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World of Science Education: North America
Series Editors: Kenneth Tobin & Wolff-Michael Roth
Regional Editors: Wolff-Michael Roth & Ken Tobin
The focus of this Handbook is on the various research programs in North American
(Canada, US) science education and those that have most closely influenced this
program. The reviews of the research situate what has been accomplished within a given
field in North American rather than international context. The purpose therefore is to
articulate and exhibit the regional networks and trends that led to specific forms of
science education. The thrust lies in identifying the roots of research programs and
sketching trajectories—focusing the changing façade of problems and solutions within
regional contexts. The intent is to allow a reader to leave a reading of the book with a
sense of what has been accomplished and what is to be done next.
Contents
I. Theory, Method and Science Education
Sociocultural, Cultural, and Historical Frameworks for Science Education
Stacy Olitsky
Recent reviews of the literature have shown an increasing interest in sociocultural and
cultural-historical theories for understanding education generally and science education
more specifically. In this chapter, we provide a review of the uses of social, cultural, and
cultural-historical theory in science education. This review sets the stage for a look
forward and the ways in which social, cultural, and historical perspectives can create new
vistas of opportunity for science education.
Formal School Science: A Critical and Creative Inquiry into Inquiry
Larry Bencze, University of Toronto
The diversity of forms and effects of ‘science inquiry’ in North American school contexts
is such that it seems ripe for inquiry. This chapter provides readers with an overview of
meanings, practices and implications of science inquiry in school science. Discussions
are informed by history, philosophy and sociology of science, and in terms of important
pedagogical principles and practices.
Beyond the Academy: Reflections of Situated Science and Technology
Education
Steve Alsop, York University,
There has been a growing research interest in situated approaches in science education.
These have used a series of labels including Experiential, Place based, Place Conscious,
Community Referenced and Critical Place Based pedagogies. For instance, this year
NARST's new Environmental SIG contained a large number of papers of this type. This
chapter will critically review US literature in these emerging areas and make a series of
recommendations for scholarship and praxis.
Qualitative Methods in Science Education
Wolff-Michael Roth, University of Victoria
Kenneth Tobin, The City University of New York
In the twenty plus years in which qualitative methods have been accepted as a legitimate
part of research in science education there has been a rapid expansion of genres used,
each embracing somewhat different theories and methods. The chapter describes the
evolution of a range of methods all subsumed under the more general notion of
qualitative method. We provide frameworks for establishing and maintaining high quality
research.
Quantitative Methods in Science Education
Finbarr Sloane, Arizona State University
An historical analysis of the ways in which quantitative research has been used in science
education and the ways in which the questions have changed as more sophisticated
statistical models (and research designs) have evolved.1
Modeling Student Development in Science Education: An Introduction to
Growth Modeling
Finbarr Sloane, Arizona State University
Longitudinal studies are increasingly common in social science research. However, they
are tricky to conduct. Mathematics educators have recently put forth considerable effort
on the qualitative side of this problem. This can be seen in the special issue of
Mathematical Thinking and Learning (MTL) devoted to “virtual learning trajectories”
(2004). In this chapter we take up the quantification of such trajectories of growth. The
chapter will focus on describing hierarchical linear models (HLMs) in a very practical
way. We will first illustrate how HLMs can be seen as an extension of simple linear
regression models. We then extend this simple model to help guide the reader from
familiar through less familiar territory. Following the description of the statistical
models, several HLM analyses will be presented using a longitudinal data set that looks
at student achievement in mathematics over time. These analyses will illustrate many of
the critical features of HLMs for growth modeling.
Beyond the Qualitative and Quantitative Dichotomy
Wolff-Michael Roth, University of Victoria
Kenneth Tobin, The City University of New York
For decades, qualitative and quantitative methods have been pitted against one another,
often sustained by researchers understanding only one of these approaches. More
recently, studies drawing on multiple forms of methods have been used, thereby showing
1 Tentative for the moment.
that the dichotomous approaches to science education research are not the last word on
doing good research. We offer both a review of multi-method research and show where
multi-method approaches offer promises for doing better research.
II. Teaching and Learning Science
Evolution of the Learning Cycle
Edmund A. Marek, The University of Oklahoma
The chapter begins with a summary of the genesis and evolution of the learning cycle
from its beginning to today; benchmark research will be weaved throughout this
description. Following the discussion of the learning cycle will be quotes and
commentaries from science educators experienced with the learning cycle. Higher
education and common school science educators will be included in this section. Current
research of the learning cycle will conclude the chapter.
Technology: From Tool to Learning Design
Donna Degennaro, Montclair State University
This chapter traces the trajectory of the use of technology in science education and how
the bridge between these two fields is shaping not only a way to engender interest in
these fields, but also to enlighten effective learning designs that generate in students the
dispositions of practicing scientists.
Learning without Limit: The Role of Free-Choice Learning in Science &
Technology Education
Lynn D. Dierking, Oregon State University
John H. Falk, Oregon State University
A quiet revolution in science and technology education is unfolding worldwide, affording
learners increasing choice and control over their own learning. The centers of this
revolution are not the usual suspects – schools and universities – but instead the vast
network of informal educational entities such as museums, zoos, aquariums, science
centers, libraries, print and broadcast media, gaming and increasingly the Internet and
other social networking media. Collectively these organizations and tools enable
empowered individuals to customize and take charge of their own science and technology
learning. This chapter reviews free-choice learning research in North America,
establishing the case for its critical role in expanding views of where, when, why, how
and with whom science and technology learning occurs.
Science, Religion, and Education: The Evolution of the Issues, the Creation
of a Solution?
David Jackson, University of Georgia
Although 20 years have now passed since the U.S. Supreme Court last ruled on legal
aspects of the controversy surrounding the teaching of evolution and/or creationism in
that nation’s public schools, those two decades have been a period of ferment in three
aspects of this issue in the English-speaking world: continued political maneuvering at
the state and local levels; a wide range of book-length philosophical arguments, many
written by highly-regarded scientists; and, unfortunately to a considerably lesser extent,
empirical classroom research.
Undergraduate Chemistry and Biochemistry Teaching in North America
Penny J. Gilmer, Florida State University
Donald Bratton, Florida State University
This chapter examines undergraduate chemistry and biochemistry teaching in
universities, colleges and community colleges in North America. We include an overview
of theoretical underpinnings, key research findings, a synopsis of current teaching
methods, and a brief examination of some cutting-edge research.
III. Science Communication, Language, and Literacy
Understanding Science Talk through Conversation and Discourse Analysis
Pei-Ling Hsu, University of Victoria
Discourse is the social practice that people interact each other for communication. For
science education, it is greatly important to investigate how science discourse is
constructed and understood because of the social nature of teaching and learning. In this
chapter, we introduce two methods, conversation analysis (CA) and discourse analysis
(DA), both influenced by the ideology of ethnomethodology for better understanding
discourse. CA is the systematic analysis of the talk produced in everyday situation of
human interaction and DA is the study of how talk or texts are used to perform actions
and also with the sort of resources that people draw on in the course of those practices.
Drawing on CA, we better understand how intersubjectivity unfolds among participants;
and through DA, we better understand how people deploy language to construct
discourse. In addition the introduction of DA and CA, we also exemplify both analyses of
science discourses to reveal the interactional machinery of science activities and how
actions perform in science talk. In this chapter, we review the small but substantial body
of existing work that science educators have produced in North America.
Scientific Literacy: Past Research, Present Conceptions, and Future
Developments
Michiel van Eijck
What scientific literacy is depends very much on the conception of knowing and learning
that is discursively associated with it. Despite differences in the definition of ‘scientific
literacy’, the current reform rhetoric describes the individual informed citizen as one who
participates in public discourses and uses rather than produces science. Many citizens are
said to have ‘blanks’ in their background knowledge left by formal education and
therefore needs to be given ‘information’ to make up; some even suggest more strongly
that most people are not only ignorant but also incapable of scientific literacy. In this
chapter, we review past conceptions of scientific literacy, describe recent approaches to
rethinking the concept (Eisenhart, Barton, Roth), and articulate ways in which the
concept might be rethought and developed in the near future.
Non-Verbal Aspects of Communication in Science Classrooms
Lilian Pozzer-Ardenghi, McGill University
In science education, the verbal modes of communication and writing especially are
privileged over other aspects of communication. In recent years, especially since Lemke's
Talking Science science educators have become increasingly interested in the
conversations K--12 students have about topics related to science. Whereas this shift has
emphasized an important element of learning science--the praxis of talking precedes
competencies of writing science--relatively little work has been done to understand other,
non-verbal aspects of communication. In this chapter, we review the literature and lay out
a framework for studying interactions in science classrooms more holistically.
Reading in Science: How to Understand People’s Interpretations
Stephen Norris, University of Alberta
Linda Phillips, University of Alberta
We will examine studies that report how well individuals interpret scientific text and
studies of individuals’ judgments of the quality of their own interpretations. The
coherence between their cognitive ability and their metacognitive evaluations of that
ability will be examined within the context of the school curriculum designed to teach
reading in science and of the theory of reading that students acquire there from.
Writing in Classroom Science
Brian Hand, University of Iowa
Aeran Choi, University of Iowa
The chapter addresses the question of the progress made in understanding the models
that have framed research on writing in science classrooms. The transition between
cognitive models and the appropriate pedagogical approaches has been explored in North
America. Emphasis has been placed on examining the implementation of different
writing tasks across educational levels from elementary to tertiary. Differences in
research approaches have been used to explore the divide between learning to write and
writing to learn approaches for building science literacy. While there has been much
research done within the language education field on literacy, the area of science literacy
is now the focus of much attention and in need of carefully constructed theoretical
frameworks to advance our understanding of its application to science classrooms.
Research on Inscriptions: Visual Literacy, Authentic Science, and
Multimodal Science Education
Lilian Pozzer-Ardenghi, McGill University
Research on inscriptions (or visual representations) within Science Education focuses on
both the production and use of inscriptions as teaching and learning strategies, as well as
authentic science practice. Borrowing principles from fields as varied as anthropology,
sociology, cognitive studies, psychology, and semiotics, studies on inscriptions point to
the importance of these visual representations for teaching and learning science.
Emerging trends in this area include issues on (visual/science)literacy, authentic science,
and multimodal science education.
IV. Equity in Science Education
Taking a Different Look at a Persistent Dilemma: Science Education,
Research, and African American Students
Eileen Carlton Parsons, The University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill
Jamila Smith Simpson, North Carolina State University
Decades of reports and research document the under-representation and under-
performance of African Americans in science and science education. In this chapter, the
authors consider the distinctive positionality of African Americans and contextualize the
decades of work accordingly. The authors synthesize and critique the literature involving
African Americans in science education from an ecological perspective of development
that is embedded within a socio-cultural historical framework. Such an approach offers
new insights on the persistent dilemma and what is necessary for altering it.
We are more different then alike: Latinos-Latinas-Hispanics
Alejandro Gallard Martinez, Florida State University
This chapter will be a review of education and science education research regarding
Latinos (as)/Hispanics in the United States. The filters for analysis are: Were the
complexities of being a Latino (a)/Hispanic in the United States made explicit, implied or
ignored? Is teaching and learning researched along cognitive lines only, ignoring cultural,
economic, historical and sociological contexts?
Equity in Asian American Science Education: Unpacking the Model Minority
Myth
Xiufeng Liu, University at Buffalo-SUNY
Guofang Li, Michigan State University
Media often portray Asian American students as “model minority” due to their overall
high science achievements. This model minority stereotype masks the significant
diversity within Asian American and Canadian student populations in terms of their
cultures, languages, social economic status, as well as science achievements. Science for
all Americans and Canadians requires attention to learning needs of different Asian
American/Canadian students.
“The Power of the Earth is a Circle.” Indigenous Science Education in the
US, Alaska, and Canada
Carol B. Brandt, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Emerging from tribal sovereignty and Indigenous movements to decolonize schooling,
science education among Indigenous people in North America has focused on cultural
survival in the 21st century. In this chapter, I provide a very brief overview of Indigenous
education in the US, Alaska, and Canada. I summarize recent research (by Indigenous
and non-Indigenous scholars) that connects Indigenous science education to community-
based knowledge, language revitalization, and socio-economic development.
Feminisms and a World Not Yet: Science with and for Social Justice
Angela Calabrese Barton, Michigan State University
The terrain of feminist work in science education has been wide ranging. In this chapter I
examine research that takes up the feminist stance of learning as an embodied activity - a
stance on learning that challenges the nature of knowledge and what it means to be a
knowledgeable, powerful, participating member of a science classroom, a science
community and/or society. I use this review to make a case for why critical science
agency is a central outcome for science education. In my discussion I take the stance that
these studies taken up in this manuscript are a "counter narrative" to more recent policy
approaches to science for all.
Addressing Gender Differences in Science
Jasna Jovanovic, California Polytechnic State University
Ruchi Bhanot
The most recent national assessments of children’s educational progress indicate that girls
no longer lag far behind boys in their performance in science (National Science Board,
2004, 2006). Despite these tremendous gains in achievement, girls continue to report less
confidence in their performance in science (particularly physical science) and are more
likely to report liking science less than boys. Given that girls’ achievement-related
beliefs are the gatekeepers to their persistence in these domains, the reason for this
continued gender difference must be understood. In this chapter we will review the theory
and research over the last three decades that has attempted to explain this gender gap. We
will then review recent efforts in science education to increase girls’ participation in all
science subjects, particularly physical science.
V. Context and Science Education
Transformative Possibilities in Urban Science Education
Gale Seiler, McGill University
What is unique about the lifeworlds of youth in cities that has implications for teaching
and learning science? Interweaving historical, geographic, political, and theoretical
perspectives, I will explore this new field by focusing on critical science education
research being done in urban settings with marginalized populations, thus setting the
stage for the accompanying chapters.
The Philadelphia Project: Evolution and Development of an Urban
Research Program
Cristobal Carambo, University of Pennsylvania
This chapter traces the development of the eight -year research program into urban
science education in the Philadelphia School system. The theoretical perspectives evolved
in response to the ongoing relationships between the practice teachers and university
researchers. Research findings served to illuminate, guide and improve the teaching of
science.
Teaching for Social Justice in Urban Science Education: Margins, Centers,
and Questions of Fit
Maria Rivera, Barnard College, Columbia University
In this essay, I review social justice oriented research in New York and Texas, led by
Angela Calabrese Barton, postdoctoral fellows, doctoral, and masters degree students,
spanning informal and formal settings, including work with homeless youth, after school
science programs, science curriculum development and implementation, and teacher
education and development in high poverty urban schools.
Cogenerative Dialogues: The Creation of Interstitial Culture in the New York
Metropolis
Gillian Bayne, Lehman College, CUNY
Research using cogenerative dialogues has been well under way in a variety of urban
public school science classrooms. In this chapter, I provide a synopsis of the variety of
ways by which three very different New York City schools have utilized cogenerative
dialogues as a means to produce interstitial culture through interpretively illuminating
understandings around cosmopolitanism, solidarity, globalization and, individual and
collective agency.
Learning Science on the Back Street: The Politics of Persistent Poverty and
Segregation in the Rural South
Deborah Tippins, University of Georgia
Amy Johnson, University of Georgia
This chapter will take a critical look at official and unofficial places for science learning
in a predominantly African American rural southern community. In particular, the chapter
will emphasize the relationship between persistent cycles of generation to generation
poverty, racial segregation and science literacies.
VI. Science Teaching & Science Teacher Education
The Continuum of Science Teacher Education
Julie Luft, Arizona State University
Learning to teach is a process that begins early in a teacher's academic program and then
continues throughout the later years. For those who study science teacher education, this
learning process typically consists of two domains: pre-service and inservice education.
This two step paradigm is limiting in the characterization of teacher learning and that
these domains are not explored collectively to understand the implications for the
education of science teachers. In this chapter, research in the different domains will be
explored to better depict the continuum of science teacher education and science teacher
learning.
Learning to Teach Science
Sonya Martin, Drexel University
Coteaching has been developed to address certain problems in both inservice and
preservice teacher development. The chapter reviews the problems, theories and methods
associated with the development of coteaching and cogenerative dialogues in research on
learning to teach science generally and in difficult contexts such as urban schools
specifically.
Inquiry and Teacher Education
Michael Bowen, Mount Saint Vincent University
This chapter will focus on the development of the understanding of scientific inquiry,
nature of science, and practices of science held by student teachers. It will provide an
description of the conceptual understandings of these issues student teachers bring to
their methods programs, the applied inquiry skills they possess, and efforts which have
been made to address these so that their understandings and skills align with efforts to
improve these skills in secondary and elementary classrooms. An analysis of these studies
will provide the foundation for recommendations regarding what practices need to be
addressed in science "methods" courses.
VII. Improving Science Education
Leadership Development in Science Education
James J. Gallagher, Michigan State University
Leadership in science education depends on a combination of elements including a vision
of the field and its mission, solid knowledge of its eclectic content, and skills in taking
actions that lead to meaningful advancements. Unlike formal organizations where
leadership may be associated with position or title, loosely structured professional
communities, like science education, identify leaders through a more complex set of
factors. This chapter is based in an empirical study of how leaders in science education
develop the knowledge, skills, and connections that enable them to become recognized as
leaders and maintain their influence within the community.
Trajectories of Science Program Evaluation in North America
Frances Lawrenz, University of Minnesota
Michelle Fleming, University of Minnesota
This chapter will examine the history of science program evaluation in North America,
mostly the US. It will trace the history of funding for science program evaluation and the
types of evaluations conducted as well as the changing philosophies underlying the
methodologies employed and deemed appropriate. It will examine the recent juxtaposing
of increasing cultural sensitivity with rigid methodological requirements. It will also
discuss the mechanisms in place for developing the next generation of science program
evaluators.
From Value-Free to Theory-Based: Paradigm Changes in Science
Assessment
Xiufeng Liu, University at Buffalo-SUNY
Science assessment used to be exclusively based on measurement of learning outcomes,
particularly in the cognitive domain. As new measurement models (e.g. IRT) and theories
(e.g. generalizability) became available, the science assessment went through a revolution
toward authentic tasks such as performance and portfolio assessment. New learning
theories in science and education are once again reforming science assessment by taking
a systematic approach to integrating formative and summative assessments, classroom
and large-scale assessments, and traditional assessment tasks to technology-based
innovative assessment tasks.
TIME LINE
Drafts of papers to be received by Kenneth Tobin and Wolff-Michael Roth by November
30, 2007. The cycle of review and revise will then commence with a goal of the book
being published for NARST of 2008.
EMAIL ADDRESSES
Alejandro Gallard (agallard@garnet.acns.fsu.edu)
Angela Barton (acb@msu.edu)
Anton Lawson (anton1@asu.edu)
Bill Holliday (holliday@umd.edu)
Carol Brandt (cbbrandt@vt.edu)
Cristobal Carambo (caramboc@verizon.net)
David Jackson (djackson@uga.edu)
Deborah Tippins (dtippins@uga.edu)
Donna DeGennaro <degennarod@mail.montclair.edu>
Eileen Parsons (rparsons@email.unc.edu)
Finbarr Sloan (Finbarr.Sloane@asu.edu)
Frances Lawrenz (lawrenz@tc.umn.edu)
Gale Seiler (gale.seiler@mcgill.ca)
Gillian Bayne (Tadasam@aol.com)
James Gallagher (gallaghr@msu.edu)
Jasna Jovanovich (jasna@uiuc.edu)
John Falk, (falkj@science.oregonstate.edu) ,
Lilian Pozzer-Ardenghi (llpozzer@uvic.ca)
Linda Phillips (linda.phillips@ualberta.ca)
Lynn Dierking (dierkinl@science.oregonstate.edu)
Maria Rivera (mriveram@barnard.edu)
