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Teacher students’ dilemmas when teaching science through inquiry

Background: Inquiry-based science education (IBSE) is suitable to teach scientific contents as well as to foster scientific skills. Similar conclusions are drawn by studies with respect to scientific literacy, motivational aspects, vocabulary knowledge, conceptual understandings, critical thinking, and attitudes toward science. Nevertheless, IBSE is rarely adopted in schools. Often barriers for teachers account for this lack, with the result that even good teachers struggle to teach science as inquiry. More importantly, studies indicate that several barriers and constraints could be ascribed to problems teacher students have at the university stage. Purpose: The purpose of this explorative investigation is to examine the problems teacher students have when teaching science through inquiry. In order to draw a holistic picture of these problems, we identified problems from three different points of view leading to the research question: What problems regarding IBSE do teacher students have from an objective, a subjective, and a self-reflective perspective? Design & method: Using video analysis and observation tools as well as qualitative content analysis and open questionnaires we identified problems from each perspective. Results: The objectively stated problems comprise the lack of essential features of IBSE especially concerning ‘Supporting pupils’ own investigations’ and ‘Guiding analysis and conclusions.’ The subjectively perceived problems comprise concerns about ‘Teachers’ abilities’ and ‘Pupils’ abilities,’ ‘Differentiated instruction’ and institutional frame ‘Conditions’ while the self-reflectively noticed problems mainly comprise concerns about ‘Allowing inquiry,’ ‘Instructional Aspects,’ and ‘Pupils’ behavior.’ Conclusions: Each of the three different perspectives provides plenty of problems, partially overlapping, partially complementing one another, and partially revealing completely new problems. Consequently, teacher educators have to consider these three perspectives.

Developing an online health literacy curriculum for two German universities: a key stakeholder approach.

Health literacy is a significant resource for daily life in society. Global evidence reveals that there are less than ideal levels of health literacy in populations. One potential straproviding them with the skills and tools that will improve their knowledge and practice as our future workforce. The purpose of this study was to articulate the need to develop an online health literacy introductory course for university students in Germany. A total of 16 students from two German universities participated in focus group interviews to collect data on the extent of student health literacy awareness and related health and education needs. Nine international stakeholders participated in an online self-guided review of a comprehensive draft course to obtain detailed feedback from experts in the education and health literacy fields. Results revealed that both focus group and international stakeholders are in support of developing an online health literacy curriculum. To build the draft curriculum, an existing Canadian health literacy online course was adapted as a blueprint for the German context. The proposed course was customized based on the findings from the focus groups and international stakeholder feedback, which is intended to help inform and determine contents, design, and delivery of such a course applicable for universities in Germany and beyond.

Forschendes Lernen in der Biologie

Dieser Beitrag befasst sich mit dem Forschenden Lernen in der Biologie an Schule und Hochschule. Das Forschende Lernen ist eine weit verbreitete Lehr-/Lernmethode im Biologieunterricht, die sich am Vorgehen des naturwissenschaftlichen Erkenntnisprozesses orientiert. Aufgrund der zahlreichen Schwierigkeiten, die Biologielehrkrafte mit dem Forschenden Lernen in der Praxis haben (Kramer et al. 2015a, b), ergibt sich die Notwendigkeit, Forschendes Lernen bereits wahrend der Lehramtsausbildung an der Hochschule zu vermitteln.

Metacognitive and multimedia support of experiments in inquiry learning for science teacher preparation

ABSTRACT Promoting preservice science teachers’ experimentation competency is required to provide a basis for meaningful learning through experiments in schools. However, preservice teachers show difficulties when experimenting. Previous research revealed that cognitive scaffolding promotes experimentation competency by structuring the learning process, while metacognitive and multimedia support enhance reflection. However, these support measures have not yet been tested in combination. Therefore, we decided to use cognitive scaffolding to support students’ experimental achievements and supplement it by metacognitive and multimedia scaffolds in the experimental groups. Our research question is to what extent supplementing cognitive support by metacognitive and multimedia scaffolding further promotes experimentation competency. The intervention has been applied in a two-factorial design to a two-month experimental course for 63 biology teacher students in their first bachelor year. Pre-post-test measured experimentation competency in a performance assessment. Preservice teachers worked in groups of four. Therefore, measurement took place at group level (N = 16). Independent observers rated preservice teachers’ group performance qualitatively on a theory-based system of categories. Afterwards, experimentation competency levels led to quantitative frequency analysis. The results reveal differing gains in experimentation competency but contrary to our hypotheses. Implications of combining scaffolding measures on promoting experimentation competency are discussed.

Bedingungen der Zellatmung

Zunachst wird in diesem Kapitel eine kurze Zusammenfassung uber die Zellatmung wiedergegeben. Nachfolgend soll durch Abanderung des vorgestellten Versuchsaufbaus ermittelt werden, welche Bedingungen respiratorische Prozesse bei Pflanzensamen (z. B. Erbsen) beeinflussen.

Lichtabhängigkeit der Photosyntheserate

In diesem Kapitel wird eine kurze Zusammenfassung uber die Teilprozesse der Photosynthese gegeben, wodurch Vermutungen aufgestellt werden sollen, welche Faktoren die Photosyntheserate beeinflussen konnen. Durch Veranderungen des hier vorgestellten Versuchsaufbaus kann dieser Einfluss quantitativ uberpruft werden.

Gehemmte Enzyme am Beispiel der Amylase

In diesem Kapitel wird die allo- und isosterische Hemmung von Enzymen erlautert. Fur die isosterische Hemmung wird hier der Hemmstoff Acarbose, welcher mit anderen Polysacchariden (z. B. Starke) um das aktive Zentrum der Amylasen konkurriert, beispielhaft vorgestellt. Zudem sollen Vermutungen uber den Zusammenhang zwischen Inhibitorkonzentration und Enzymaktivitat aufgestellt werden. Diese Vermutungen konnen anschliesend anhand eines Experimentaufbaus uberpruft werden.

Substrate für die ethanolische Gärung

In diesem Kapitel wird der Prozess der ethanolischen Garung am Beispiel des Substrats Glucose beschrieben. Mithilfe dieser Information konnen Vermutungen geausert werden, welche Kohlenhydrate fur Saccharomyces cerevisiae (Backer- oder Bierhefe) ethanolisch vergarbar sind und welche nicht. Die Vermutungen werden anschliesend mithilfe unterschiedlicher Kohlenhydrate experimentell uberpruft.

Der Einfluss des Plasmolytikums auf die Osmose

Im Folgenden wird der Vorgang der Osmose – als Spezialfall der Diffusion durch eine selektiv permeable Membran – erklart. Dieser Prozess wird am Beispiel einer Salzlosung erlautert, wobei die positiv und negativ geladenen Ionen des Salzes in dissoziierter Form, d. h. voneinander gelost, im Wasser vorliegen. Daraufhin sollen Vermutungen aufgestellt werden, ob auch geloste Teilchen (wie z. B. in Saccharoselosungen), bei denen es sich um Molekule und nicht um Ionen handelt, osmotisch wirksam sind. Die Wirksamkeit der Zuckerlosung soll anhand eines lebenden Systems gepruft werden, namlich durch die mikroskopische Beobachtung von Zellen des Zwiebelhautchens einer roten Kuchenzwiebel. Beim Zwiebelhautchen handelt es sich um die nur eine Zellschicht dicke obere Epidermis der Speicherblatter von Allium cepa.

Temperaturabhängigkeit der Enzymaktivität

Dieses Kapitel zeigt auf, dass die Stoffwechselaktivitat der Enzyme von verschiedenen Faktoren beeinflusst werden kann. Zudem sollen Vermutungen uber den Zusammenhang zwischen Temperatur und der Enzymaktivitat aufgestellt werden. Diese Vermutungen konnen anschliesend am Beispiel der hydrolytischen Spaltung von Fetten mittels Lipasen uberpruft werden.