History of music, electromagnetism and the Sun: an innovative educational resource for pre-service primary school teachers

Abstract

In general, science education programs for pre-service primary teachers encounter several challenges, including inadequate subject matter training and uninspiring lectures. This results in a disconnection between university learning and real-school experiences. To address these issues, an innovative science teaching course for primary school teachers is proposed. This course emphasizes interdisciplinarity, practical activities and didactical resources, with the ultimate goal of breaking the cycle of unmotivated and unskilled students by producing competent and enthusiastic science teachers. The course structure, implemented at the University of La Laguna, creatively blends experimental sciences, history, music, and maths through engaging methods and practical activities. The integration of simple demonstrations and interdisciplinary approaches has had a positive impact on the pre-service teachers. As a result, they are now better equipped to design innovative educational resources for future primary students and have gained confidence in their abilities to teach science.