Abstract
This study aimed to examine student teachers’ challenges addressed by science didactics in a fieldwork assignment at a science centre. From a teacher educator perspective, it is central to understand how student teachers’ theoretical understanding of science didactics comes into play in practice. The empirical material consists of video-stimulated reflections on teaching science at the science centre. By using a didactic model, the influence of artefacts as representations emerges as the most prominent challenge with science didactics at the science centre. This, together with the identified challenges: knowledge about school students’ science understanding, making science content accessible, and the complexity of asking questions, indicates that the didactic model becomes a valuable analytical tool. To create didactical situations in teaching practice, the didactic model provides a powerful ‘thinking tool’ for student teachers – as well as teacher educators in their practice.
Highlights
The present study aimed to examine student teachers’ challenges addressed by science didactics, as identified through video-stimulated reflections (VSRs) on teaching science in an out-of-school science environment
Research has demonstrated that student teachers learn science didactics on a theoretical level but have difficulty turning this knowledge into teaching situations conducive to students’ learning (Grossman, Hammerness, & McDonald, 2009; Hammerness & Klette, 2015)
The present study focuses on student teachers’ awareness of science teaching challenges addressed by science didactics and how didactical situations are constituted in relation to these challenges
Summary
The present study aimed to examine student teachers’ challenges addressed by science didactics, as identified through video-stimulated reflections (VSRs) on teaching science in an out-of-school science environment. Teacher education aims to facilitate student teachers in developing powerful ways of understanding science didactics and integrating this knowledge into their teaching, facilitating their school students’ learning. Research demonstrates that by integrating out-of-school science environments in science teacher education, student teachers are offered unique opportunities for learning science and teaching science (Avraamidou, 2014; McGinnis et al, 2012). When teachers take their students on school trips to science centres, they often have in mind the formal school curriculum for a particular age group and a specific science topic. They need to be thoughtful about what material resources in the exhibition they use to attract students’ attention and explain particular science content. Out-of-school science environments, pose several challenges for student teachers, as well as for teachers wishing to teach specific science content outside the classroom
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