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Descriptors:
Learning Disabilities; Science Instruction; Academic Standards; State Standards; Science Tests; Language Arts; Scientific Concepts; Science Teachers; Secondary School Students; Secondary School Teachers

Abstract:
The Common Core Science Standards represent a new effort to increase science learning for all students. These standards include a focus on English and language arts aspects of science learning, and three dimensions of science standards, including practices of science, crosscutting concepts of science, and disciplinary core ideas in the various subject areas. Many of these issues bring important implications for students with learning disabilities, which we discuss in turn. With appropriate supports and applications, students with learning disabilities can potentially benefit greatly from these new standards. However, the demands of these standards may require a higher level of support than those commonly available for many students with learning disabilities. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Team Teaching; Science Teachers; Secondary School Science; Physics; Teacher Leadership; Power Structure; Interprofessional Relationship; Interaction; Semiotics; Faculty Development; Curriculum Development; Group Dynamics

Abstract:
This article interrogates the "soft power" of teacher teamwork by probing the ways in which authority conditions the appropriation of institutional motives through collective meaning making. The study analyzes the interaction of a teacher-leader and a science teacher team across two settings of professional development organized to promote curricular reform in their U.S. secondary school. The premise of the analysis draws on frameworks from cultural-historical theories, sociological perspectives, and social semiotics to view authority as the outcome of relations of power and control. The analysis reveals how the negotiation of legitimacy in interaction functions to open up or close down possibilities for acquiring motives appropriate to subject matter, teaching, and student learning in teachers' professional practice. The article makes a novel contribution to post-Vygotskian theoretical development in its presentation of authority as an attribute of the dialectical relationship of person and society in the production of institutionalized objects. (Contains 2 tables, 4 excerpts, and 5 footnotes.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Semantics; Classroom Communication; Discourse Analysis; Teacher Education; Intervention; Foreign Countries; Linguistic Theory; Metalinguistics; Biology; Science Teachers; Secondary School Teachers; Teaching Methods; Cooperation

Abstract:
This paper addresses how teachers can be trained to enable cumulative knowledge-building. It focuses on the final intervention stage of the "Disciplinarity, Knowledge and Schooling" ("DISKS") project at the University of Sydney. In this special issue, Maton identifies "semantic waves" as a crucial characteristic of teaching for cumulative knowledge-building; and Martin explores a "power trio" of intertwining linguistic resources which contribute to the creation of these waves. This paper draws on these complementary theoretical frameworks from Legitimation Code Theory and Systemic Functional Linguistics to explore their implications for teacher training. Specifically, it links one Year 11 Biology teacher's experience of new metalanguage and explicit pedagogy, in teacher training, to first attempts at classroom Joint Construction, a form of collaborative text creation. This paper then raises important issues regarding collaborations concerned with classroom interaction and knowledge-building practices. (Contains 4 tables and 8 figures.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Physics; Foreign Countries; Science Teachers; Scores; Textbooks; Undergraduate Students; Information Technology; Technology Integration; Cognitive Ability; Vocabulary Development; English for Special Purposes; Multimedia Instruction; Scientific Concepts; Recall (Psychology); Second Language Learning; Second Language Instruction

Abstract:
This study investigates whether the integration of ICT in education can facilitate teaching and learning. An example of such integration is computer assisted language learning (CALL) of English technical vocabulary by undergraduate physics students in Rwanda. The study draws on theories of cognitive load and multimedia learning to explore learning in a one-computer classroom in an environment where textbooks and multiple computers are not available. Two groups of students attended a 4-week English-language technical vocabulary course (eight three-hour sessions) taught by two ESP trained science teachers. One group (n = 13) was taught using computer-mediated multimedia to present technical vocabulary on-screen. The other group (n = 19) received blackboard presentations employing traditional methods to help students internalize the same vocabulary. Post-test scores of the two groups were compared. The results show that the effect of multimedia on the recall of the concepts taught is large (Cohen's "d" 0.95). (Contains 1 table and 1 figure.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Biology; Foreign Countries; Science Teachers; Protocol Analysis; Semi Structured Interviews; Scientists; Science Education; Science Instruction; Visual Literacy; Grounded Theory; Data Collection

Abstract:
In the present study, we have explored an aspect of teachers' perceptions of biology diagrams. The research was performed in Turkey. The data were gathered from 50 (25 female, 25 male) teachers of primary and secondary schools and 34 (18 female, 16 male) academic staff of different universities in Turkey. Some of the participants are science specialists and the others are non-science specialists. The data were collected in 2012. A qualitative approach was adopted. The data were collected in three steps. First, biology diagrams from the internet were collected and some (12) biology diagrams were chosen by the researchers. In the second step, these selected diagrams were shown to the teachers and academic staff. In this step the participants were asked to think aloud about what they saw when they looked at the diagrams. In the third step, semi-structured interviews were carried out in order to examine further the thoughts of the participants about what they saw in these diagrams. In our study we found there were no significant differences in responses between the science and non-science specialist teachers and academic staff. We conclude that it may be helpful to train teachers in the processes of constructing and reading diagrams. (Contains 7 tables and 7 figures.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Teachers; Biology; Paleontology; Learning Theories; Case Studies; Academic Achievement; Science Education; Science Instruction; Science Teachers; Inquiry; Genetics

Abstract:
This article describes how inquiry teaching can be directed towards specific content learning goals while allowing for student exploration and validation of hypotheses. Drawing from the Theory of Didactical Situations, the concepts of "milieu" and "validation" are illustrated through two sample biology lessons designed to engage and challenge students in scientific inquiry. The article proposes that these concepts may help teachers design rich learning environments wherein students may pose and test their hypotheses against scientific data. This may in turn help overcome several challenges relating to open-inquiry teaching. Such challenges include divergent student learning outcome or time issues and practical constraints of facilitating inquiry in large classes. The presented approach can help teachers design directed inquiry teaching sequences that can lead to more frequent use of inquiry in teaching thanks to the efficacy of such designs. (Contains 1 table and 6 figures.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
High Stakes Tests; Student Needs; Evidence; Foreign Countries; Science Teachers; Natural Disasters; Questionnaires; Educational Policy; Social Studies; Teacher Attitudes; Student Interests

Abstract:
This paper reports data from an exploratory questionnaire designed to capture "curriculum P-waves"--those curriculum responses that were the fastest and therefore measured first--following a significant earthquake in New Zealand. As well as taking a professional interest in a major disaster in their backyard, it is assumed that social science and science teachers' curricula responses are also influenced by the educational environments in which they work. Thus, it was of interest to chart the curriculum P-wave response to the Canterbury earthquake by teachers whose subject specialism is closely aligned to the study of extreme natural events. Analysis of data offered empirical support for curriculum P-waves across the country, with some evidence of refraction as the backwash effect of high-stakes assessment simultaneously constrained and facilitated teachers' curriculum response. Overall, the findings indicate curriculum enactment commensurate with policy that encourages teachers to be responsive to student needs and interests. (Contains 3 tables and 3 figures.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Science Teachers; Biology; Teacher Characteristics; Knowledge Base for Teaching; Pedagogical Content Knowledge; Measures (Individuals); Test Construction; Test Validity; Test Reliability; Item Response Theory

Abstract:
Research on teachers' professionalism and professional development has increased in the last two decades. A main focus of this line of research has been the cognitive component of teacher professionalism, i.e., professional knowledge. Most of the previous studies on teacher knowledge--such as the Learning Mathematics for Teaching (LMT) (Hill et al. 2004), the Professional Competence of Teachers, Cognitively Activating Instruction, and Development of Students' Mathematical Literacy (COACTIV) (Baumert et al. 2010), and the Mathematics Teaching in the 21st Century (MT21) (Schmidt et al. 2007) studies--have been conducted in the field of mathematics teachers' pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) and content knowledge (CK). There have been few comparable studies conducted with science teachers, especially biology teachers. To fill the gap, this study examines the development and use of instruments to measure biology teachers' CK and PCK. In particular, this study describes a method to develop reliable, objective, and valid instruments measuring teachers' CK and PCK in four steps by the use of empirical data of students. Additionally, the study explores whether CK and PCK might be measured as separate knowledge categories by using a paper-and-pencil test. This paper presents a theoretical model that guides test development and provides steps to develop and validate the instruments. Details are also provided regarding the computation of the Rasch scale score measures for 158 biology teachers. The results indicate that the instruments measured teachers' CK and PCK in an objective, valid, and reliable way. This suggests that the new instruments can be used in combination with classroom observations to examine teaching quality and further its relation to student learning. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Social Justice; Evidence; Stakeholders; Science Teachers; Science Curriculum; Indigenous Knowledge; African Languages; Students; Cultural Awareness; Teacher Attitudes; Student Attitudes; Questionnaires; Attitude Measures; Interviews; Culturally Relevant Education; Science Instruction; Foreign Countries

Abstract:
This study investigated a sample of isiXhosa mother tongue-speaking science teachers', their pupils', and adult local community members' awareness of Xhosa indigenous knowledge. It also investigated what aspects of this knowledge they value and think should and could be integrated into the school science curriculum and their reasons for suggesting that it should (or should not) be incorporated. The participating teachers voluntarily completed an open-ended questionnaire. On completion, they were given the task of administering the questionnaire to at least 1 of their pupils and 1 community member who they believed could contribute ideas about indigenous knowledge that might relate to science education. Interviews were held with a small sample of teachers and community members. The data generated suggest that there is a shared awareness of indigenous knowledge across the respondents (teachers, pupils, and community members). The reasons given for including indigenous knowledge in the school curriculum related mainly to the realm of recognition (social justice and cultural sensitivity), and there was also little evidence that the respondents were aware of current understandings underpinning the demarcation of science and indigenous knowledge as disciplines. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Foreign Countries; Science Teachers; Indigenous Knowledge; Preservice Teacher Education; Science Education; Culturally Relevant Education; Cultural Influences; Rural Areas; Field Experience Programs; Land Settlement

Abstract:
In this paper, we build on growing conversations centered around indigenous knowledge and its parity with various ways of knowing nature including traditional ecological knowledge, indigenous ways of living in nature, a Japanese way of knowing "seigo-shizen," and Eurocentric sciences. We situate our discussion in Philippine postcolonial realities, where categorical boundaries are blurred, and any attempt to create culturally relevant preservice science teacher preparation will create confusions and tensions between/among/within above-mentioned discourses. The Philippines is a highly colonized country--physically, for more than 300 hundred years, and mentally, after our colonizers have long gone. The marks of colonization are still present in our consciousness, in our current local knowledge, and in our ways of living with nature. In the attempt to create a "third space" for culturally relevant science teacher preparation, tensions are highlighted and categorical boundaries are troubled. Where is science? Which one is indigenous or neo-indigenous? Which one is Filipino? Which one is foreign? Which one is ours? Which one is borrowed? These tensions and insights are highlighted through analysis of narratives drawn from interviews with and written outputs of prospective science teachers, as they attempted to make sense of the local knowledge of residents of a rural coastal village in the Philippines during Community Immersion, a community-centered, early field experience in science teacher preparation. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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