Perspectives on science in school: Agriculturalists and elementary teachers in dialogue

Abstract

Many elementary teachers do not know or interact with individuals whose occupations rest on knowledge of the concepts of science. Community partnerships between the education, industrial and business sectors are being advocated and supported as strategies for dealing with the decontextualisation of science in classrooms. This paper describes a project in which a series of discussions was held between a small group of agriculturalists and a small group of elementary teachers. The intent of the discussions was to provide an opportunity for the participants to examine the ways in which science is developed and used in an occupational context integral to the community. Data derived from the transcripts of dialogue between the agriculturalists and teachers and from transcripts of interviews with each participant are interpreted to characterise the participants' images of science and their perspectives on science in school. The potential for this nontraditional form of professional development is discussed in light of these perspectives and the nature of the dialogue. In this paper, we describe a project which adopted a nontraditional approach to professional development in science for elementary teachers. The intent is to examine the conditions which facilitate collaborative development of science literacy through discussions between a group of teachers and representatives of the agricultural sector of the community. We examine the views of science and school science expressed by participants and consider the potential contribution of the dialogue between the teachers and agriculturalists to developing a view of science as human activity in everyday situations and occupations.