Chris Eames

Using sociocultural views of learning to investigate the enculturation of students into the scientific community through work placements

Abstract: Cooperative education (co‐op) is a strategy of education that includes a requirement for successful completion of both formal classroom work and work placements in order to gain a qualification. The work placement immerses the student in relevant, productive work, and is seen as an integral part of the educational program. There is anecdotal and research data in the literature about the success of co‐op programs in securing career jobs for students. However, little theorizing and research about learning in placements has been published that could help us understand how undertaking work placements in science can assist students to make the transition into the scientific workplace. Sociocultural views of learning that depict learning as a mediated, situated and participatory activity within a socially and culturally determined community of practice provide a theoretical perspective for investigating the enculturation of science students into the science community through work placements. This pape...

An evaluation of characteristics of environmental education practice in New Zealand schools

This paper reports on a national evaluation project that investigated characteristics of environmental education (EE) practice in New Zealand schools in 2002–2003. The research included a review of New Zealand and international environmental education literature, a survey of nearly 200 New Zealand schools and case studies of environmental education practice in eight schools. In this paper we describe and discuss key features of environmental education practice in New Zealand schools at the time of the research. We consider the rewards and challenges for teachers, students, schools and the wider school community arising from the schools’ implementation of this non‐compulsory curriculum subject. We conclude by considering what the findings told us about current EE practice and how these findings might inform a greater emphasis towards environmental education/education for sustainability in New Zealand schools at a time of national curriculum policy change.

Cooperative Education: Integrating Classroom and Workplace Learning

Cooperative education (co-op) is a strategy of education that combines academic learning in the classroom with real-world practice in a relevant workplace. To provide this mix of learning opportunities, co-op involves collaboration among students, educational institutions, and employers. Real-world experience for students in the form of work-based placements or internships can serve to provide entry for learners into a particular community of practice. Theorising and research into student learning through cooperative education has focussed on the experiential nature of the learning opportunity, and more latterly through sociocultural views of learning. These latter views help us to understand that cooperative education exposes students to worlds of learning that are different but complementary. These complementary worlds have different sociocultural dimensions that afford different learning opportunities to students. Clearly defined integrative pathways are required that allow students to make sense of the learning that they are afforded. The real strength of cooperative education as a strategy of practice-based learning is not that students gain opportunities to learn in the classroom and in the workplace, but that these opportunities are integrated to create learning that is more than the sum of the two parts.

Promoting pedagogical content knowledge development for early career secondary teachers in science and technology using content representations

Background: This research addressed the key area of early career teacher education and aimed to explore the use of a ‘content representation’ (CoRe) as a mediational tool to develop early career secondary teacher pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). This study was situated in the subject areas of science and technology, where sound teacher knowledge is particularly important to student engagement. Purpose: The study was designed to examine whether such a tool (a CoRe), co-designed by an early career secondary teacher with expert content and pedagogy specialists, can enhance the PCK of early career teachers. The research questions were: How can experts in content and pedagogy work together with early career teachers to develop one science topic CoRe and one technology topic CoRe to support the development of PCK for early career secondary teachers? How does the use of a collaboratively designed CoRe affect the planning of an early career secondary teacher in science or technology? How has engagement in the development and use of an expert-informed CoRe developed an early career teacher’s PCK? Sample: The research design incorporated a unique partnership between two expert classroom teachers, two content experts, four early career teachers, and four researchers experienced in science and technology education. Design: This study employed an interpretivist-based methodology and an action research approach within a four-case study design. Data were gathered using qualitative research methods focused on semi-structured interviews, observations and document analysis. Results: The study indicated that CoRes, developed through this collaborative process, helped the early career teachers focus on the big picture of the topic, emphasize particularly relevant areas of content and consider alternative ways of planning for their teaching. Conclusions: This paper presents an analysis of the process of CoRe development by the teacher–expert partnerships and the effect that had on the early career teachers’ PCK. In addition, as the same tools and methodology were applied to both a science and a technology teaching context, differences between the two learning areas are discussed.

Personal and relationship dimensions of higher education science and engineering learning communities

The research reported here follows previous articles in this special issue which detail a national study involving a team of researchers across four higher education institutions in New Zealand. A key theme that emerged from a collection of questionnaire, interview and observational data was the central importance of teacher–student and student–student relationships, as part of the learning communities. Both teachers and students highlighted the value of developing a personal dimension to their relationships that engendered a greater sense of access and loyalty to that community. Contextual factors such as approachability of teachers, class size and teaching environment appeared to be important to relationship building and enculturation in higher education science and engineering learning communities.

Screening of lactic acid bacteria for bacteriocins by microbiological and PCR methods

We describe a practical laboratory designed for third‐year undergraduate students of Biotechnology as part of a Microbial Physiology and Genetics course. It comprises a five‐session laboratory module to screen foods for lactic acid bacteria (LAB) 1 and to test isolated LAB for the presence of bacteriocins. Traditional Thai fermented foods are first screened for bacteriocin‐producing LAB using microbiological methods. This is followed by a simple and rapid DNA extraction and by a multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using three pairs of specific primers to test for the presence or absence of various bacteriocin genes in the isolated LAB. PCR amplicons of 332, 412, and 608 bp indicate the presence of pediocin, enterocin, and nisin genes, respectively, whereas no amplicon band indicates the absence of these bacteriocins. The laboratory provides the students with experience in the use of microbiological and multiplex PCR methods and shows how the molecular biology techniques can be related to their daily lives. The module could easily be adapted to the study of fermented foods from other countries.

Developing an understanding of higher education science and engineering learning communities

This article sets the scene for this special issue of Research in Science & Technological Education, dedicated to understanding higher education science and engineering learning communities. We examine what the literature has to say about the nature of, and factors influencing, higher education learning communities. A discussion of issues in, and synthesis of, research into higher education learning communities completes the paper. This paper clearly identifies a need to better understand higher education learning communities: their nature, influential factors and forces that shape our higher education learning communities.

Understanding Student Learning in Environmental Education in Aotearoa New Zealand

This paper seeks to provide a perspective on environmental education in Aotearoa New Zealand. To contextualise this perspective, it illustrates how environmental, socio-cultural and political imperatives have shaped the development of environmental education in this land. These imperatives illuminate the natural history of the country, the connectedness within the worldviews of the indigenous Maori people, the pioneering views of some enlightened European settlers, and tensions between development and conservation. We connect this context with an overview of research in Aotearoa New Zealand into one aspect of environmental education - student learning in schools. Examples from recent research in this area are provided to show how these approaches are contributing to the Aotearoa New Zealand-ness of environmental education.

The use and value of citizen science data in New Zealand

There has been significant growth worldwide of citizen science projects involving community members collecting environmental data. The following study is based on questionnaire responses from 296 community environmental groups and interviews with 34 project partners (e.g. resource managers and scientists) and examines the use and value of citizen science data in New Zealand. Frequency counts and inductive thematic analysis were used to examine the quantitative and qualitative data, respectively. Groups reported using their data to support funding applications (63%; n = 151), inform restoration management decision-making (60%; n = 151) and for educational purposes (48%; n = 157). Outcomes such as relationship-building with project partners and increasing environmental knowledge highlighted the transformational nature of groups’ citizen science activities. Although groups reported providing data to project partners (60%; n = 151), concerns were expressed over data quality and a lack of institutional systems for using the data. Project partners, however, proposed novel solutions for enhancing collaboration with groups to produce useful data, underscoring the value they attributed to groups’ citizen science efforts.

Developing an “ecology of learning” within a school sustainability co-design project with children in New Zealand

This paper analyses the inter-relatedness of layers of involvement, as contributing to learning, within a school sustainability project (the eco-classroom project). This engaged students, staff and community members (including professional practitioners) in an architectural co-design project that resulted, after 4 years, in a built classroom. The paper utilises an “ecology of learning” diagram to indicate layers and show connections, which are evidenced by findings from the project, alongside relevant literature in geographies of architecture and childhood, pedagogies of sustainable learning and childrens participatory and co-design examples. In conclusion, the ecology of learning approach is critiqued and encouragement of more sustainability co-design projects with children is recommended. It is proposed this could lead to improved processes for all participants while promoting authentic and relevant sustainability learning.