Constructing understanding in science

I will be researching how students construct understanding in science, but for this post I'll be primarily focusing on how the absence of learning theories can affect the understanding of a student.

After discussing and analyzing the differences in student thinking, I now realize that most of my science experiences in grade school consisted of lower level discussions, activities and exams. Just as I did, most students use memorization skills to "learn" a concept (Berger, 2003). So, how can we apply this "learned" concept to other ideas? For most of us, we can't. Important, theoretical learning ideas such as: active mental engagement, concrete to abstract models and Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) are left out during activities like memorization.

Students can apply concepts more successfully when they have a deeper understanding of that concept. A deeper understanding entails assimilation and accommodation of new information into a student's existing schema (Kruse, 2009). The idea of assimilation and accommodation can be achieved by presenting a new concept in a concrete manner, and then progressively moving that same concept in an abstract direction; repeating this process if a student still doesn't understand. Questions, discussions and activities will be determined from observations of the class, made by the teacher.

Applying learning theories can better inform teacher instruction and help students achieve a deeper level of understanding for a concept (Kruse, 2009). Once connections and relationships are made between the learner and concept, application of the concept can be applied to a variety of areas by the learner (Berger, 2003).

References:

Berger, C.  F.,  &  Czerniak, C.  M.,  &  Krajcik, J.  K. (2003). Teaching Science in Elementary and Middle School Classrooms: A Project-Based Approach. New York, New York: Mc-Graw Hill.

Kruse, J (2009).  Iowa Science Teachers Journal. Learning theories: Pillars of Teacher Decision-Making,  2 (36),  2-7.

Inclusive Teaching Practices in Science

Diversity is a reality in our classroom. Science class is not an exception. Creating inclusive classrooms for students form different culture (social, learning style, learning ability) groups is a process of awareness, reflection and communication. When we (teachers) engage ourselves in this process, we gain greater versatility in addressing any difficulties that students may face.

There are a few suggestions I learned from this website on how to promote an inclusive learning environment. Here's some tips as general practice to cover the general diversity classroom. I plan on doing more research regarding special strategies for special learning disability groups. 1. set up a common understanding of acceptable classroom behavior. 2. make a pint to learn and pronounce students' names correctly. 3. offers students a choice of ways of addressing you (first name only, w/ title Mr. Ms...etc.) 4. get to know students personally. It is important to create a climate of safety, comfort, and trust. In addition, find opportunities to talk with students outside classroom. 5. encourage them to recognize each other's multiple identities. Help them understand that diversity bring in richness which benefits everyone. 6. be sure to pay attention to all social identity group equally. 7. find the right balance between a serious and a light classroom tone. create some activities that stimulate strong emotion. 8. ensure accessibility for students with disabilities so they can participate equally and fully. 10. configure classroom form time to time to promote participation. 10. use vary groups size for discussion. 11. stop and challenge racist or other bigoted remarks against any social identity group.
http://learningandteaching.dal.ca/foculs.html

Science and Standardized Testing- Blog 2

Upon more researching for science on standardized tests, I found an article about President Obama's proposal on testing.  It was acknowledged that the subjects that the tests care most about are studied the least by students.  Students are getting extra English, math, and language classes and not enough science and history.  These two are covered in standardized tests- science as a test section and history sometimes comes up in the reading section.
I also found some ways that teachers can help improve their class's scores on the science section of standardized tests.  Some I agreed with, and others I found were primitive and not very creative or learning enhancing.  First, teachers could begin the class with a question of the day- one that would be similar to a question on the standardized test and could correspond with the day's lesson.  This can help the students realize that what they learn in class will be applicable later on and to understand the significance of what they learn in class.  A tip that I found not very helpful was using flash cards for important facts.  Flash cards have a place for quick math facts, but I think science is more concept oriented and need more explanation than flash cards.
An interesting fact I learned is that the science reasoning portion is on the ACT but that on the SAT, there is a variable section.  Science could be one of the variable sections, along with other subjects.
Works Consulted:
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/pittsburgh/s_675999.html
http://www.ehow.com/list_5963026_ways-standardized-test-scores-science.html
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/sat-science-reasoning-exam-tips.html

What does a research based classroom look like? blog 2 - Inquiry Based Science

I found a great website with information about an inquiry based appraoch.  Wilfred A. Franklin is a biology labratory instructor at Bryn Mawr in Pennsylvania.  Franklin has multiple pages to his website and the direct lick to the page that discusses inquiry based instruction is locates at the following link:   http://www.brynmawr.edu/biology/franklin/InquiryBasedScience.html.  The website gives an overview of the general principles of an inquiry based approach, as well as links to additional websites that can help turn your classroom into an inquiry based classroom.

How the inquiry based classroom differs from a traditional classroom is significant and virtually every activity would change.  In a traditional classroom, the teacher will discuss some vocabulary and key points that the students will then use in a variety of ways.  The inquiry based classroom starts with the teacher presenting a question or problem and then letting the students figure it out. 

Using guiding questions (like I discussed in blog 1) the teacher will guide the students through the following steps: 
-what is our background knowledge regarding the new problem
-what ideas do we have on how to solve it
-what do we need to know about the new problem
-assign responsibilities and investigage
-research and summarize findings
-whare findings and discuss as a group
-refine what we need to know based on what we now know
-present a possible solution to the problem

The part that I really like is that this process is cyclicle and able to jump from step to step.  While discussing background knowledge, a student may think that they have a possible solution.  They can then research or test that solution to see if it appears correct.  If not, jump to another step and make additional observations.

The logic behind this process seems simple and to be a common sense approach to science.  In our daily life, when we encounter a new problem, we do not just ask someone what vocabulary we need to make sense of this problem.  We dig into the problem and try to solve it our selves and that is what an inquiry based classroom does.

There is more information on this website that I need to digest and reflect on and I will touch on additional aspects in future blogs.

Source:  http://www.brynmawr.edu/biology/franklin/InquiryBasedScience.html

I want students to have fun in science class.  As I ponder how to make things fun for them, I think of things that I have fun doing in science.  As I stated in my previous post, I am researching and discovering ways to make science fun for the student in science class.  

I took a physical science class last semester at Drake.  The class was a lecture three days a week and two days we had lab.  Our lab teacher was cool, she loved CSI and she enjoyed being a forensic detective.  So why not bring this into the classroom?

On the first day of lab, she wore a scarf that resembled CAUTION tape.  We were going to be detectives and solve a mystery.  There was a victim and we had to solve the crime.  We used DNA to solve the mystery of who did the crime.  We all had our DNA tested and the results were in.  Who did the crime?

What I like about this scenario is that  the teacher became another person.  The teacher mimics a crime detective.    The only clue we had was that the victim had died.  We had to discover how to find the suspect.  As a class, we had to think and act like a detective.  How are we going to solve the crime?  We had a forensic lab that we could test our DNA to uncover the culprit.  This maybe a struggle in the classroom to find the right answer to the mystery but by making the students determine how to solve the mystery they will learn a lot about science. 

This would also be fun for the students to see the teacher in a different light, she is the investigator.  I think the students would have fun trying to figure out the crime.  They may have background knowledge of the shows on TV, such as CSI New York. 

This activity would probably work best with older students, since there is a victim in this activity, the  student would be better able to  handle the activity with more  maturity.

Incorporating Technology into science

Ways to incorporate technology into your science lesson!!

In today's society it is important that we as educators stay updated with technology so that we can better prepare our students for the technology filled world. So I wanted to find some ways to incorporate technology into my science lessons.

On http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/tech146.shtml they suggest that science teachers in the beginning of their class go onto a local weather forecast website and look at what the weather entails for the day. It would also be a great conversation starter of current weather issues around the world. The great thing about this idea is that it can be used with just about any age group.

Another great way to include technology into your science lesson is to have the students do research about a scientist online or have the students figure out information on their experiment by searching the web. At the website http://www.col-ed.org/cur/sci/sci163.txt there are examples of lessons that teachers have done with their students that involve researching on the Internet.

Technology has come a long way in the last 15 years, often times we forget we are actually using it. Technology can allow your students to see pictures or examples of objects/things that would be too expensive or impossible to bring into your classroom. However, through the use of technology your students are able to see a visual representation of things.

What does a research based classroom look like? blog 1 - The use of questions.

What does a research based classroom look like?  That is the question that I am going to try to answer over the course of this project.  The initial blog is going to explore the use of questioning in the classroom.  An article located at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/wc084 discusses many aspects of questioning.  The area that I want to focus on is using guided questions to help lead the students to discover the answer.

I want to use a card trick to demonstrate how this is done.  Card tricks in print are not always easy to understand so if it is not clear, please post a response and I can look into making a video and posting it.  The leader is the person holding the deck of cards and shuffling them.  The audience member will be using their "untapped" magic powers to discover the card that was selected.

Leader:  One card has been selected and I am looking at it right now (it is the Jack of Spades).  I will set it face down on the table and I want you to stare at it for 10 seconds and try to use you magic powers to see through the card.  (Wait ten seconds.)  Now a deck of cards has 26 red cards and 26 black cards.  Say red or black.
Audience Member:  Red.
Leader:  That leaves black.  The black cards are divided into two suits, spades and clubs.  Say spades or clubs.
Audience Member:  Spades.
Leader:  OK spades.  The spades contain number cards, 2 through 10, and face cards, Jack, Queen, King, and Ace.  Say number cards or face cards.
Audience Member:  Number cards.
Leader:  That leaves face cards.  The face cards are Jack and Queen and King and Ace.  Say Jack and Queen or King and Ace.
Audience Member:  Jack and Queen.
Leader:  That leaves us with Jack and Queen.  Say Jack or Queen.
Audience Member:  Queen.
Leader:  That leaves us with the Jack of Spades.  (Reveal the card.)  You do have magical abilities!

In that example the leader knew the card and knew how to lead the audience member to the card.  Notice the words were carefully choosen - the leader did not say pick or choose or which one do you want - rather the leader had them say one of the choices.  Based on what the audience member said, the leader choose which cards to keep and which to take away.  I have done this trick on my kids, as well as my friends, and the initial response is confusion.  They are focused on the material (making choices on the cards) and not on how their choice impacts which cards remain.  A similar experience can happen in the classroom when the students are engaged in the discussion and in the content.  They might not notice how the teacher is using what they are saying to guide the class discussion where it needs to go.

In the article by James E. Dyer that I posted above, he discusses how to respond to student answers.  The five ways Dyer discusses are:  reinforcement, probe, adjust/refocus, redirect, and rephrase and they are defined in Dyer's article.  One note that Dyer left out that I feel is important is that anytime you change the question, ask the student if the change you made still is the same answer that they wanted to give.  Dyer does not address the use of guided questioning in the classroom but gives general tips for effective questioning.  These tips for general questioning would still apply to guided questioning.

That is all that I have on the use of guided questioning for blog 1.  I plan to discuss an inquiry based approach to Science in blog 2 and I will continue to discuss the use of guided questioning.

Resource:  http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/wc084