Primary Teachers' thinking about the English National Curriculum for science: Autobiographies,warrants, and autonomy

Primary teachers, whether or not they have a specialized background in science, hold the key to understanding how science is presently working in primary schools. This paper examines their confidence and identity as science teachers in tandem with their views on the English National Curriculum and the warrants they give for those views. Data for this study were collected by in‐depth interviews of a small sample of primary teachers, setting their views in the context of their science‐related life histories. These are presented in three ways—by biographical sketches illuminating their self‐image as science teachers; by analysis of their views on the curriculum; and by analysis of the types of knowledge they used as warrants for their views. Analysis showed that their professional self‐image and their ‘science autobiographies’ were mutually validating. Where science teaching had become embedded into their perception of themselves as teachers, their critiques of the science curriculum and their desire for autonomy in its teaching could be shown to be consistent with their values © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 37: 1043–1056, 2000