Shortage Of Science Teachers Research Articles

Choosing (not) to be a chemistry teacher: Students’ negotiations of science identities at a research-intensive university

This paper explores how the culture within a Danish university study programme affects students’ aspirations of becoming a high school chemistry teacher. We draw on ethnographic fieldwork and qualitative interviews to describe and analyse the culture of the programme. In the analysis we foreground the case of two students to understand their identity negotiations and changes in their teacher aspirations over time. By combining a ‘domains-of-power framework’ with the concept of ‘science identity’, we show how everyday practices formed a culture of power that positioned research in the centre and teaching as a less attractive career path. By unfolding the subtle mechanisms that together form a culture of power, which works both to include and exclude, we show the ways in which the two student’s aspirations for becoming high school chemistry teachers somewhat diminished over time. The study concludes that negotiating a science identity at a research-intensive university programme, makes it almost impossible to develop and keep an aspiration for becoming a high school teacher. To address the current and future shortage of science teachers across Europe, our findings underline the need for a more inclusive culture at the university to support science students’ diverse aspirations.

Role of Educational Planning in Ensuring Quality Education of Morogoro Municipality in Tanzania

This study aimed at probing the role of educational planning in ensuring quality education of Morogoro Municipality in Tanzania. Its specific objectives were to: highlight educational planning approaches; find out the contribution(s) of educational planning to quality education and to determine the challenges facing educational planning in ensuring quality education. Adams’ interactive and rational models of educational planning served as a frame of reference for this study. The study adopted the survey research design. Data collection instruments consisted of questionnaires, interview and document review. Quantitative data was analyzed through SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) while qualitative data was subjected to content analysis for discussion. The study consisted of 40 participants for quantitative data and 6 participants for qualitative data. Whereas academic masters/mistresses and head teachers were purposively selected, teachers were randomly sampled. The findings of this study, unveiled that Tanzania employs the Social Demand Approach (SDA) of educational planning. Quality education indicators were presented as evidence of the role played by educational planning in ensuring quality. It was found that form IV students’ academic performance significantly improved as evidenced by NECTA (National Examinations Council of Tanzania) results from 2016 to 2020. Other quality indicators reported were, teachers’ qualifications, student-teacher ratios, infrastructure, teaching and learning materials and conducive learning environment. Despite academic improvement indicating better quality of education there were still some challenges to quality-oriented educational planning. The challenges highlighted were inadequate funding, insufficient laboratory equipment, low salaries, political interventions, parental indifference and shortage of science teachers. Planners are therefore urged to deconstruct and reconstruct educational planning so as to facilitate constructive resolutions to these challenges at grassroots level. In addition to allocation of educational funds to schools accordingly, increased involvement of teachers in educational planning is recommended. Prospective research on participatory educational planning for holistic quality education is encouraged.

An Investigation into the Challenges Facing Administration of STEM Education in Gwagwalada Universal Basic Education Junior Secondary Schools in FCT, Nigeria

This study aimed to investigate the challenges facing the administration of STEM Education in Gwgwalada junior secondary schools of FCT, Nigeria. The study employed a descriptive survey design. The instruments used for data collection were questionnaires titled:' Challenges facing Administration of STEM Education Questionnaire” (CFASEQ).The sample for the study comprised of 200 teachers. A simple random sampling method was used to select the sample. One hypothesis and three research instruments were used for the study. Test and retest were employed to determine the reliability of the instrument. Simple percentages were employed to analyze the data collected and a chi-square test was used to test the hypothesis. The study revealed that challenges are facing the administrations of STEM Education in Gwagwalada junior secondary schools and these challenges include; inadequate infrastructural facilities, shortage of science teachers, lack of instructional materials, lack of motivation, inadequate fund, poor supervision, high population, poor capacity development program for science teachers and negative attitude of students towards STEM education. The result also revealed that100% of the respondents agreed that the implications of the challenge facing the administration of STEM Education are responsible for poor implementation of STEM education in Gwagwalada junior secondary schools of FCT, Nigeria. From the finding, it was recommended that the government increase the funding of education and give more priority to STEM Education.

Recruitment of Science and Mathematics Teachers: Review of Literature and Analysis of Findings From Three Years Efforts of A Recruitment

Across the US, many school districts are finding increasing difficulties to fill the ranks of their science and mathematics teaching staff with highly qualified teachers. To alleviate the problem, several national policies, such as the No Child Left Behind Act and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, have been enacted to improve the quality of education while reducing teacher shortages. Consequently, many agencies, such as the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Dept. of Education, and the U.S. Dept. of Energy, to name a few, have awarded large grants to universities and other organizations to implement math and science teacher recruitment programs and prepare them to deliver high quality instruction. These programs vary in terms of their target populations (high school students, undergraduates, graduates, or career changers), the type and frequency of the early teaching experience provided, the academic and financial support systems, and the public relations campaigns regarding the rewarding aspects of becoming a science or mathematics teacher. Given the urgency of the national math and science teacher shortage and the high cost of these programs, examining their impact is critical. In this paper, we present findings from three years efforts of a science and mathematics teachers recruitment program to start mapping the landscape of teacher recruitment. Our discussion and implications suggest that… program’s focus was on recruiting students at all career levels (direct from high school, transfer from community college, change of major, and career changers).

Preparing Science Undergraduates for a Teaching Career: Sources of Their Teacher Self-Efficacy

One of the causes of the science teacher shortage is the low enrollment in science teacher education. In the Netherlands, science undergraduates can enroll in a half-year teaching course that leads to a teacher qualification for junior secondary education. The goal is that these undergraduates continue in teacher education to obtain a full qualification. The present study investigated how self-efficacy was related to continuing in teacher education, and to commitment, perceived workload, and stress. Moreover, we investigated how mastery experiences, vicarious experiences, social persuasions, and emotional states influenced self-efficacy. Findings based on 69 science undergraduates showed that self-efficacy was positively related to commitment and negatively to workload and stress, but unrelated to continuing in teacher education. Mastery experiences and positive emotional states explained variance in self-efficacy. We call for more research that investigates all sources of self-efficacy and for more attention to preservice teachers’ emotional states in research and practice.

Factors Shaping the Agency of Beginning Science Teachers Working in High-Poverty Schools

ABSTRACTThe national shortage of science teachers and the substantial teacher turnover rate in high-poverty schools are outcomes of multiple issues. Using a framework built on 2 constructs—teacher agency (typically examined in experienced rather than beginning teachers) and professional identity—we investigate how agency and identity interact and might be used to explain teachers’ perceptions of and responses tao challenges. We present a case study of 3 secondary science teachers committed to teaching in high-needs contexts and show that in spite of challenges they faced regularly, these individuals worked to achieve the goals associated with their primary values. On the basis of our analysis, we propose that teacher agency establishes the foundation for the retention of teachers in the profession, especially those whose careers are in particularly challenging contexts.

Symposium 1: Challenges in science education and popularization of Science

Science education and popularization of science are important elements for social inclusion. The Brazil exhibits strong inequalities regarding the distribution of wealth, access to cultural assets and appropriation of scientific and technological knowledge. Each Brazilian should have the opportunity to acquire a basic knowledge of science and its operation that allow them to understand their environment and expand their professional opportunities. However, the overall performance of Brazilian students in science and math is bad. The basic science education has, most often, few resources and is discouraging, with little appreciation of experimentation, interdisciplinarity and creativity. Beside the shortage of science teachers, especially teachers with good formation, predominate poor wage and working conditions, and deficiencies in instructional materials and laboratories. If there was a significant expansion in access to basic education, the challenge remains to improve their quality. According to the last National Conference of STI, there is need of a profound educational reform at all levels, in particular with regard to science education. Already, the popularization of science can be an important tool for the construction of scientific culture and refinement of the formal teaching instrument. However, we still lack a comprehensive and adequate public policy to her intended. Clearly, in recent decades, an increase in scientific publication occurred: creating science centers and museums; greater media presence; use of the internet and social networks; outreach events, such as the National Week of CT. But the scenario is shown still fragile and limited to broad swathes of Brazilians without access to scientific education and qualified information on CT. In this presentation, from a general diagnosis of the situation, some of the main challenges related to education and popularization of science in the country will address herself.

Science teacher shortage and the moonlighting culture: The pathology of the teacher labour market in Uganda

The Ugandan Government promotes the rapid expansion of secondary education and requires an emphasis on mathematics and science subjects at that level, but has a “market” approach to the recruitment of teachers. This study uses both national and local evidence to demonstrate that, not only are the teachers of these subjects too few for the policies to be effective, but many of them are employed in more than one school, and some in other work. This “moonlighting” trend, which contributes to problems of poor service, is seen as part of a questionable tendency to commercialise teaching. Policy changes and practical steps are suggested in order to regulate and reduce moonlighting.

Science Student Teachers’ Challenges and Coping Strategies in an Open and Distance Learning Environment in Zimbabwe

A Zimbabwean university recently introduced a Virtual and OpenDistance Learning (VODL) programme to train science teachers to deal with the critical shortage of science teachers in one province. Thirty percent of the students withdrew from the programme within the first year. The study sought to determine the students’ coping strategies for challenges experienced by the seventy percent who remained in the programme. Questionnaires and focus group discussions were used to collect information from a random sample of 98 students. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics while responses from the focus group discussions and open-ended questions were manually coded, interpreted and merged into themes. Results indicated that students faced financial problems, inadequate resources and overwhelming material intended to be covered in a relatively short period of time. Though the majority of the students have a commitment to attain a professional teaching qualification, a significant number have not developed effective coping strategies. To reduce the attrition rate of the programme, the institution needs to develop a robust learner support system, invest in training lecturers in ODL methodologies and intensify involvement of the Ministry of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture in the programme.Keywords: ODL; Teacher training; Science education.

Rethinking Recruitment: The Comprehensive and Strategic Recruitment of Secondary Science Teachers

The shortage of science teachers has spurred a discussion about their retention and recruitment. While discussion about retaining science teachers has increased dramatically in just the last few years, science teacher educators have not attended to the recruitment of science teachers with the same tenacity. This paper is our effort to initiate this discussion and to focus on secondary science teachers. We begin by suggesting why recruitment is important and explore related research. We then suggest a comprehensive and strategic orientation towards recruitment that serves as a mechanism to examine current practices in the field. In presenting this position paper, we hope that science teacher educators will contemplate their own recruitment practices and begin discussing the recruitment process more openly with one another.

AERA Presents Richard Ingersoll’s Research on Math and Science Teacher Shortage at CNSF Exhibit on Capitol Hill

AERA Presents Richard Ingersoll’s Research on Math and Science Teacher Shortage at CNSF Exhibit on Capitol Hill

Blogging to Improve Instruction in Differentiated Science Classrooms

THERE IS a shortage of science teachers in the U.S. (1) That is a problem because this country's future could depend on our expertise in science and technology. Fortunately, while there is no magic wand to increase the number of qualified science teachers, there is a way to extend the instructional impact of the teachers we have. And the advantage of this method is that it uses a technology that is popular among students and allows teachers to differentiate their instruction for stuents with diverse needs. Widely available software now makes it easy for teachers to establish class blogs. A blog is a website that contains text, audio, and video postings on a particular subject. In addition, the popularity of such software as iTunes now makes it possible for students to access high-quality instruction from class blogs long after they leave their science classes. While all students may not have Internet connections at home, students can access and download blog files at the community library or in school computer labs or media centers during study periods, after school, and during tutorials. SCIENCE INSTRUCTION IN DIFFERENTIATED CLASSROOMS When thinking about the potential of blogs to increase effective instructional time, it's worthwhile to first consider how science teachers provide high-quality, differentiated science instruction for all students in the classroom. For example, consider Ms. Daniels, a (composite) seventh-grade life science teacher, and three of her students. Ms. Daniels has a master's degree in science education and has been teaching life science for eight years. She stays current in her field and has participated in teacher development projects through the National Science Foundation. Over the past three years she has worked to differentiate instruction for the diverse students she teaches. Ms. Daniels teaches English-language learners (ELL students), students with individualized education programs, and gifted and talented students in her heterogeneous, mainstream science classes of 20 to 24 students. She differentiates instruction to help all students learn high-level science content and develop the academic language skills necessary to effectively communicate science concepts. She builds units and lessons around the enduring (2) that she and her colleagues have established for seventh-grade life science. She explains, Helping students focus on the essential questions provides context for learning and keeps students focused. It also allows students to demonstrate their level of understanding in various ways. Today, Ms. Daniels is teaching about mollusks. Ana, an ELL student who has been in the U.S. for three years; Robert, who reads at a fifth-grade level; and Taylor, who has been identified as gifted and talented, listen as Ms. Daniels describes the characteristics of mollusks and uses PowerPoint slides to display detailed photos of clams and other bivalves. Ms. Daniels speaks clearly as she points to illustrations and related vocabulary. The students take notes in their daily science journals. Every other week, Ms. Daniels holds individual journal conferences that engage students in academic discussions about their work. She wants students to understand that scientists do not work alone. Students learn to discuss concepts using scientific terms and expressions. In these conferences, Ana uses journal notes to practice the language of science. The conferences allow Robert to verbally express understandings he cannot make clear in writing. And they give Taylor the chance to discuss the links on the class blog that allow her to access more advanced content. At the beginning of each school year, Ms. Daniels conducts several lessons focusing on text structure. She uses overheads of pages from the science text to demonstrate to the students where and how they can find key concepts, new vocabulary, and important explanations. …

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

Where can we find future K-12 science and math teachers? a search by academic year, discipline, and academic performance level

Responding to the increasing math and science teacher shortage in the United States, this study intended to determine which science, engineering, and math (SEM) majors during which years in their undergraduate education and from which academic performance levels are most interested in K-12 teaching. Results may aid policymakers and practitioners in making most effective use of this traditional undergraduate candidate pool when designing K-12 science and math teacher recruitment programs. A survey of SEM majors from two research-oriented, urban universities is used to assess participants' interest in K-12 teaching both compared to other career choices and in isolation. Results indicate that the more successful targets for K-12 teacher recruitment include (1) SEM undergraduates in their junior and senior years independent of SEM major, (2) SEM undergraduates with mid-academic performance levels independent of SEM major and academic year, and (3) math majors followed by natural science majors and, as least promising targets, engineering majors. Results remain independent from gender and ethnicity variables. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Sci Ed89:980–1006, 2005

Science literacy for the twenty-first century

This outstanding collection of essays is authored by eminent scientists and science educators, including Bruce Alberts, Howard Gardner, Margaret Geller, Stephen Jay Gould, George A. Keyworth, Lawrence M. Krauss, Leon Lederman, Sheila Tobias, and James Trefil. It provides suggestions for enhancing science education in the United States and improving the standards of scientific literacy throughout the world. If current trends continue, in the 21st century, new scientific information will probably outpace the level of science education of most of the world's citizens. Nonetheless, all citizens in this increasingly interdependent global community will be called on to face many daunting questions that this knowledge will raise, ranging from the sustainability of our global environment to new moral dilemmas created by such technologies as cloning and recombinant gene therapy. As the world leader in science and technology, the United States, now more than ever, must raise the level of scientific literacy among its citizens to ensure that wise and responsible decisions about the uses and possible misuses of science are made. Unfortunately, our educational system is now suffering from a shortage of science teachers, and many of those already teaching science need to be better qualified. Furthermore, our science curriculum must be designed to teach our children to be conversant with and to think critically about the complex scientific issues they will face as adults. Finally, our high schools need to be in a position to offer all students a world-class science foundation, which prepares them to pursue scientific training at the university level if they so choose.

Science Teacher Supply in the United States

The purpose of this study was to describe the supply and potential shortages of science teachers in the United States. Ninety‐six percent of the State Science Consultants of the 50 State Boards of Education responded to a 1992 survey to assess the supply of science teachers. This survey was modeled after Howe and Gerlovich's 1982 study to provide an assessment of changes in science teacher supply over the last 10 years. Although there were improvements in the supply of science teachers, shortages were reported in all science subjects and were particularly critical in physics, chemistry, and earth science. In addition to providing a needed update on science teacher supply, this study analyzed 45 previous studies of science teacher supply and found convincing evidence to support the hypothesis that there is a persistent but fluctuating long term shortage of science teachers. This shortage is attributed to competition with business and industry. To alleviate critical shortages of science teachers, it is recommended that salaries be raised to be more competitive with industry and a national database be established to facilitate monitoring the supply of science teachers.

Referebces

Referebces

Meeting the shortage of science teachers: an innovation reviewed

Meeting the shortage of science teachers: an innovation reviewed

Science teacher shortage: Fact or fiction?

(1991). Science teacher shortage: Fact or fiction? Journal of Science Teacher Education: Vol. 2, No. 2, pp. 48-52.

Gender effects for student perception of the classroom psychosocial environment

AbstractA future shortage of science teachers has been predicted, and since women are presently underrepresented in the sciences, they are a good potential source for future science teachers. Unfortunately women appear to become less interested in science as they continue in school. Because the classroom psychosocial environment has been shown to be related to learning outcomes, it may contribute to women's lack of interest in sciences. This study compared the classroom environments perceived by fourth grade, seventh grade and high school boys and girls in classes taught by males and females to determine if any perceptual differences existed. The three, two factor MANOVAS (teacher gender by student gender) showed no differences for fourth grade students, one for seventh grade students and three for high school students. The seventh grade boys and girls perceived classes taught by females as having more friction than classes taught by males and high school boys and girls perceived classes taught by females as being more difficult than classes taught by males. Further, for the high school students it appears that classes are perceived more favorably when the opposite genders are combined. These perceptual differences combined with role modeling may contribute to the lack of women in science. More research is necessary to determine causal relationships.