical guidelines and orientation for pedagogical action relate to scientific analyses and research in education in a way that is productive. Distinctions made in thought, judgement and action are not simply delimiting positive characteristics. Such distinctions are at once mediated by the relations of knowledge and ignorance, ability and inability. Although ignorance and inability can be transformed into positive knowledge and ability, they are not superseded in the process. Ignorance and inability are, on the contrary, constitutive elements of learning. The possibility for transitions from ignorance and inability to knowledge and ability—a possibility that itself presupposes knowledge and ability—point to a form of negativity within the process of education (Bildung). This form of negativity relates to the human ability to learn (Bildsamkeit) and provides the definitive basis of human learning. A form of negativity constitutive of learning processes leads to one that grounds pedagogical processes. Pedagogical efficacy is mediated by a double negativity, comprised of both a universal and a particular form of negativity. The relation of negativity to learning and pedagogical efficacy, with specific reference to educational research studies on teaching and learning processes, is considered. A form of educational research that operates beyond fundamentalist criticisms—that is to say, criticisms based on unshakeable beliefs—and utilises issues arising from a pluralisation of critique to confront the pluralism of critical positions, is considered. The article closes with reflections on the relation between the Critical and the Uncritical.     

Good intentions are not enough: A case study uncovering perpetuation of internalized and interpersonal oppression in middle school STEM classrooms

Science teachers and educators seek to promote equity and inclusion within their classrooms. Yet, many do not examine how their roles could reproduce oppression that continues to exclude certain groups of students. Centering on how oppression interacts with science teaching and learning, this naturalistic study observed Ms. William and her implementation of two STEM units that integrate science and engineering, to understand power, race, and privilege dynamics in her middle school STEM classrooms. Specifically, we focused on understanding oppression at the interpersonal and internalized level in Ms. William's class. We collected and analyzed video recorded lessons from two different classrooms, two STEM curricula Ms. William had co-developed, and conducted semi-structured interviews after she taught her two STEM units. We identified themes of oppression perpetuated in the classroom by employing thematic analysis, which when guided by our theoretical framework enabled us to illuminate the complex relationship between science teaching and maintaining whiteness as the dominant discourse in science learning. Our findings suggest that an active and critical role from science teachers and educators are required; we must reflect deeply on our science curriculum and teaching strategies and identify practices that remains to be oppressive if promoting equity and inclusion is at the forefront of our science teaching.     

A Case Study Exploring the Identity of an In-Service Elementary Science Teacher: a Language Teacher First

Teachers are central to providing high-quality science learning experiences called for in recent reform efforts, as their understanding of science impacts both what they teach and how they teach it. Yet, most elementary teachers do not enter the profession with a particular interest in science or expertise in science teaching. Research also indicates elementary schools present unique barriers that may inhibit science teaching. This case study utilizes the framework of identity to explore how one elementary classroom teacher’s understandings of herself as a science specialist were shaped by the bilingual elementary school context as she planned for and provided reform-based science instruction. Utilizing Gee’s (2000) sociocultural framework, identity was defined as consisting of four interrelated dimensions that served as analytic frames for examining how this teacher understood her new role through social positioning within her school. Findings describe the ways in which this teacher’s identity as a science teacher was influenced by the school context. The case study reveals two important implications for teacher identity. First, collaboration for science teaching is essential for elementary teachers to change their practice. It can be challenging for teachers to form an identity as a science teacher in isolation. In addition, elementary teachers new to science teaching negotiate their emerging science practice with their prior experiences and the school context. For example, in the context of a bilingual school, this teacher adapted the reform-based science curriculum to better meet the unique linguistic needs of her students.

     

Practice in planning and planning in practice: re‐assessing and clarifying action research in a multi‐national context

This paper responds to a call seeking presenters for an action‐research event for elementary‐school science teachers in Venezuela. The authors planned on the assumption that the participants would wish to leave with plans for introducing action‐research approaches into their practice. In previous writing on action research, the various protocols for action‐research planning and practice emphasize norms and regularities rather more than their opposites. This paper shows, however, that planning is transformed by multiple views of teaching and learning to create a multi‐level, multi‐faceted event within a particular context. The activity of planning parallels the pedagogy enacted in the event. The interactions of presenters and participants, of their purposes and actions, create the complex reality that is action research, where the learning and the events are often asynchronous.     

Using a New Learning Environment Questionnaire for Reflection in Teacher Action Research

This article reports the development, validation and use of an instrument designed to provide teachers with feedback information, based on students’ perceptions, about their classroom environments. The instrument was developed to provide teachers with feedback that they could use to reflect on their teaching practices and, in turn, guide the implementation of strategies to improve their learning environments. To determine the validity and reliability of the new instrument, data from 2043 grade 11 and 12 students from 147 classes in 9 schools were analysed. The Rasch model was used to convert data collected using a frequency response scale into interval data that are suitable for parametric analyses. During an action research process, reflective journals, written feedback, discussions at a forum and interviews with eight teachers helped to illuminate the processes used by teachers during action research. This article reports the views of these teachers in general and examines more closely how one of the teachers used student responses to the learning environment questionnaire as a tool for reflection and as a guide in transforming her classroom environment. This case study helped us to gauge the extent to which action research based on students’ perceptions of the learning environment was useful in guiding teachers’ improvements of their classroom learning environments.