Just do it? impact of a science apprenticeship program on high school students' understandings of the nature of science and scientific inquiry

The purpose of this study was to explicate the impact of an 8‐week science apprenticeship program on a group of high‐ability secondary students' understandings of the nature of science and scientific inquiry. Ten volunteers (Grades 10–11) completed a modified version of the Views of Nature of Science, Form B both before and after their apprenticeship to assess their conceptions of key aspects of the nature of science and scientific inquiry. Semistructured exit interviews provided an opportunity for students to describe the nature of their apprenticeship experiences and elaborate on their written questionnaire responses. Semistructured exit interviews were also conducted with the scientists who served as mentors for each of the science apprentices. For the most part, students held conceptions about the nature of science and scientific inquiry that were inconsistent with those described in current reforms. Participating science mentors held strong convictions that their apprentices had learned much about the scientific enterprise in the course of doing the science in their apprenticeship. Although most students did appear to gain knowledge about the processes of scientific inquiry, their conceptions about key aspects of the nature of science remained virtually unchanged. Epistemic demand and reflection appeared to be crucial components in the single case where a participant experienced substantial gains in her understandings of the nature of science and inquiry. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 40: 487–509, 2003     

Scaffolding Preservice Science Teachers' Evidence-Based Arguments During an Investigation of Natural Selection

In this qualitative case study, preservice science teachers (PSTs) enrolled in their advanced methods course participated in a complex, data-rich investigation based on an adapted version of the Struggle for Survival curriculum. Fundamental to the investigation was the use of the Galapagos Finches software and an emphasis on giving priority to evidence and constructing evidence-based arguments. The questions that guided the research were: (1) What is the nature of the scientific arguments developed by PSTs? (2) How do PSTs go about constructing scientific arguments (emphasis on processes and strategies)? (3) In what ways do the scaffolds embedded in the Galapagos Finches software influence the development of PSTs arguments? Two pairs of PSTs were selected for in-depth examination. The primary sources of data were the electronic artifacts generated in the Galapagos Finches software environment and the videotaped interactions of both pairs as they investigated the data set, constructed and revised their arguments, engaged in peer review sessions, and presented their arguments to the class at the end of the unit. Four major patterns emerged through analysis of the data. First, using the software, PSTs consistently constructed claims that were linked to evidence from the investigation. Second, although PSTs consistently grounded their arguments in evidence, they still exhibited a number of limitations reported in the literature. Third, the software served as a powerful vehicle for revealing PSTs knowledge of evolution and natural selection. Finally, the PSTs approach to the task had a strong influence on the way they used the software.     

All in the Family: Connecting Home and School with Family Literacy

Family literacy has come of age during the past quarter of a century. This article provides a brief review of family literacy history and components. Pedagogical implications for teachers of primary grade students are considered, and suggestions given for increasing home–school literacy involvement through the following types of initiatives: sharing information, increasing access to materials, and implementing strategies that invite family involvement.     

Sci-Tec: Evaluating a non-deficit model of in-service

The Sci-Tec project was based on an interactive, non-deficit model of in-service in which the fundamental principle was to value the expertise of all participants, and to encourage them to share that expertise with others. As part of the unfolding of the project, the participants also identified various areas of need as they arose, and these too became elements of the in-service agenda. The model has proved to be robust when applied in a wide range of schools, and with teachers who originally expressed widely varying degrees of confidence and interest in teaching primary science and technology. Specializations: primary science in-service education, curriculum leadership Specializations: in-service and pre-service primary science and technology     

Emerging local schooling landscapes: the role of the local authority

The school system in England is undergoing rapid change, with the government creating more than 4000 ‘independent publicly funded schools’, known as academies, since 2010. The potential for fragmentation is considerable with diversity of governance emerging as a key feature of the new schooling landscape. Consequently, a major and widely recognised issue to which these reforms give rise concerns the future of the ‘middle tier’ –that layer between individual schools or groups of schools and central government. There are competing visions of how a future middle tier might evolve: one focuses entirely on a middle tier of individual schools and chains as a ‘self-improving system’; others conceive a continuing but revised role for the local authority (LA). The aim of this paper is to begin to explore the latter position, and in particular the potential role of the LA as a ‘broker’ of new patterns of school organisation. Drawing on interview data from three very different LA areas, the findings show that LAs differ in how they conceive their role and, consequently, on the strategies that they pursue.     

Within- and between-subjects partial reinforcement effects with an autoshaped response using Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica)

Animals exposed to schedules of partial reinforcement are typically more resistant to extinction than are animals trained with continuous reinforcement. This is the partial reinforcement effect (PRE). Animals experienced with both partial and continuous schedules are often more persistent on the continuous schedule, yielding a reversed PRE. Both conventional and reversed PREs have been elusive with classical conditioning paradigms. The present experiment attempted to demonstrate between- and within-subject PREs using 50% and 100% autoshaping schedules. Presence or absence of a PRE depended on the behavioral measures used. Marked terminal group differences in acquisition produced a between-subjects PRE with absolute response levels but not with rate-of-change measures. Within subjects, only choice trial comparisons were sensitive enough to differentiate the two schedules. Acquisition data were inconsistent with most of the classical conditioning PRE literature, but consistent with results reported in the autoshaping literature. These discrepancies may reflect the operant-classical interaction in autoshaping.     

Writing performance assessments: how important is extended time?

Students in Grades 5 and 8 completed a 30-minute writing performance assessment and a writing performance assessment completed over 3 days. Assessments were evaluated on four traits (ideas, organization, conventions, and sentence fluency). A significant interaction was found at Grade 5 between length of time allotted for the assessment and students' educational classification (general or special education). Grade 5 students performed significantly better on the 3-day writing assessment, with students in special education benefiting the most. At Grade 8, there were no differences between scores on the 30-minute and the 3-day assessments. No significant differences were found in students' writing performance across various types of discourse (narrative, imaginative, persuasive, and expository); significant differences were reported across certain writing traits. We shared three hypotheses for reported differences: (a) students' proficiency with the writing process, (b) scoring scale bias, and (c) differences in the revision behaviors of developing and mature writers. Educational implications related to statewide test programs are discussed.     

Non-linear instructional design model: eternal, synergistic design and development

Instructional design is at the heart of each educational endeavour. This process revolves around the steps through which the thoughtful productions of superior products are created. The ADDIE generic instructional design model emphasises five basic steps within the instructional design process: analyse, design, develop, implement and evaluate. The simplistic nature of the ADDIE model, including the ease of application and possibilities towards the cyclical features of the process, enable a more holistic overview of the instructional design process. The Eternal, Synergistic Design Model emphasises the non‐linear nature of the instructional design process. The continuous design and development focuses upon the core evaluation of the product, wherein the Pareto principle emphasises the feedback related to the 20% of difficulties while maintaining an eye upon the 80% neutral and positive aspects of the product.