Crisis In Science Education Research Articles

A Māori Crisis in Science Education?

This article is written for school teachers in Aotearoa New Zealand schools who teach science to Year 7-10 students or as part of a primary classroom programme under The New Zealand Curriculum. What can teachers do about inequity in science education for Māori students? Clear understanding of this complex issue is required, so this article offers a synopsis of the Māori science curriculum debate. Written from my perspective as an insider-researcher interested in this topic for many years, this article engages with important comments about Māori-medium science education made by Sir Peter Gluckman in a major report on science education (2011), and an earlier challenge by Graham Hingangaroa Smith (1995) about the ‘Māori crisis’ in science education. Towards the end I briefly discuss what teachers might do, and consider the potential of ‘bilingual science’ as an alternate approach with relevance for any classroom teacher, and a way of navigating the current theoretical impasse or ‘crisis’ in Māori science education.

ПРОБЛЕМИ ПІДГОТОВКИ КОМПЕТЕНТНОГО ВЧИТЕЛЯ ФІЗИКИ В РАМКАХ РЕАЛІЗАЦІЇ ПРОЄКТУ “НОВА УКРАЇНСЬКА ШКОЛА”

The article is devoted to the research of the problems that led to the crisis in science education in general and the training of physics teachers in particular. It is emphasized that for our country the tendency to increase the humanitarian component in the education system has become harmful. Based on the analysis of the results of the introductory campaigns of the last years, it is ascertained that today there is a pronounced shift towards the specialties of humanitarian and social orientation. The opinion was expressed and substantiated that the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine should review the approaches to state procurement planning, which should be tailored to the needs of industries and the balance of labor resources, and not the demand of entrants. It is emphasized that the restoration and replenishment of the scientific and technical potential of Ukraine should start with giving priority to the training of physics teachers and correcting the situation with a specialty “Secondary education (physics)”, since otherwise in the near future competent teachers will not remain in secondary education institutions. Concerns have been expressed about the fact that under such conditions it will not be possible to provide specialized education, which will lead to further decline of physical and physical and technical education, and ultimately to the intellectual degeneration of our people. Priority measures for improvement of the state of preparation of the teacher of physics in Ukraine and increase of its prestige are offered, among which are highlighted such as revival of work of physical-mathematical pedagogical classes at institutions of pedagogical higher education, improvement and expansion for pupils of such classes and schools of higher education. to institutions of pedagogical higher education, renewal of the target set of students in the specialty “Secondary education (physics)”. It is noted that to prepare highly competent Ukrainian physics teachers who will be able to implement the New Ukrainian School project, it takes time and a set of activities that can be implemented only through the joint efforts of the entire teaching community. Key words: physical and physical-technical education, training of physics teacher.

A Māori crisis in science education

This article is written for teachers in Aotearoa New Zealand schools who teach science to Year 7-10 students or as part of a primary classroom programme under NZC (the New Zealand Curriculum). What can teachers do about inequity in science education for Māori students? Clear understanding of this complex issue is required, so this article offers a synopsis of the Māori science curriculum debate. Written from my perspective as an insider-researcher interested in this topic for many years, this article engages with important comments about Māori-medium science education made by Sir Peter Gluckman in a major report on science education (2011), and an earlier challenge by Graham Hingangaroa Smith (1995) about the ‘Māori crisis’ in science education. The article lists and discusses options for teachers, including the potential of ‘bilingual science’ both as a useful practical approach for any classroom teacher, and as a way of navigating the current theoretical impasse or ‘crisis’ in Māori science education.

Flying out of danger: The new National Curriculum for England

“Crisis in science education avoided…” is hardly a front-page headline, but this is exactly what occurred with the National Curriculum in 2010. The revised National Curriculum for England is implemented in schools from this coming September. The version prior to this, a new secondary curriculum, was introduced in 2007. It is this 2007 version which represented a serious threat to science education, and addressing its limitations was a key part of the 2010 review.

Can Definitions Contribute to Alternative Conceptions?: A Meta-Study Approach

There has been disagreement on the importance of definitions in science education. Yager (1983) believes that one crisis in science education was due to the considerable emphasis upon the learning of definitions. Hobson (2004) disagrees with physics textbooks that do not provide general definition on energy. Some textbooks explain that "there is no completely satisfactory definition of energy" or they can only "struggle to define it." In general, imprecise definitions in textbooks (Bauman, 1992) and inaccuracies in definition provided by teachers (Galili & Lehavi, 2006) may cause alternative conceptions. Besides, there are at least four challenges in defining physical concepts: precision, circularity, context and completeness in knowledge. These definitional problems that have been discussed in The Feynman Lectures, may impede the learning of physical concepts. A meta-study approach is employed to examine about five hundreds journal papers that may discuss definitions in physics, problems in defining physical concepts and how they may result in alternative conceptions. These journal papers are mainly selected from journals such as American Journal of Physics, International Journal of Science Education, Journal of Research in Science Teaching, Physics Education, The Physics Teachers, and so on. There are also comparisons of definitions with definitions from textbooks, Dictionaries of Physics, and English Dictionaries. To understand the nature of alternative conception, Lee et al. (2010) have suggested a theoretical framework to describe the learning issues by synthesizing cognitive psychology and science education approaches. Taking it a step further, this study incorporates the challenges in semantics and epistemology, proposes that there are at least four variants of alternative conceptions. We may coin the term, 'alternative definitions', to refer to the commonly available definitions, which have these four problems in defining physics concepts. Based on this study, alternative definitions may result in at least four variants of alternative conceptions. Note that these four definitional problems or challenges in definitions cannot be easily resolved. Educators should be cognizant of the four variants of alternative conceptions which can arise from alternative definitions. The concepts of alternative definitions can be useful and possibly generalized to science education and beyond.

The Shortage of Science Teachers

Science deserves plaudits for focusing on the crisis in science education resulting from the lack of properly qualified K-12 teachers in the nation's public schools (News Focus Special: Preparing Teachers, 1 June, pp. 1270-1279). Calling attention to efforts in several states to engage research universities will hopefully begin to address the problem. Unfortunately, the supply side of this issue is only one of several critical, interacting elements of a complex sociopolitical system that is typically controlled or redesigned one element at a time. Focusing only on the supply side is a losing strategy. Let me give examples from California, with which I am most familiar. If all the graduates of California's public universities who have majored in math in a given year became credentialed teachers in the state, the numbers would still fall short of the projected demand for math teachers in the decade ahead. A second major problem is teacher retention, particularly in hard-to-staff, low-performing schools where “working conditions” are a major factor and where underprepared teachers are predominantly located ([1][1]). Teacher attrition in the first 1 to 4 years diminishes the importance placed on increasing the number of entrants ([2][2]). The typical explanation for this phenomenon that a teacher would give is that it stems from the loss of professional status in the teaching profession as a consequence of overemphasis on testing and rigid adherence to standards-based instruction. Teachers no longer enjoy the privilege of controlling delivery of curricula and thus acting as professionals, i.e., exercising judgment in the conduct of their classes. ![Figure][3] CREDIT: GETTYIMAGES.COM Finally, teachers with whom I have worked value time above compensation. No university administration expects its faculty to spend the entire day standing in front of a class. Teachers in K-12 need time for collegial activity and professional development to discuss content and pedagogy and, above all, to reduce the sense of isolation that dominates their lives. As an engineering scholar, it is painfully clear to me that the public educational system will never function properly until policy and practice are consonant with a properly designed, controlled, and resourced system. As long as policy-makers continue to tinker with only selected parts of the problem, the “Gathering Storm” will continue to gain energy. If K-12 were an airplane, it never would have taken off. 1. 1.[↵][4] The Status of the Teaching Profession 2005 (The Center for the Future of Teaching and Learning, Santa Cruz, CA, 2005), pp. 82-84. 2. 2.[↵][5] California Postsecondary Education Commission, Winter 2006 Request for Proposals, Retention of Math and Science Teachers, footnote, p. 3. [1]: #ref-1 [2]: #ref-2 [3]: pending:yes [4]: #xref-ref-1-1 View reference 1. in text [5]: #xref-ref-2-1 View reference 2. in text

The False Crisis in Science Education

The False Crisis in Science Education

The Standard Model for Reform in Science Education Does Not Work

What might be termed the “Standard Model” of reform in science education calls for less rote learning, more hands-on experience, and more interesting presentation techniques. In reality, science education has gone so far down this path in the last 50 years that any improvements to be gained by this approach should have been obvious by now. The continuing crisis in science education shows that the root causes for the malaise lie not in poor teaching but in trends outside of education: The end of a uniquely favorable era following World War II and the launching of Sputnik.The development of unrealistic and romanticized expectations. There is a widespread but flawed syllogism among educators that goes as follows: children enter school bright and curious, they exit jaded and uninterested in intellectual matters; therefore the educational process must be at fault. Neither the premise nor the conclusion of this syllogism is valid.Anti-intellectual cultural forces, both outside of and within academia. The growth of pseudoscience, while public support for science languishes, suggests that the real reasons for antipathy toward science are that science requires intellectual rigor and conformity to external reality.

STSアプローチとは何か：歴史的、実践的背景

There has been a growing interest in the STS (Science, Technology, and Society) Movement in the United States. The author received a grant from the Ministry of Education in Japan to work with Robert E. Yager at the University of Iowa, which has been a center of STS Movement across the country. He surveyed to clarify the feature of STS Approach based on literature and field survey on the Iowa STS Projects during 1991-1992. A summary of the results is shown below. 1. NSTA took the initiative for overcoming "the Crisis in Science Education in U.S.A." in late 70's .. Therefore, the NST A declared the position statement firstly, "Science/ Technology/ Society: Science Education for the 1980's" in 1982 and secondary, "Science/Technology/Society: A New Effort for Providing Appropriate Science for All" in 1990. 2. The author clarified that STS Approach presents the new paradigm in science education comparing the Golden Age (1955-1974) with the mid-1970's and 1990's in the United States. Therefore, STS Approach will become the new paradigm to meet the crisis in science education in Japan.

Crisis in Science Education Discussed with Officials of the Federation of Economic Organizations

Crisis in Science Education Discussed with Officials of the Federation of Economic Organizations

CESE and the Crisis in Science Education

CESE and the Crisis in Science Education

A perspective on teacher preparation in physics and other sciences: The need for special science courses for teachers

This article proceeds from the premise that one of the major reasons for the perceived crisis in science education is the failure of our colleges and universities to provide the type of preparation that precollege teachers need to teach science effectively. The perspective taken is based on many years of teaching physics and physical science to prospective and practicing teachers at all grade levels. The inadequacy of the present system of preparing teachers is examined and an argument is presented for offering special physics courses for teachers. Experience at the University of Washington provides the basis for a discussion of the type of intellectual objectives and instructional methods that should characterize such courses.

Toward a clearer representation of the crisis in science education

AbstractThe authors' purpose in this study was to compare the integrated science process skill development of a cohort of American youngsters who studied science for several years in an activity‐based, materials‐oriented program to a group of Japanese youth whose science program is also activity based and a group of American youth whose science programs are textbook based and reading oriented. The means and standard deviations from Japanese and American textbook‐based data on eighth graders were available from earlier research. The authors administered an integrated science process skills test to 1,291 eighth graders in a northwest suburban Chicago school district whose activity‐based elementary science program is nationally recognized. Eight hundred twenty‐five students who had begun school in the district by the second grade were used for the comparison. Ninety‐nine percent confidence intervals were calculated about the scale and total score means for all groups. Results show that for all scales and the total score, the confidence intervals of the American activity‐based science group are above and do not overlap the corresponding confidence intervals of the American textbook science group. For three out of five scales and the total score, the confidence intervals of the Japanese group are above and do not overlap the corresponding confidence intervals of the American textbook science group. For two scales the confidence intervals overlap. For four test scales, the confidence intervals of the Japanese and American activity‐based science groups overlap. For one scale and the total score, the Japanese confidence intervals are above and do not overlap the corresponding confidence intervals of the American activity‐based science group. Discussion focuses upon an explanation of the more favorable performance by the Japanese group on the total score and implications of the results for representing more clearly the crisis in science education.

Congress hears science education concerns

Common chords on the crisis in science education were struck last week on opposite sides of Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. At one end, the American Chemical Society made public a white paper in a Congressional briefing; at the other, the Senate held hearings on some of the same issues. At the Congressional briefing, ACS offered some 70 recommendations across all levels—from kindergarten through university and graduate training and continuing education of teachers and scientists. ACS executive director John K Crum, board chairman Ernest L. Eliel, and Society Committee on Education chairman Ronald D. Archer summarized the report's recommendations. Keynoting the briefing, Rep. Doug Walgren (D.-Pa.), chairman of the House Subcommittee on Science, Research & Technology, noted that the government is only a quarter of an inch behind the people. What this country needs is a new level of involvement by everyone. Rep. Sherwood L. Boehlert (R.- N.Y.), also at the briefing, called the ACS ...

Resolving the crisis in science education: Understanding before resolution

Science EducationVolume 71, Issue 1 p. 49-55 Issues & Trend Resolving the crisis in science education: Understanding before resolution Robert E. Yager, Robert E. Yager Science Education Center, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 52242Search for more papers by this authorJohn E. Penick, John E. Penick Science Education Center, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 52242Search for more papers by this author Robert E. Yager, Robert E. Yager Science Education Center, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 52242Search for more papers by this authorJohn E. Penick, John E. Penick Science Education Center, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 52242Search for more papers by this author First published: January 1987 https://doi.org/10.1002/sce.3730710109Citations: 13AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Citing Literature Volume71, Issue1January 1987Pages 49-55 RelatedInformation

Report Details AAAS Response to "Crisis in Science Education"

Report Details AAAS Response to "Crisis in Science Education"

Research interests of secondary science teachers

AbstractIn the past few years, science educators and the nation at large have become increasingly concerned about the “Crisis in Science Education.” An underlying cause of this crisis is the nonuniform quality of instruction delivered by secondary science teachers. One way to improve the quality of teaching in the schools is the application of science education research findings to teaching. Most teachers are unaware of the research findings and/or do not apply them in their classrooms. This study helps determine the areas of research which are of greatest interest to secondary science teachers. Results will be used by NSTA to determine the contents of future volumes of the monograph What Research Says to the Science Teacher. A random sample of 600 secondary science teachers was obtained from the National Registry of NSTA. Teachers were sent a 23 item questionnaire that asked them to rate their interest in each research topic on a five point scale. The questionnaire contained the 12 items prepared by a NARST‐NSTA committee in 1979 and an additional 11 items using the same format. Demographic data collected from the survey included sex, teaching assignment, role in school, type of school, type of community, years of teaching experience, and familiarity with What Research Says. … Data were analyzed using this demographic data as well as according to whether teachers returned the original or a follow‐up questionnaire. Teachers who returned the first questionnaire had basically the same preferences as those who returned the follow‐up questionnaire. Sixty percent of the teachers completed the questionnaire in usable form. Overall results of the study based on both frequency of response and on mean rating indicate that the following five topics are of greatest interest to secondary science teachers: laboratory experiences, motivational techniques, effect on college courses, problem solving, and meaningful learning. Analysis of data according to the subject taught indicated that chemistry and physics teachers are more interested in problem solving than biology teachers, and that chemistry, physics, and earth science teachers are also interested in the sequence of the content. Males and females had the same top five interests but in a different order. The same is true for teachers of grades 7–9 versus grades 10–12. Rural teachers preferences varied substantially from those in other settings and differences were also found for teachers familiar with What Research Says … compared to the rest of the sample. For every classification of teacher, the area of least interest was sex difference research.

Improving science instruction for gifted high school students

Information from a variety of current projects report that there is a crisis in science education. Student performance in science and mathematics continues to slide downward. The present conditions that characterize science education do not lend themselves to developing the personal traits characteristic of creative scientists. A “mentor” type enrichment program addresses such shortcomings by (a) providing first‐hand experience in research laboratories, (b) challenging participants in an experimental research environment, (c) supplementing high school science with actual experiences and (d) enhancing the development of personal traits that characterize creative scientists.

Qualitative research: Data analysis framework generating grounded theory applicable to the crisis in science education

AbstractThe shortage of qualified teachers, and the quality and quantity of the science taught in precollege institutions are two focal issues in today's national crisis in science education. This article delineates aspects of qualitative research having the potential of providing guidance to change agents in designing effective strategies to mitigate the crisis. A discursive approach to qualitative research involving the method of collecting and simultaneously analyzing data known as “grounded theory” is described. Role theory and schools as organizations composed of interactive subsystems are defined as suitable frameworks within which to analyze data.

A Challenge to NABT

Biology teachers need helplots of help-and they need it now. Whether they are high school teachers or college teachers, they seem fated never to catch up. While they are engaged in ministering to the needs of a whole range of students, the very subject they teach is exploding under them. Old yellow notes and lesson plans will not do when one of the greatest revolutions in human history is in progress. Teachers must be abreast of these changes or fail in their professional responsibilities. It is a heavy assignment. Teachers must convey the excitement of science to their students, but to do so they must experience it first. They must convey an appreciation of science as a human activity, what it can do and what it can not. Their students must understand how science is pursued by real flesh-andblood human beings. The students, as citizens, must understand the complex synergism between science as an enterprise and society in general. To meet this challenge, teachers must participate intellectually, even if vicariously, in the explosion of discovery in biology. Teachers must see the scientific discoveries of today and tomorrow in perspective, and in order to do this they must form their opinions and assessments on a solid basis of fact. They must keep abreast of the changing events and synthesize them into a whole. They can not in good conscience leave the synthesis to special interest, oneissue zealots, polemicists, and sensationalists who are delighted to take over. It is not easy. The teachers who began their study of genetics when human beings had 48 chromosomes, when genes were proteins, and bacteria never engaged in sexual intercourse had to learn virtually all the genetics they teach after their formal degree programs ended. Many have done this well and have experienced the thrill of discovery in the doing, but it is an unending responsibility made more difficult by the increasing demands placed upon teachers and the proliferation of discovery with all its attendant social implications. NABT has a special mission to help the conscientious teacher keep up. This may well be NABT's finest reason for being, an endeavor that can make it indispensible to teachers of biology and worthy of the respect of the scientific community. For one thing, the association can enlist the support of active researchers and thinkers at the forefront of our scientific endeavor. The special insights and perspectives of these people are especially needed. It is asking a lot to ask people in hot pursuit of a scientific breakthrough to take time to communicate what they are doing to others, but a healthy scientific enterprise and a healthy educational endeavor require it. Fortunately, some of the busiest and wisest and most prescient are willing to give generously of their energies as a civic responsibility. These people make costly sacrifices of time and effort to help the teachers of today educate the scientists and citizens of tomorrow and we are grateful for their handsome contribution. A special feature of the NABT convention at Purdue this year will be a program of Instant Updates in which leaders in various field of biology will provide what the name impliesinstant update. A special issue of ABT is now being prepared for the fall, bringing word of the discoveries in progress in the fastbreaking field of Genetic Engineering. That issue and others like it signal the intent of NABT and its voice, The American Biology Teacher, to do more than view with alarm what is called the crisis in science education. NABT must accept its role as leader in the effort to make teachers part of the biology at the forefront of discovery. It would be hard to imagine a more important role for the society or one more likely to guarantee the association continued existence in good health.