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"Science -- Study and teaching (Elementary) -- United States -- Case studies"
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How students come to be, know, and do : a case for a broad view of learning
\"Studies of learning are too frequently conceptualized only in terms of knowledge development. Yet it is vital to pay close attention to the social and emotional aspects of learning in order to understand why and how it occurs. How Students Come to Be, Know, and Do builds a theoretical argument for and a methodological approach to studying learning in a holistic way. The authors provide examples of urban fourth graders from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds studying science as a way to illustrate how this model contributes to a more complete and complex understanding of learning in school settings. What makes this book unique is its insistence that to fully understand human learning we have to consider the affective-volitional processes of learning along with the more familiar emphasis on knowledge and skills. Developing interest, persisting in the face of difficulty, actively listening to others' ideas, accepting and responding to feedback, and challenging ideas are crucial dimensions of students' experiences that are often ignored\"--Provided by publisher.
Book
How Students Come to Be, Know, and Do
Studies of learning are too frequently conceptualized only in terms of knowledge development. Yet it is vital to pay close attention to the social and emotional aspects of learning in order to understand why and how it occurs. How Students Come to Be, Know, and Do builds a theoretical argument for and a methodological approach to studying learning in a holistic way. The authors provide examples of urban fourth graders from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds studying science as a way to illustrate how this model contributes to a more complete and complex understanding of learning in school settings. What makes this book unique is its insistence that to fully understand human learning we have to consider the affective-volitional processes of learning along with the more familiar emphasis on knowledge and skills.
eBook
Science for all children
Remember the first time you planted a seed and watched it sprout? Or explored how a magnet attracted a nail? If these questions bring back memories of joy and wonder, then you understand the idea behind inquiry-based science-an approach to science education that challenges children to ask questions, solve problems, and develop scientific skills as well as gain knowledge. Inquiry-based science is based on research and experience, both of which confirm that children learn science best when they engage in hands-on science activities rather than read from a textbook.
The recent National Science Education Standards prepared by the National Research Council call for a revolution in science education. They stress that the science taught must be based on active inquiry and that science should become a core activity in every grade, starting in kindergarten. This easy-to-read and practical book shows how to bring about the changes recommended in the standards. It provides guidelines for planning and implementing an inquiry-based science program in any school district.
The book is divided into three parts. \"Building a Foundation for Change,\" presents a rationale for inquiry-based science and describes how teaching through inquiry supports the way children naturally learn. It concludes with basic guidelines for planning a program.
School administrators, teachers, and parents will be especially interested in the second part, \"The Nuts and Bolts of Change.\" This section describes the five building blocks of an elementary science program:
Community and administrative support.
A developmentally appropriate curriculum.
Opportunities for professional development.
Materials support.
Appropriate assessment tools.
Together, these five elements provide a working model of how to implement hands-on science.
The third part, \"Inquiry-Centered Science in Practice,\" presents profiles of the successful inquiry-based science programs in districts nationwide. These profiles show how the principles of hands-on science can be adapted to different school settings.
If you want to improve the way science is taught in the elementary schools in your community, Science for All Children is an indispensable resource.
eBook
Impact/Impasse
Impact/Impasse argues for the value of everyday life in
college classrooms. Quantifiable categories such as high-impact
practice, student engagement, and integrative learning have
captured the imagination of a generation of higher education
researchers, practitioners, administrators, and policymakers. But
they miss those mundane moments, or \"impasses,\" that resist capture
by metrics while nevertheless shaping student outcomes.
Impact/Impasse blends critical theories and ethnographic
research-conducted before and during the COVID-19 pandemic-to argue
that learning happens in ordinary moments. Indeed, in sharing
anecdotes from both in-person and virtual classrooms, the coauthors
show how the so-called new normal is little different from the old
in its neoliberal attachment to data. Impact/Impasse
provides a conceptual and practical foundation for an alternative
approach to valuing impacts on their own terms, in excess of
quantification.
eBook
COVID-19 School Closure-Related Changes to the Professional Life of a K–12 Teacher
The COVID-19 pandemic forced K–12 school closures in spring 2020 to protect the well-being of society. The unplanned and unprecedented disruption to education changed the work of many teachers suddenly, and in many aspects. This case study examines the COVID-19 school closure-related changes to the professional life of a secondary school teacher in rural Alaska (United States), who had to teach his students online. A descriptive and explanatory single case study methodology was used to describe subsequent impacts on instructional practices and workload. Qualitative and quantitative data sources include participant observations, semi-structured interviews, artifacts (e.g., lesson plans, schedules, online time), and open-ended conversations. The results of this study demonstrate an increase and change in workload for the teacher and that online education can support learning for many students but needs to be carefully designed and individualized to not deepen inequality and social divides. The forced move to online learning may have been the catalyst to create a new, more effective hybrid model of educating students in the future. Not one single model for online learning will provide equitable educational opportunities for all and virtual learning cannot be seen as a cheap fix for the ongoing financial crisis in funding education.
Journal Article
Integrating Local Plant Knowledge into Elementary Curriculum: A Scalable Model for Community Sustainability
Plants are crucial for sustaining community livelihood and should be thoroughly integrated into education; however, students often suffer from Plant Awareness Disparity (PAD). This phenomenon causes students to fail to appreciate the value of plants, often because they fail to notice or value them in their surroundings. Although numerous interventions have been suggested to address PAD, we still lack a comprehensive instrument with which to measure the interconnectedness of plant awareness knowledge and the effectiveness of such interventions. To address this gap, this study developed and validated a new scale to measure plant awareness knowledge in elementary school students. We used the Nipa palm (Nypa fruticans Wurmb) as a specific case study within the Pak Phanang Basin of Nakhon Si Thammarat Province, Thailand. This study was conducted in two phases, following the standards for education and psychology testing. In the first phase, a systematic literature review based on the Plants, People, and Planet (PPP) concept was used to identify the dimensions and components of the scale. In the second phase, the scale was developed, and its construct validity was analyzed through exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The EFA and CFA provided evidence of a three-factor structure, confirming three distinct yet correlated dimensions of plant knowledge. The three subscales are as follows: Nature of Life, which focuses on students’ knowledge of the physical and biological characteristics of the plant; Interconnectedness of All Things, which measures knowledge of the plant’s relationship with its ecosystem and the community’s way of life; and Greatest Public Benefit, which assesses knowledge of the plant’s economic and cultural value to the community. The scale, comprising 13 items, demonstrated satisfactory internal consistency, with Cronbach’s alpha values above 0.75 across the three subscales. These findings provide educators with a valuable tool for assessing plant awareness and implementing interventions that foster ecological literacy and community sustainability.
Journal Article
Examining the Use of Talk and Writing for Students' Development of Scientific Conceptual Knowledge Through Constructing and Critiquing Arguments
This study developed an analytic framework consisting of four patterns of talk and writing that can support students' engagement in construction and critique: Talk only, writing only, use of talk and writing in sequence, and use of talk and writing simultaneously. This study aimed to examine how each pattern supports students' development of scientific knowledge through the construction and critique of arguments and what cognitive functions are associated with each pattern. To trace students' knowledge development over time using the four patterns, three students were selected as target subjects. Data were analyzed using two approaches: (1) in-depth analysis of a Knowledge Development Trajectory and (2) constant comparative method. This study highlights elementary students' capability of engaging in argumentation that promotes their scientific knowledge development when provided with proper opportunities, facilitation, and time to recognize that talk and writing can be used as epistemic tools for both constructing and critiquing arguments.
Journal Article
Motivating Reading Comprehension
Concept Oriented Reading Instruction (CORI) is a unique, classroom-tested model of reading instruction that breaks new ground by explicitly showing how content knowledge, reading strategies, and motivational support all merge in successful reading instruction. A theoretical perspective (engagement in reading) frames the book and provides a backdrop for its linkage between hands-on science activities and reading comprehension. Currently funded by the Interagency Educational Research Initiative (IERI), this model has been extensively class tested and is receiving national attention that includes being featured on a PBS special on the teaching of reading.Key features of this outstanding new volume include:*Theoretical Focus--CORI's teaching framework revolves around the engagement perspective of reading: how engaged reading develops and the classroom contexts and motivational supports that promote it.*Content-Area Focus--Although science is the content area around which CORI has been developed, its basic framework is applicable to other content areas.*Focus on Strategy Instruction--CORI revolves around a specific set of reading strategies that the National Reading Panel (2000) found to be effective. In some current CORI classrooms collaborating teachers implement all aspects of CORI and in other classrooms teachers implement just the strategy instruction component. *Illustrative Vignettes and Cases--Throughout the book vignettes and mini-case studies convey a situated view of instructional practices for reading comprehension and engagement. A detailed case study of one teacher and of the reading progress of her students is featured in one chapter. This book is appropriate for graduate and advanced undergraduate students in education and psychology, for practicing teachers, and for researchers in reading comprehension and motivation.
eBook
Cooperative or Game-Based Learning? Fostering Financial Literacy for Sustainable Citizenship Through Two Contrasting Implementations in Primary Education
Financial education is critical for fostering inclusive, resilient societies by reducing inequalities and promoting sustainable development. Despite growing interest, there is a notable gap in research on effective pedagogical approaches for financial literacy in primary education. Early intervention is essential to shape financially literate, active citizens capable of contributing to sustainable communities. This study addresses this gap by comparing the effectiveness of two distinct implementation packages involving active pedagogies—cooperative learning (CL) with high autonomy and stable groups, and game-based learning (GBL) featuring stronger teacher orchestration and dynamic grouping—in enhancing financial literacy among primary school pupils. Using a multiple case study design, two fifth-grade classes in Northern Italy participated in six 2 h financial education sessions, each employing a different instructional implementation package. Quantitative data from pre- and post-tests revealed significant improvements in financial literacy in both groups, confirmed by Wilcoxon signed-rank tests, with CL-based implementation showing a larger observed effect size (Hedges’g = 1.84) than GBL-based implementation (g = 1.20). Qualitative analysis of focus groups showed that CL-based implementation, characterized by high autonomy and group stability, fostered deeper learning through collaboration, shared responsibility, and relational skills vital for social sustainability. In contrast, GBL-based implementation, with structured teacher facilitation, promoted context-specific knowledge and relied more on extrinsic motivation and competition. These findings suggest that the observed benefits may be associated with the combined features of the cooperative learning-based implementation package, particularly high autonomy and stable group structures, which appear to support more socially embedded financial literacy. They also highlight both the potential and the limitations of game-based approaches. The study offers evidence-based insights for designing effective financial education programs that support both cognitive and social competencies in primary education.
Journal Article
Building Primary Teachers’ Capacity for Integrated STEM Education: A Case Study of Programmatic Features and Structures
A global push for teaching science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) as a multidisciplinary endeavor is becoming increasingly prevalent in primary education. To understand how teachers are prepared to meet this need, we examined the programmatic design of seven teacher education programs, identified from among seventeen Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship projects that focused on integrated STEM teacher education at the primary level. Specifically, we asked how the programmatic features and structures of the teacher education programs presented opportunities for prospective and practicing teachers to build capacity for integrated STEM teaching. Using case study methodology and qualitative content analysis, this study explored how primary teacher education programs framed integrated STEM across and within courses. The findings suggest that current initiatives aimed at meeting critical needs in STEM education do not sufficiently foster a focus on integrated STEM components in teacher education, especially at the primary level. The findings highlight a need for more intentional development of integrated STEM programs targeting primary teachers and provide guidance for the development or redesign of programs that better meet the demand. Specifically, integrated STEM can be woven into programs through a varying number of courses, which are introduced either later or from the beginning of programs.
Journal Article