Practicing What We Teach: A Self-Study in Implementing an Inquiry-Based Curriculum in a Middle Grades Classroom
Department
Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2-2011
Abstract
A science teacher educator returned to teaching adolescents after more than 10 years in the professoriate. We studied his beliefs, practice and daily use of inquiry pedagogy while implementing a reform-based curriculum. Reflection on practice was evidenced by a weekly journal, classroom observations and debriefings, and extensive interviews. Newly developed practical knowledge from this experience shifted the science teacher educator’s beliefs away from the Piagetian structuralism espoused in prescribed curricula towards a more culturally responsive, student-driven approach to teaching science to middle grades students. The merits and limitations of curricula attempting to follow traditional scientific practices are discussed.
Journal Title
Journal of Science Teacher Education
Journal ISSN
1046-560X
Volume
22
Issue
1
First Page
53
Last Page
78
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
10.1007/s10972-010-9222-z