STEM教育的困境及出路

STEM教育的宗旨是整合创新,这对STEM课程的设计、开发和实施都提出了很高的要求。然而我国STEM教育领域却存在课程体系不明、课程目标不清晰、缺乏细致的探究学习设计、专业教师储备不足、未形成健康生态等问题。STEM教育遭遇的困境实际上是经验主义的前现代教育不适应现代社会发展要求的表现。STEM教育不是教学法意义上的教育革新,而是全新的教育实践。STEM教育需要与以往不同的教育实践生态。因此只有升级为现代教育,STEM教育才能摆脱上述困境。这就需要我们努力发展新教育学,并在新教育学理论指导下组建新的专业团队,构建健康的STEM共同体和企业联盟,开发新的STEM课程并提供STEM教师专业发展服务,培养STEM专业教师以基于一致性的新方式实施课程,允许教师以教育众筹的方式参与STEM课程升级,最终实现STEM整合创新的教育旨趣。     

Historical consciousness as a pedagogical device in the production of the responsible citizen

One of the most relevant strategies that shapes the education of the citizenry can be found in the formation of a historical consciousness. Yet the very idea of historical consciousness as a skill to be taught cannot be taken for granted. In order to disrupt the educational common sense, I will analyze the ways in which historical consciousness has been translated from the philosophical-historical field into pedagogical discourses since the 1970s. My analysis will reveal the relations between historical consciousness and the constitution of a normative citizenship. This process binds ‘responsible’ action and thought to the inclusion of the self within a consensualized teachable historical narrative.     

Policy into practice in Hong Kong pre-primary kindergartens: the impact of a reform agenda viewing early childhood as the foundation for lifelong learning

In this paper we outline the provision of pre-primary education in the Hong Kong SAR and discuss how the educational reform initiatives of 2000 (Learning to Learn) and global imperatives provided the impetus to reshape a new educational approach to early childhood education. We use the example of a half-day pre-primary (kindergarten) programme to illustrate the ways in which policy and guidelines are enacted and how they appear to reflect all the attributes of the reform movement that have adopted contemporary ideas from the international educational arena. We highlight the interpretations and enactments of these new educational imperatives in a system that has a long history of different cultural pedagogical traditions that often do not resonate with western pedagogical approaches.     

Learning to teach STEM disciplines in higher education: a critical review of the literature

ABSTRACT

Enrolments in STEM disciplines at universities are increasing globally, attributed to the greater life opportunities open to students as a result of a STEM education. But while institutional access to STEM programmes is widening, the retention and success of STEM undergraduate students remains a challenge. Pedagogies that support student success are well known; what we know less about is how university teachers acquire pedagogical competence. This is the focus of this critical review of the literature that offers a theorised critique of educational development in STEM contexts. We studied the research literature with a view to uncovering the principles that inform professional development in STEM disciplines and fields. The key finding of this critical review is how little focus there is on the STEM disciplines. The majority of studies reviewed did not address the key issue of what makes the STEM disciplines difficult to learn and challenging to teach.     

Secondary school creativity,teacher practice and STEAM education: An international study

How creativity in education is applied by teachers to secondary school contexts is dependent on how the term ‘creativity’ is grounded, politicised, and practised. This paper reports on an international study of secondary schools in Australia, USA, Canada, and Singapore investigating how creativity is understood, negotiated, valued and manifested in secondary schools, focusing on teacher and student understandings, actions, benefits and impediments to creative and critical thinking. Participant reflections revealed inter-, trans- and cross-disciplinary learning shaped by teacher collaboration, dialogue and classroom organization that fosters critical and creative thinking. Implications are made for the ways practicing teachers develop and foster creativity via pedagogical approaches that enhance connectivity and interdisciplinarity of teaching practices between domains of learning. An education-based Creativity Index through which administrators and teachers can gauge, assess and implement creative skills, capacities, pedagogic practices and assessment of creativity within secondary schools is posited. Implications for STEM/STEAM education and centralizing creative capacities in teaching, learning, and educational change are offered.     

Latin@s in Science,Technology, Engineering,and Mathematics (STEM) at the Intersections

As the United States population approaches a minority majority, the need to address educational inequities is intensified, especially for Latin@ students who are among the fastest growing ethnic minority group across the United States and at four-year colleges and universities. Concerns for educational equity also demand broadening participation of domestic under-represented groups in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. Informed by student-level data from six large, public, doctoral-granting, research-intensive universities located in the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions, we examine differences in STEM degree attainment among Latin@s at the intersections of race/ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic status. The results support the need to target STEM intervention efforts to Latin@s by gender.     

The Promise of Freedom and the Regulation of Gender-feminist pedagogy in the 1970s

This article argues that we need to understand feminist interventions- in education and other social domains- as both emancipatory and disciplining. While it is acknowledged that feminist reforms have made many positive and desirable changes in education, this article addresses the impact of these reforms from another perspective. It analyses the normative ambitions and the utopian hopes of feminist education and suggests that the Foucauldian concepts of 'technologies of the self' and 'governmentality' offer new and fruitful ways for theorising the relation between (feminist) strategies of social, educational and personal reform. These arguments are explored in dialogue with a historical case study of 1970s feminist pedagogical reforms in Australia. The article interprets pedagogical strategies based on sex-role socialisation models as developing techniques for regulating and remaking the self and as productive of feminist truths about gender identity and difference. These pedagogies articulated feminist ambitions to reform the sex role and to produce non-sexist, self-monitoring and androgynous pupils. Such attempts to remake gender illustrate some of the ways in which feminism, while a critical social movement which has achieved genuinely emancipatory outcomes, is also necessarily a governmental and normative practice. Finally, this article underlines the imperative for properly historical and self-reflexive accounts of familiar and favoured narratives about the promise of feminism.     

Research-based education as a model to change the teaching and learning environment in STEM disciplines

This paper discusses the benefits and threats of promoting and reinforcing a research-based education environment to STEM undergraduate students. The paper explores the rationale for research-based education as a pedagogical driven approach, where undergraduate students learn through enquiry and discovery. Research evidence of a STEM case study conducted in an English university is then presented, which sheds light on how this institution and STEM research-active academics are fostering students’ learning in a research-based education environment, the constraints they face, and the pedagogical solutions they propose to empower students’ learning. The paper concludes with a set of recommendations aimed to raise the research-based education environment of STEM Faculties or Departments.     

Would increasing engineering literacies enable untapped opportunities for STEM education?

The main focus here is to examine the benefits of defining and developing an engineering curriculum for elementary schools. Like many other international educational systems, Australian educational settings have been seeking to effectively implement science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education. However, current assumptions and expectations of STEM education are broad, poorly defined and intangible. This article deliberates on possible contributions and impediments that are preventing teachers from achieving engineering education in their classrooms. Using positioning theory, this article offers possible ways that the specific literacies of engineering can be better realized in teacher practices. A closer alignment will be necessary between the visions and expectations of STEM education, as perceived by governments, business, industry, and schools, to ensure a realization of the potential of STEM education. Engineering education in elementary school settings warrants the investment of time to understand what it proffers, and to enable teachers to identity and refine their practices to optimize the many benefits afforded.     

Teacher counter stories to a citizenship education mega policy narrative. Preparing for citizenship in Chile

The present article focuses on the counter stories of two Chilean social studies high school teachers. Counter stories describe how teachers use their professional experience to confront those mega narratives composed of dominant educational policies that impinge upon their pedagogical practices. The mega narrative described in this study as a citizenship education mega policy narrative is composed by citizenship educational guidelines that have become influenced by other market-driven educational policies, and is not only present in Chile but has also been influenced by policies coming from countries such as England and the US. Therefore, the discussions that emerge from these counter stories on the nature of this mega narrative and the ways through which teachers can confront it through their teaching, and the implications that all this has for the field of citizenship education, do not only fill a gap in Chilean research but also contribute to discussions on counter and mega narratives in the field of citizenship education within a wider international scope.     

Authority in Educational Relationships

The authority of educators in general, and the authority of the moral educator in particular, are central and pervasive themes in John Wilson's writings. This paper summarises his account of authority in educational relationships, not simply by describing the results of his analysis, but by reconstructing his views in terms of some basic distinctions between different types of authority, in particular the distinction between practical and theoretical authority, and the one between de jure and de facto authority. Next, the paper explores the rather neglected topic of parental authority, applying the same distinctions between basic types of authority. It is argued that the authority of the parent is in important respects different from the authority standardly ascribed to the teacher. Finally, some comments are made on the complex question of whether or not authoritative parental supervision is essential to the upbringing of children and their growth into adult people.     

Beyond Traditional Measures of STEM Success: Long-Term Predictors of Social Agency and Conducting Research for Social Change

Despite the importance of preparing socially responsible graduates in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) to address the current state of poverty and inequality, very few studies in higher education have examined the development of STEM students’ outcomes critical to promoting a more equitable society, typically focusing on the impact of one program or course. To address this gap in the literature, this study used frameworks of undergraduate socialization as well as social justice perspectives in STEM education to examine the undergraduate experiences and institutional contexts that predict STEM bachelor’s degree recipients’ development of two democratic educational outcomes seven years after college entry: social agency and values toward conducting research that will have a meaningful impact on underserved communities. The study utilized multilevel modeling on a national longitudinal sample of 6341 STEM bachelor’s degree recipients across 271 institutions. Longitudinal student data from the 2004 Cooperative Institutional Research Program’s (CIRP) Freshman Survey and 2011 Post-Baccalaureate Survey were merged with institutional data from the Integrated Postsecondary Educational Data System and CIRP Faculty Surveys. Various undergraduate socialization experiences and institutional contexts were found to predict STEM bachelor’s degree recipients’ democratic educational outcomes, including academic majors, participation in student organizations and research, experiences with faculty, and peer and STEM faculty normative contexts. Implications of the findings for research, policy, and practice are discussed.     

Between Reason and Emotion: Intellectual and Existential Tensions in Contemporary Rabbinic Education; A Portrait of Neil Gillman

This article employs the qualitative research method of portraiture to describe, analyze, and interpret the challenges involved in teaching rabbinical students at a liberal seminary. The portrait of Dr. Neil Gillman, a professor of Jewish thought at the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York City, explores some of the ideological and educational tensions at the heart of rabbinic education. The article also examines the ways in which the institutional context affects how pedagogical vision is translated into classroom practice, and raises questions about the relationship between vision and practice in rabbinic education.     

Advancing Elementary and Middle School STEM Education

Navigating the current STEM agendas and debates is complex and challenging. Perspectives on the nature of STEM education and how it should be implemented without losing discipline integrity, approaches to incorporating the arts (STEAM) and how equity in access to STEM education can be increased are just a few of the many issues faced by researchers and educators. There are no straightforward answers. Opinions on how STEM education should be advanced vary across school contexts, curricula and political arenas. This position paper addresses five core issues: (a) perspectives on STEM education, (b) approaches to STEM integration, (c) STEM discipline representation, (d) equity in access to STEM education and (e) extending STEM to STEAM. A number of pedagogical affordances inherent in integrated STEM activities are examined, with the integration of modelling and engineering design presented as an example of how such learning affordances can be capitalized on.     

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.     

Advancing alternate tools: why science education needs CRP and CRT

Ridgeway and Yerrick’s paper, Whose banner are we waving?: exploring STEM partnerships for marginalized urban youth, unearthed the tensions that existed between a local community “expert” and a group of students and their facilitator in an afterschool program. Those of us who work with youth who are traditionally marginalized, understand the importance of teaching in culturally relevant ways, but far too often—as Ridgeway and Yerrick shared—community partners have beliefs, motives, and ideologies that are incompatible to the program’s mission and goals. Nevertheless, we often enter partnerships assuming that the other party understands the needs of the students or community; understands how in U.S. society White is normative while all others are deficient; and understands how to engage with students in culturally relevant ways. This forum addresses the underlying assumption, described in the Ridgeway and Yerrick article, that educators—despite their background and experiences—are able to teach in culturally relevant ways. Additionally, I assert based on the finding in the article that just as Ladson-Billings and Tate (Teach Coll Rec 97(1):47–68, 1995) asserted, race in the U.S. society, as a scholarly pursuit, was under theorized. The same is true of science education; race in science education is under theorized and the use of culturally relevant pedagogy and critical race theory as a pedagogical model and analytical tool, respectively, in science education is minimal. The increased use of both would impact our understanding of who does science, and how to broaden participation among people of color.     

The interplay between structure and agency in the enactment of STEM policy

In their paper, Hoeg and Bencze argue that current STEM curriculum guidelines prioritise the training of a workforce in detriment of a democratically grounded education for citizenship. We agree that there is an insufficient questioning about which type of citizenship STEM curricula would favour and wish to contribute to this debate by (1) problematising different meanings and aspects of citizenship in different models of democracy and (2) exploring the dialectical nature of structure and agency in the discursive construction of educational (policy) discourse. We also discuss results from recent empirical research about teachers’ ideas on citizenship education in order to challenge views that assume a linearity between educational policy and its enactment.     

Latin@ advocacy in the hyphen: faculty identity and commitment in a Hispanic‐serving institution

This study examines our experiences as female junior scholars with multicultural backgrounds teaching at the same Hispanic‐serving institution. As education scholars with mixed‐heritage families, we identify with the commitment to serving Latinos and the number of mixed‐heritage people in the USA. The election of Barack Obama, whose racial background is both black and white, to the US presidency signifies the emergence of mixed‐heritage people as a demographic presence in this country. Our research suggests that more understanding is needed about the experiences of mixed‐heritage faculty in academia, as well as the ways in which faculty from any background may develop multiple affiliations with cultural communities and pursue professional agendas related to communities that they do not neatly fit into. Despite this variation in backgrounds and research agendas, we share our efforts in advancing Latin@ educational attainment.     

Creative Authenticity: A Framework for Supporting the Student Self in Design Education

This article introduces a pedagogical approach in design education referenced as creative authenticity. Creative authenticity is defined as an ongoing process of learning to create through intrinsically motivated, self-aware and self-affirming actions and rationales. The concept is grounded in Constructivist learning theory, Postmodernist views of pluralism and cultural position, Anthony Giddens’ theory of reflexive identities, and scholarship on intrinsic motivation in learning. This ideology seeks to personalise the learning experience for each student in ways that are meaningful to their person, not just useful to the design industry, at large. This conversation proposes four samples of methodology by which to infuse creative authenticity into curriculum as a starting point for shaking off implicit biases; focusing on student learning and growth; initiating meaningful and empowering discussions; and redefining success through collaborative and participatory educational design. This work promotes teaching with creative authenticity as a foundation to help students realise their strengths through their ever-evolving identities. In a broader context, authenticity in education supports marginalised groups to see themselves, their histories and their experiences authentically reflected in their education and work.