Secondary Science Teachers Research Articles

Secondary science teachers' conceptualizations and modifications to support equitable participation in a co‐designed computational thinking lesson

AbstractIncreasing access to computational ideas and practices is one important reason to integrate computational thinking (CT) in science classrooms. While integrating CT into science classrooms broadens exposure to computing, it may not be enough to ensure equitable participation in the science classroom. Equitable participation is crucial because providing students with an environment in which they are able to fully engage and participate in science and computing practices empowers students to learn and continue pursuing CT and science. To foreground equitable participation in CT‐integrated curricula, we undertook a research project in which researchers and teachers examined teacher conceptualizations of equitable participation and how teachers design for equitable participation by modifying a lesson that introduces computational modeling in science. The following research questions guided the study: (1) What are teachers' conceptualizations of equitable participation? (2) How do teachers design for equitable participation through co‐design of a CT‐integrated unit? Our findings suggest that teachers conceptualized and designed for equitable participation in the context of a CT‐integrated curriculum across three primary dimensions: accessibility, inclusion, and relevancy. Our contributions to the field of science teaching and learning are twofold: (1) obtaining an initial understanding of how teachers think about and design for equitable participation is crucial in order to support teachers in their pursuit of creating equitable learning experiences for CT and science learners, and (2) our findings show that we can study teacher conceptualizations and their design choices by examining specific modifications to a CT‐integrated science curriculum. Implications are discussed.

Communities of secondary science teachers: a systematic review

ABSTRACT Many parts of the western world are struggling with a teacher shortage, which is particularly severe in some teaching areas including science. Part of a potential solution to this shortage is reducing teacher attrition rates, especially among early career teachers. At the same time, a need has been identified to drive larger numbers of students towards studying science. This creates an environment whereby teachers are required to teach science either out of field, or out of science specialisation. The community in which teachers operate has been identified as critical to both increasing teacher satisfaction and driving effective professional development. At the same time, the emergence of social media provides an avenue for teachers to effectively communicate and collaborate. This systematic review, therefore, aims to summarise the research on communities of in-service secondary science teachers since 2010, corresponding to the significant adoption of social media. It shows that whilst significant research has been done across a range of different community structures, there exists a lack of rigorous distinction between these different styles. There is also a research gap surrounding the use of social media, as well as the use of communities to support out of specialisation science teachers.

“I sit here thinking I can do this”—Developing justice‐centered ambitious science teaching identities in professional learning communities

AbstractExplicitly attending to justice in science teaching and learning is long overdue. Here, we examined the professional teacher identity development of 13 science teachers as they collaborated in networked professional learning communities (PLCs) to implement and revise a culture‐setting unit focused on the science of COVID and engaging in collaborative inquiry cycles to identify and refine justice‐centered ambitious science teaching (JuST) practices in classrooms. These JuST practices are conceptualized as a synthesis of justice‐centered pedagogies and ambitious science teaching. To accomplish our research aims, we drew on qualitative methods, where we relied on transcribed video recordings of 21 PLC meetings and three transcribed end‐of‐year focus group interviews of two PLCs (i.e., 13 secondary science teachers, mostly white) across a year‐long period. As a result of our analyses, we identified how professional learning arranged through PLCs, culture‐setting units, and collaborative inquiries supported professional JuST identity development by, among other affordances, providing space for the critical and emotional work of learning to discuss race, affording teachers strategies for getting to know their students and the assets they bring to classrooms, and recognition and positioning of teachers as professionals capable of identifying or developing, refining, and contributing to knowledge about JuST science teaching and learning. Challenges identified included, among others, identifying how the culture‐setting units could be effectively integrated into existing curriculum maps and the uneven implementation support from administrators. In the end, what is revealed helps better conceptualize how engaging teachers in PLCs around tasks like curriculum implementation and refinement or collaborative inquires support professional JuST identity development and how such experiences can be more carefully negotiated.

Bhutanese Primary Science Teachers’ Epistemic Beliefs of Science

AbstractEpistemic beliefs of science (EBS) are considered to have a strong influence on how science teachers view science itself and carry out science teaching. To this end, Bhutanese primary science teachers, as much as secondary science teachers, are expected to possess sophisticated EBS. While this is one of the aims of the Bhutanese science education system, there is little to no information regarding Bhutanese primary science teachers’ EBS. Hence, this cross-sectional study examined EBS held by primary science teachers from three districts in Bhutan. One hundred and ninety-five (N = 195) primary science teachers took part in the study using a total population sampling design. Data collected using the Epistemic Beliefs of Science Questionnaire (EBSQ) were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistical methods. Findings revealed that Bhutanese primary science teachers from three districts in Bhutan held naive EBS in several aspects of source, certainty, development, and justification dimensions of scientific knowledge. The chi-square test of independence (χ2) revealed that there were no significant relationships between Bhutanese primary science teachers’ EBS and their teaching background (p > .05). The one-way analysis of variance (one-way ANOVA), while showed significant differences in certainty dimension, revealed that were no significant differences among Bhutanese primary science teachers’ EBS in other dimensions based on their academic qualifications (p > .05). The implications of research findings to the Ministry of Education, science curriculum documents, and teacher preparation are discussed.

Making sense of big questions that require multiple subjects: preliminary theorisation of an integrative philosophy of knowledge and empirical indications of a lack of subject connection within school curricula

AbstractThis paper provides theorisation about a novel concept for education: an integrative philosophy of knowledge (IPK). This is proposed for school curricula to relate multiple subjects to big questions of personal and existential importance. Critical contemporary issues such as climate change education require multiple subject contributions but there is little clarity in the English education guidance on this drawing together, beyond the encouragement to do so in priority areas. Leading British thinkers have engaged the idea of the unity of knowledge, not without difficulty and criticism. The paper identifies reasons for a practical approach to consilience in school curricula. In addition to preliminary theorisation, in methodological ‘harmony’, this paper adds tentative empirical findings from a related research project that provides quantitative indications that such multi-subject connection is likely not happening. The findings are not definitive, but the perceptions of three groups of beginning and experienced teachers (secondary Religious Education (RE), secondary science and primary teachers) indicate that school curricula do not reflect an integrative approach to climate change education, and sex and relationships education, despite policy priority. A significant national survey could not detect many signs of connection. The paper speculates that RE could have a key epistemic role for the curriculum as a whole in this regard.

Assessing Implementation of Strengthening Mathematics and Science in Secondary Education (SMASSE): In the Case of Selected Secondary School of Kellem Wollega Zone, Oromia Regional State, Ethiopia

This study aimed to identify the methods teachers use to integrate science and mathematics. These factors affect the implementation of integrated science and mathematics education and students' attitudes toward this integration in secondary schools in the Kellem Wollega zone of Ethiopia. Both open-ended and closed-ended questionnaires, along with structured interviews, were designed for the selected sample population. This targeted population was chosen from five different sites within the zone, comprising a total of 506 samples, of which 392 were students and 114 were teachers and school principals. The study found that teachers integrate science and mathematics using the PDSI approach, the ASEI approach, a student-centered approach, and generally the SMASSE approach. They employ various strategies, including assigning projects, conducting practical work with students, providing assignments and worksheets, and fostering team spirit among students. Several factors hindering the implementation of SMASSE in the study area were identified, including the teacher-student ratio, the disproportion between class size and the number of students, students' attitudes toward science and mathematics, a lack of laboratory facilities and equipment, an absence of a planned schedule, insufficient access to computers, inadequate assessment practices, a lack of sufficient time to complete the curriculum, and an inadequate quality assurance system. On the other hand, students exhibited a negative attitude toward the integration of science and mathematics education, which was influenced by factors such as their perceptions of mathematics, student-teacher interactions, feedback from teachers, teaching methods, course content, teachers' competencies, school management, and limited student participation in the classroom.

Preparing preservice secondary science teachers to work with multilingual learners’ ideas: A case study of a community of practice using the TeachLivE™ virtual classroom

In this case study, we investigated how interdisciplinary teacher educators collaborated as a Community of Practice (CoP; n = 3) to support secondary science PSTs (n = 7) learning how to work with multilingual learners’ science ideas using a tri-focal instructional approach in the simulated classroom, TeachLivE™. Data sources included audio/visual recordings of TeachLivE™ sessions and a PST reflection survey. Findings showed the PSTs need continued support to implement the tri-focal approach and received collaborative feedback from the CoP. The PSTs appreciated the authentic context interacting with multilingual learners and the coaching sessions in TeachLivE™. Implications for future research and TeachLivE™ practices are discussed.

Mapping Epistemic Orientation and Rigor of Classroom Instruction in Secondary Science Classrooms During Long-Term Professional Development

ABSTRACT As part of a larger effort to understand the impact of professional development (PD) on teachers’ thinking and practice, this research explores changes in epistemic orientation (and associated practices) of one cohort of secondary science teachers as they were involved in a two-year longitudinal PD focused on supporting students in argumentation. Through a mixed methods approach (including survey data, teacher interviews, and classroom observations), we sought to document shifts in science teachers’ beliefs and classroom practices. The Epistemic Orientation toward Teaching Science surveys were administered at three-time points to measure teachers’ epistemic orientation. To measure classroom practices, we recorded teachers’ enactments of activities designed during the PD. The instructional rigor of their classroom practices was described using the Instructional Quality Assessment Science Observation Rubrics (IQA-SOR) across four stages of a task: task potential, task launch, task implementation, and student discussion at the task’s close. Findings suggest that changes in epistemic orientation occurred for teachers who engaged in 2 years of PD, and these beliefs were reflected in the rigor of their instructional practices. Further, our findings suggest that 1 year of professional development was insufficient to engender such changes in teachers’ epistemic orientation or instructional practices.

Interest in science and mathematics teaching among non-science/mathematics initial teacher education candidates

ABSTRACT Many countries are experiencing teacher shortages, with particularly long-standing issues in attraction and retention in secondary science and mathematics. Policy initiatives often focus on science and mathematics undergraduates, with the aim of encouraging them to consider teaching by offering scholarships into teacher education or fast-tracking into employment permanency. However, those who have already chosen to teach in non-science and mathematics teaching specialisations have already shown their interest in teaching and form a pool of candidates that may potentially be recruited into science and mathematics teaching pathways. While these non-science and mathematics teacher candidates could have the capacity to address in part longstanding science and mathematics teacher shortages, there is a lack of research examining their motivations from the perspective of initiatives that may attract them into science and mathematics teaching, and little that examines their science and mathematics backgrounds. We sought to address these gaps by surveying 349 initial teacher education (ITE) students from four Australian universities, examining their career motivations, interest in science and mathematics teaching, and science and mathematics backgrounds. We explored perceived barriers to secondary science and mathematics teaching, and responses to potential policy initiatives. We found that 61% of non-science/mathematics ITE candidates indicated high interest in secondary science or mathematics pathways. Policy options such as support for science and mathematics retraining after several years of teaching in their current subject area or level, were selected as likely to support this choice. Our results suggest considerable capacity for policymakers and tertiary institutions to design initiatives that may attract non-science/mathematics ITE candidates into science and mathematics teaching.

Correlation Between Psychological and Contextual Characteristics Affecting Chemistry Achievement in Senior Secondary Science Education in Sri Lanka

This quantitative study explores the correlation between psychological and contextual characteristics and student achievement in chemistry within senior secondary schools in Sri Lanka. The research addresses the persistent low performance in chemistry, a critical subject within the science curriculum, by examining various influencing factors. The study utilized a cluster random sampling method, selecting 302 students and 114 teachers from the Kegalle Education Zone. A pilot test was conducted to refine the instruments, followed by confirmatory factor analysis and exploratory data analysis to ensure reliability and validity. The psychological factors investigated include teachers' teaching styles, students' perceptions of chemistry, subject satisfaction, and attitudes toward chemistry. Contextual factors encompass school type and gender. Data collection involved standardized instruments and a structured chemistry examination, with analysis performed using SPSS and Amos software. The findings reveal significant positive correlations between students' perceptions, satisfaction, attitudes towards chemistry, and their academic achievement. Additionally, the study highlights differences in achievement based on school type and gender, emphasizing the importance of tailored educational strategies. The results underscore the necessity for targeted interventions and policy reforms to enhance chemistry education in Sri Lanka. These insights aim to inform educators and policymakers, fostering improved educational outcomes in the region.

Preservice Secondary Science Teachers’ Nature of Science Views, Rationales, and Teaching During a NOS Course Guided by RFN: a Multiple Case Study

Preservice Secondary Science Teachers’ Nature of Science Views, Rationales, and Teaching During a NOS Course Guided by RFN: a Multiple Case Study

Unearthing the coloniality of neoliberalised curricular discourses to promote a public orientation towards secondary science education

ABSTRACT Considering the challenges facing curricula in science education forces a reckoning with neoliberalism and its transmogrification of education, generally. Science, which has contributed significantly to humanity, is exalted in neoliberal secular discourse and forms a key pillar of social policy governance. However, the progress and innovation attributed to scientific education, within the broader STEM agenda, must be read against the rise in societal inequalities wrought by far-right hostilities and the general erosion of democratic principles in the milieu of neoliberal policy making. This is especially prescient for science curricula given the widespread crystallisation of scientism in society and its role in framing anti-equality arguments. This must also be situated against the broad resistance movements that have arisen, demonstrating the resilience and promise from alternative perspectives such as decoloniality. While decolonial theory reckons with the epistemological violence of science, these perspectives remain underdiscussed in STEM fields. This is necessary for contemporary science curricula given the broader neoliberal erosions of public education that champion instrumentalism and mass measurement in the name of capitalism. This forms the impetus for this conceptual article which presents a decolonial consideration of recent curricular discourses in science.

Empowering professional learning communities of secondary science teachers to uncover and address their students’ misconceptions via research-oriented practices

The Partnership for the Development and Success of Science Education in Secondary Schools project seeks to improve science education by fostering a dynamic environment for professional development and teacher-led inquiry within professional learning communities (PLCs). Addressing the long-standing problem of outdated pedagogical approaches, the initiative encourages secondary science teachers to actively engage in action research to identify and/or address student misconceptions of scientific concepts. Through collaboration with professional development leaders and university experts, teachers are empowered to implement and refine evidence-based instructional strategies and cultivate a culture of ongoing professional growth and reflective practice. The partnership emphasizes the importance of bridging the gap between educational research and classroom practice to improve the quality and effectiveness of science education. The project aims to bring about a positive change in teachers’ instructional practices and reflections and an increased alignment with contemporary educational standards and evidence-based practices.

Preservice secondary science and mathematics teachers' readiness to teach multilingual learners: An investigation across four teacher education programs

AbstractIn this mixed methods study, we analyzed survey and interview data from 100 preservice secondary science and mathematics teachers enrolled in four teacher education programs (TEPs) to investigate their readiness to teach multilingual learners. We defined readiness as preservice teachers' sense of preparedness to teach multilingual learners and their understanding of effective multilingual learner instruction. We examined participants' self‐reported levels of preparedness, their understanding of effective multilingual learner instruction, and sources contributing to and/or limiting their readiness. We found that participants' readiness to teach multilingual learners significantly increased between the beginning and end of their TEPs. We also found that participants' understanding of effective multilingual learner instruction was significantly associated with a higher sense of preparedness. Furthermore, we found that participants enrolled in graduate TEPs reported higher levels of preparedness than participants enrolled in an undergraduate TEP. Likewise, participants whose first language was other than or in addition to English reported higher levels of preparedness. Finally, participants identified field placement experiences, personal and professional background, and coursework as factors contributing to their readiness to teach multilingual learners. We close with recommendations for teacher educators intent on helping preservice teachers better understand and implement effective instruction for multilingual learners.

Preparing new secondary science teachers in the context of sustainable development goals: green and sustainable chemistry

Abstract School science teachers have an important role to play in preparing young people for a sustainable future. Yet their teaching is usually constrained by national school curricula, which may be slow to change to address the issues of sustainable development. Initial teacher education should anticipate the required changes in school curricula so that newly qualified teachers are better equipped to implement the changes when they happen. This paper is based upon the situation prevailing in South Africa, a country with some of the best and some of the worst schools in sub-Saharan Africa. It suggests ways that the BEd course for physical science education student teachers can be developed toward education for sustainable development, while accepting the constraints of the national curriculum, which has become the defining structure of the BEd.

ENHANCING SCIENCE EDUCATION FOR SECONDARY STUDENTS THROUGH THE INTEGRATION OF MACHINE INTELLIGENCE: DEVELOPMENT AND EVALUATION OF INNOVATIVE LEARNING TOOLS"

The integration of machine intelligence (MI) in education is transforming traditional pedagogies, offering innovative tools that can significantly enhance science education for secondary students. This conceptual paper explores the development and evaluation of MI-driven learning tools designed to improve student engagement, comprehension, and academic outcomes in science education. By examining the theoretical foundations of MI in education, reviewing current applications, and discussing the challenges and opportunities associated with this integration, the paper provides a comprehensive analysis of how machine intelligence can be harnessed to create more effective and personalized learning experiences. The paper concludes with recommendations for educators, policymakers, and researchers to support the successful implementation and assessment of MI in secondary science education.

Technological, Pedagogical and Content Knowledge of Secondary Science Teachers in Santa Maria, Ilocos Sur

Technological, Pedagogical and Content Knowledge of Secondary Science Teachers in Santa Maria, Ilocos Sur

Science curriculum-making for the Anthropocene: perspectives and possibilities

ABSTRACT This paper illuminates how science curriculum-making can be reinvigorated to address urgent local and global socioscientific issues that centres place as an interconnected part of larger socio-ecological and socio-technical systems. Given how industrial and capitalistic extractive practices have pushed the planet beyond its complex life-sustaining limits, we draw on theoretical perspectives that recognise schools as complex systems, nested within local, regional, and global social-ecological-technological systems. Science curriculum-making in these systems prompts dialogue regarding knowledge and competencies required to address planetary sustainability, as well as ontological questions connected to systems, relations, and responsibility. Consequently, schools are important places for curriculum enactment practices. Furthermore, teachers, students, administrators, and school community members are enmeshed with local ecologies that are constituted in the cultural, material, and social arrangements found in or brought to a school and its local community. In our work, we draw on a curriculum commonplaces perspective to investigate curriculum-making practices. Specifically, we use empirical data from two cases of elementary and secondary science teachers developing and enacting curriculum and adopt a philosophical-empirical deductive approach illustrative of how to apply complexity theory, systems thinking, and associated ontological and epistemological views to practical reasoning of science curriculum-making for schools.

Self-Perceived Assessment Skills and Professional Learning Priorities of Filipino Secondary Science Teachers in Flexible Instruction Delivery

As a context-dependent process, the role of assessment in the practice of flexible instruction delivery during the onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic paved the way to rethink teachers’ assessment practices that respond to the demands of the context. This further forced teachers to capacitate themselves with the new platforms for assessing students’ learning and engagement. This descriptive study aimed to delineate Junior High School science teachers’ perceived assessment skills and professional learning priorities and preferences in the areas of assessment in flexible instruction delivery. Results uncovered that they generally perceived themselves as proficient in all the surveyed assessment skills and responsibilities, having the foundation of assessment dealing with the traditional nature of assessment strategies and their purposes, as the area in which they are more skilled. Regarding professional learning priorities on assessment, they deduced moderate interest in integrating and communicating assessment practices and aligning current assessment theories, principles, and practices. This further implies that they pay interest not only in learning the contemporary approaches to assessment but still the traditional tasks and responsibilities associated with it. In the delivery of professional learning activities, professional development activities in person are still the most preferred mode.

Nature of science and domain-specificity: investigating the coverage of nature of science in physics, chemistry and biology curricula across grade levels

ABSTRACT The paper investigates the coverage of nature of science (NOS) in different science subject curricula to understand how they emphasise various aspects of NOS across grade levels in secondary science education. Although various science curriculum analyses exist in the literature, there is a paucity of investigations that have combined the elements of domain-specificity and learning progression in relation to NOS curriculum content. Furthermore, a holistic and inclusive account of NOS is used to examine the cognitive, epistemic, social and institutional aspects of NOS. Physics, chemistry and biology high school curricula from Turkey are investigated. Each subject curriculum is analysed and compared using an analytical framework guided by the Family Resemblance Approach. Mixed methods approaches are used to summarise the quantitative and qualitative results. Findings suggest an overemphasis on the cognitive-epistemic aspects of NOS, considerable variation across science subject areas and non-uniform progression of NOS themes across grade levels. Analysis of curricula incorporating the domain-specific and learning progression elements of NOS is likely to enhance understanding of how to design robust curricula in different science subjects and to improve the teaching and learning of NOS. Implications for curriculum reform are discussed.