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3 A Guide for Scientists
Pages 30-48

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From page 30...
... Scientists from both academe and industry describe several common motivations for their involvement in professional development. Many say that they "simply love to teach" and believe that science education is so important that they will take an active role, whether or not they are rewarded externally.
From page 31...
... They should educate themselves about the professional lives of elementary- and secondaryschool teachers and about classroom science teaching. To assist in the process, this chapter includes three vignettes describing a day in the life of an elementaryschool teacher, of a middle-school teacher, and of a high-school biology teacher; they show some of the varied teaching experiences in American public schools {For more information about industry's role in science education, we suggest Business and the Schools, a guide to programs run by businesses for schools, published by the Council for Aid to Education (1992)
From page 32...
... In addition, the annotated reading list found in Appendix D should help scientists to minimize misunderstandings and educate themselves about the world of teachers and students, issues of teaching and learning, educational research, and current efforts in science-education reform. Initial Involvement Before beginning work with teachers to plan a professional-development program, scientists should initiate interactions with teachers and school administrators to become familiar with the needs of elementary- and secondary-school science teachers and learn about the realities of the school system.
From page 33...
... As a followup activity, scientists can invite local teachers to campus and structure special seminars at times convenient for teachers and on topics decided on in consultation with the teachers. Scientists can foster open discussions about teachers' needs, explore opportunities for future activities, and discuss the implications of collaboration for K-12 science teaching and learning.
From page 34...
... bell rings. I quickly review homework assignments, pass out notices for parents, and dismiss the students for the day.
From page 35...
... During the next 50 minutes, I talk with counselors about problems related to my students, call more parents, mix solutions for laboratory exercises, read mail, plan lessons, and grade papers. Unfortunately, I am unable to work in my classroom because it is being used by another teacher.
From page 36...
... I clean up, prepare materials for the next day, schedule guest speakers for future AP classes, correct labs, grade exams, work with student leaders in the National Honor Society (for which I am the adviser) , collect new laboratory materials in local stores or ponds, and purchase pet food and shavings.
From page 37...
... Content learning is an essential part of science education, but content is best learned and retained when presented in the context of the processes of science how science works. Directors of programs that focus on inquiry-based and hands-on learning have observed that once teachers have developed an understanding of scientific processes, they often begin to seek out the content knowledge that can be used as a basis for inquiry into real and immediate scientific questions (J.
From page 38...
... Teachers who develop these skills are in the best position to take advantage of federal and private resources directed to science education. · Scientists can provide teachers access to equipment, science journals, and catalogs not usually available in schools.
From page 39...
... Lectures and Seminars Local universities, museums, and professional societies often sponsor individual public lectures, lecture series, and seminars for science teachers. Individual lectures usually occur during the school year on Saturdays, in the late afternoons, or in evenings.
From page 40...
... It is often through short workshops, and thus interactions with teachers, that scientists gain appreciation for the needs of teachers and become more interested in and committed to science education. Poorly planned workshops can have the opposite effect, disengaging both scientists and teachers.
From page 41...
... offer intensive hands-on laboratory training in new techniques and are designed to promote transfer of laboratory skills and techniques to schools. In some instances, handson laboratory exercises have been developed that are readily transferable to highschool or even middle-school classrooms.
From page 42...
... Development of Supplemental Curricula Another type of professional-development program focuses on involving science teachers in curriculum development. The underlying principle is that teachers know best about teaching strategies and scientists about science.
From page 43...
... Hands-on Programs Promoting Science Inquiry A growing number of programs are designed to provide science teachers with experiences that translate science into tasks that actively engage students in the learning process. Science is taught by challenging students to explore scientific concepts by engaging their senses of touch, sight, smell, and sound.
From page 44...
... Scientists' involvement in the process gives them the opportunity to recognize the difficulties that teachers face when transferring their research experiences into elementary- and secondary-school classrooms. Examples of programs that bring teachers into research laboratories are the Industry Initiatives for Science and Mathematics Education program in the San Francisco Bay area, the Department of Energy's national laboratories, and the Summer Scholars programs of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, the American Society for Cell Biology, and the American Physiological Society.
From page 45...
... Those programs are characterized by a high degree of collaboration with other professional-development programs. Partnerships can be established between teachers and universities, museums, zoos, industrial settings, and extension services of federal agencies.
From page 46...
... Teachers who later became interested in the programs learned about them directly from the organizers, local universities, other teachers, professional-education publications, or pre-existing networks. In many cases, programs functioned without the attention of school administrators, union leaders, parents in the surrounding community, or even awareness on the part of the school district's central office.
From page 47...
... Science Education Partnership, Seattle. FHCRC's programs involve research scientists at many levels.
From page 48...
... · Scientists should examine their own teaching in undergraduate classes and laboratory exercises. Their classes include potential science teachers, so scientists should be aware that their teaching will be modeled by these teachers and ask themselves whether they are promoting active learning and good process and content teaching.


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