DEVELOPING NEW TEACHERS' UNDERSTANDING OF SCIENCE AND SCIENCE INQUIRY WITH THE NGSS FRAMEWORK

The MAT Earth Science Residency Program at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City prepares new Earth science teachers for high-need secondary classrooms. Key features include: (1) recruitment and selection of high-caliber Earth science majors; (2) research-based curriculum linking theory and practice, designed and co-taught by scientists and educators; and (3) residency placements in high-need urban partner schools that include experiences with English language learners and special needs students. Pre-service teachers in this 15-month program complete: (1) a summer teaching residency at the museum; (2) a full academic year (10 months) residency in two high-need schools; and (3) a field and lab based research experience; as well as 36 graduate-level credits of coursework in science and pedagogy.

With the goal of increasing the science literacy of our pre-service teachers and their future students in mind, we developed a course, Earth Science Literacy Journal Seminar, using A Framework for K-12 Science Education: Practices, Crosscutting Concepts, and Core Ideas (NRC, 2012) as a key resource. Throughout the course we explore how scientific research is done, and critical thinking skills and methodologies employed by scientists; and how to develop these understandings in students. Pre-service teachers analyze and present seminal scientific articles in Earth, space and climate science, making explicit connections to the science practices, crosscutting concepts, and disciplinary core ideas from the Framework. Spheres of Activity for Scientists and Engineer, Figure 3.1 from the Framework, is the basis for many in-class discussions that connect the research articles and learning activities to the science practices and crosscutting concepts. In addition the pre-service teachers find evidence of the crosscutting concepts in the cultural and natural science exhibitions at the Museum, and use this to develop visual presentations for their peers.

Preliminary research on our pre-service teachers’ understanding of Science Literacy and Nature of Science indicates that the course is having a positive impact as measured by the Student Understanding of Science and Science Inquiry (SUSSI) questionnaire (Liang, Chen, Chen, Kaya, Adams, Macklin, & Ebenezer, 2008).