Teacher Resources - Chapter 3 - Agenda Strategies
SECTION 1: FACILITATING LEARNING IN THE SCIENCE CLASSROOM
This chapter focuses on the role of the teacher in facilitating learning in the science classroom Four aspects of facilitation and management are presented in the chapter, and they can be presenteed in any order. These aspects include the facilitative role of the teacher, getting off to a good start at the beginning of the year, managing science materials and facilities, and safety in the science classroom. One of the key ideas of this chapter is the concept of leadership in the social process of the classroom. Several inquiry activities have been designed to aid in the development of leadership abilities including: The Effective Leader Project---observing and interviewing teachers and colleagues; establishing a classroom management plan; Windows into Science Classroms; The Three-Week Planning Project---developing classroom activities for an extended period of time; preparing an equipment order.
Initial Case to Consider: A New Student In Class
We've encouraged and supported hands-on and experiential science teaching as the driving force in establishing an innovative and inquiry-oriented approach to teaching. In this case to consider, your students are confronted with a story about a new student who arrives in class and seems to have some problems with participation and creates tension among the other students. We use this case to consider issues around the concepts of teacher-directed vs. student-centered teaching and learning.
Leadership in the Science Classroom
We have found that Harry and Rosemary Wong's work in their book The First Days of School is a powerful resource for prospective science teachers. I recommend using it a course leading up to an internship or student teaching, as well as a resource while the students are at school. We've used some of their work in this section, and designed an inquiry project that I've found to be very successful during a student internship.
Table 3.1 summarizes the Wongs' approach to classroom leadership, and I have used this framework to design Inquiry Activity 3.1. In the inquiry, your students will conduct an inquiry into one attribute of leadership, and report findings to peers.
Inquiry Activity 3.1: The Effective Leader Project
This inquiry is best accomplished when your students are participating in an internship or at least are involved with a a teacher or team of teachers in a practicum-type experience. This would also be a powerful activity in a graduate level course.
The project can be one of several activities that student's might accomplish in an internhip/pedagogical course. Take a look at a syllabus of a science pedagogy course where the Effective Leader Project was used as a "Middle School Classroom Management Project. This is a powerful project. Here is how the assignment was written up for the students:
This is a team project done with your Intern Partner. During your internship, you will be paired with another TEEMS student in a middle school classroom working with a mentor teacher. Using Harry Wong's book The First Days of School as a guide try and answer any one of the following questions that are related to the characteristics of effective teaching: (1) How are positive expectations communicated and demonstrated in your mentor's classroom?--see pp. 33 - 78 of Wong's book (2) What is the evidence that effective techniques are utilized to create a well managed classroom?---see the chart on page 87 and pp. 79 -194 of Wong's book. (3) What strategies does the teacher use to to design lessons that help student achieve success in science?--see pp. 195 - 268 of Wong's book. You should plan your project together, and then over the course of the Intern period "collect data" such as an interview with the teacher, digital pictures, sketches, samples of work to help answer your project question. Prepare a report in the form of a PowerPoint slide show, a web page, or a 3-panel poster report. Your presentations will be on November 21 on campus.
The Facilitative Science Teacher
There are three topics discussed in this section that focuses on the teacher's role as facilitative, and leadership-oriented. The topics included:
- Teacher-Centered Facilitation: The Traditional Perspective
- Effective Management Behaviors
- Facilitating Laboratory and Small-Group Work
- Student-Centerred Facilitation: A Humanistic Perspective
- Social Constructivism
- Cooperative Learning
- Facilitating High-Level Thinking Tasks
Inquiry Activity 3.2: Windows into Science Classrooms
This inquiry is a powerful experience in which your students will observe science instruction and classroom events by using videos produced by Annenberg Media (http://www.learner.org/). We designed a chart (Table 3.3) which your students can use to identify essential elements of classroom inquiry. There are two video sets: Case Studies or Teaching High School Science.
Effective Teaching for the Beginning of the Year
This section is important not only for the beginning of teacher's year, but for any internship or student teaching experience. Four aspects, especially important, in getting teachers off to a good start at the beginning of each new semester or course include:
- Room Arrangements
- Consideration of Rules and Procedures
- Rules for the Science Classroom
- Beginning and End of Class
- Handling Materials and Equipment
Inquiry 3.3, that follows, can be used to help focus your students on these important "beginning of the year" ideas.
Inquiry Activity 3.3: Developing a Classroom Management and Lab Safety Plan
We recommend that you have students work in small teams to design a classroom management plan that they would use given particular situations, eg. middle vs high school; physical science vs. life science.
The First Day (Lessons)
We've provided two first day lesson plans that you might use as "templates" for students in your course to evaluate in terms of their potential effectiveness. How would your students modify these plans, given different environements and situations?
First Lessons
You can use these three lessons to contrast different approaches (teacher-centered, and student-centered), and also ask, okey, now what do we do, and look at the section "beyond day one."
- Teacher-Centered: Physical Science
- Student-Centered: Earth Science in the Community
- Beyond Day One---focus on the planning chart that outlines the key actiivities for two weeks of work in a chemistry class
Inquiry Activity 3.4: Planning for Three Weeks
We've found this to be a powerful activity in the context of student teaching, or an internship program. Your students should work with their mentor, and develop a three-week plan (see the Three Week Planning Template). The plan should include the main topic for each lesson, and how the students will be involved with the topic. When the plan is completed, students should then code how they are involving students using the categories suggested in Inquiry 3.4, procedure #3.
Managing Classroom Materials and Facilities
Managing the classroom involves issues such as what materials are available for teaching, safety in the classroom, and the use of live organisms in teaching. You will find discussion of these key topics, as well as two important inquiry activities.
- Materials for Science Teaching
- Facilities for Science Teaching
SECTION 2: SCIENCE TEACHER GAZETTE
Safety in the Science Classroom
Chemical Safety
Living Organisms in the Classroom
Problems and Extensions
You will find a collection of questions that you can use for classroom discussion, as well as web-based bulletin board activities.
Readings
Some of the key literature on classroom management, safety, and perhaps one of the most important resources (The First Days of School by Harry and Rosemary Wong).
On the Web
We've included some key sites on science safety that should be helpful to your students.
- On the Companion Site
- Science Teachers Talk: How do you handle classroom managemnt? What advice do you have for a beginning teacher?
- Case Studies: The Ecosystem Study; The Smith's Come to School
- Links to Web