Robert E. Bleicher

Success in Science Learning and Preservice Science Teaching Self-Efficacy

This study examined relationships between conceptual understanding, self-efficacy, and outcome expectancy beliefs as preservice teachers learned science in a constructivist-oriented methods class. Participants included 49 preservice elementary teachers. Analysis revealed that participants increased in self-efficacy, outcome expectancy, and conceptual understanding. Engaging preservice teachers in hands-on, minds-on activities and discussion were important contributors. Participants reported that they would be inclined to teach from a constructivist perspective in the future. One implication from this study is that increasing the quantity of science content courses that preservice elementary teachers are required to take may not be sufficient to overcome their reluctance to teach science if some of their learning does not take place in a constructivist environment. In our teaching, we have tried to integrate pedagogy with learning science content.

A collaborative action research approach to professional learning

The field of professional development is moving towards the notion of professional learning, highlighting the active learning role that teachers play in changing their knowledge bases, beliefs and practice. This article builds on this idea and argues for creating professional learning that is guided by a collaborative action research (CAR) theoretical framework, founded on an action research philosophy. CAR components include: motivation – teacher orientation and self-efficacy; knowledge – adding to knowledge bases about disciplines and students relevant to teachers’ interests; action – change in teaching practice perceived to improve student achievement; and reflection – the cornerstone of the entire learning process in which teachers are afforded time and support to connect new experiences to their teaching practice. This article argues for professional learning developers to consider utilizing these four CAR components as a framework. A current professional learning project that was based on the CAR framework is employed to illustrate how it can be implemented.

Climate Change in the Preservice Teacher's Mind

Given the recent media attention on the public’s shift in opinion toward being more skeptical about climate change, 154 preservice teachers’ participated in an intervention in an elementary science methods course. Findings indicated that students developed a deeper level of concern about climate change. Their perceptions on the evidence for climate change, consensus of scientists, impacts of climate change, and influence of politics also changed significantly. The curriculum and instruction appear to be an important factor in increasing understanding of climate change and developing perceptions more aligned to those of climate scientists. More broadly, this study provides preliminary support for the value of providing a careful framing of the topic of climate change within the context of science methods courses.

What counts as successful school subject literacy: differing views from students, teachers, and parents

Research into literacy and school subject performance focuses overwhelmingly on identifying and addressing risk factors associated with underachievement. Strenuous efforts are devoted to diagnosing the causes of literacy failure that are patterned by ethnicity, social class, and gender. This study explores the possibility that equal, or even greater insights, may be achieved by investigating instances of successful school literacy practices. The purpose is to develop contextualized theories to explain the phenomena of success in children from working-class families to identify social and pedagogical factors associated with success. Six case studies of successful students in English, general science, physics, catering, mathematics, and economics are presented. Each case is composed of a triad including the student, teacher, and parent. Data includes interviews with all triad members, classroom observations, and student journals. This paper reports the findings of the present study and comments on how they compare with those international studies of scholastic success in contexts of school and home factors.