SSM Table of Contents & Abstracts

Volume 103 (3), March 2003

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Abstract

Wearing the Letter Jacket: Legitimate Participation in a Collaborative Science, Mathematics, Engineering, and Technology Education Reform Project 

Kathleen S. Davis, Allan Feldman, Chris Irwin, & Elizabeth Dolly Pedevillano

University of Massachusetts, Amherst

Brenda Capobianco

Purdue University

Tarin Weiss and Paige M. Bray

University of Massachusetts, Amherst

This study examines one NSF-funded Collaborative for Excellence in Teacher Preparation and describes the complexities of such a science education reform effort. A theoretical model based in community, culture, and identity is used to address key questions: How did institutional ideologies, structures, policies, and practices influence the Collaborativeâs success? What unique problems were associated with the university and school partnership? How did K-12 teachersâ participation affect their development and the success of the Collaborative? Findings indicate that though K-12 participants were deemed as ãpedagogy expertsä and shared the inquiry-based culture espoused in the Collaborative, they felt both as project insiders and outsiders. This was due to issues of status between university faculty and K-12 teachers; teachersâ less-than-active role in the Collaborative; and the constraints and narrow focus that resulted from long-established institutional, social, and political structures and that marginalized, delegitimized, excluded, and  proved unattractive to teachers.

Using Descriptive Drawings as a Conceptual Change Strategy in Elementary Science

Kellah M. Edens and Ellen Potter

University of South Carolina

This research was conducted to examine the conditions under which learner-generated illustrations serve as an instructional strategy promoting conceptual change. Specifically, the nature of studentsâ misconceptions and the effects of student-generated descriptive drawings on conceptual understanding of scientific principles associated with the law of conservation of energy were studied. Students were randomly assigned to groups in which they copied an illustration, generated a drawing, or wrote a description about the principles. A statistically significant difference on a posttest conceptual understanding measure was found between students who generated descriptive drawings and those who wrote in a science log. Students who copied an illustration also scored higher than the writing group, but not at a significant level. Also, the quality and number of concept units present in the drawing/writing log were significantly correlated with posttest and delay test scores. Findings suggest that under certain conditions, descriptive drawing is a viable way for students to learn scientific concepts, a finding which supports the use of generative drawings as a conceptual change strategy.

Preparing Middle Level Preservice Teachers to Integrate Mathematics and Science: Problems and Possibilities

Hari P. Koirala, Eastern Connecticut State University           

Jacqueline K. Bowman, Arkansas Tech University

Many members of the mathematics and science education community believe that the integration of mathematics and science enhances studentsâ understanding of both subjects. Despite this belief, attempts to integrate these subjects have frequently been unsuccessful. This study examines the development and implementation of a team-taught  integrated middle level mathematics and science methods course. The data presented in this study were collected from three groups of preservice teachers who were enrolled in a grades 5-8 middle level teacher certification program in Connecticut from 1998-2000. The data analysis indicates that preservice teachers appreciated the emphasis on integration used in the course, but at the same time when concepts did not integrate easily they were frustrated. Despite this frustration, the preservice teachersâ understanding of integration was enhanced as a result of the course.

Perceptions of Professional Growth: A Mathematics Teacher Educator in Transition

Maria A. Timmerman

University of Virginia

To meet the need for reform in mathematics teacher preparation courses, two cycles of changes made in an elementary mathematics methods course are presented. Using action research, teaching approaches were developed, implemented, and evaluated as a meaningful way to continue my professional development. Results suggested that I improved my teaching practices and focused more on teaching tasks that engaged my students to ãthink like teachers.ä Three critical components of teacher preparation courses are identified that are important for teacher educators to acknowledge when implementing change: (a) using reflective verbal and written communication, (b) establishing a collaborative mathematical community, and (c) focusing on a narrower selection of mathematical content.

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