PRESERVICE TEACHERS’ BELIEFS ABOUT FIELD-BASED TEACHING AND LEARNING

While a substantial body of research exists on elementary teachers’ low self-efficacy for teaching science, research on teachers’ perceptions of teaching science in a field-based setting is limited. An open-ended beliefs questionnaire was administered to assess preservice teachers’ underlying value beliefs about field-based teaching with preK-5 students, including advantages and disadvantages of field-based learning and what persons or groups would be in favor, or not in favor, of field-based learning with preK-5 students. The 40 responding preservice teachers believed that the primary advantages to field-based learning are its interactivity and hands-on orientation, which they thought would lead to enhanced learning. The most frequently mentioned disadvantages were unpredictability of student behavior and administrative issues such as lack of supplies and funding. Beliefs about teacher pedagogy were prominent in the responses, such as the belief that “traditional style teachers” would not be in favor and that teachers would face challenges in managing students and being prepared to teach in the outdoors. Additionally, several respondents recognized the importance of context, such as student age and school resource levels, in facilitating field-based activities. Prior studies have concluded that preservice teachers’ educational beliefs develop well before they enter teacher preparation programs, during their many years of observations of their own teachers, and that the beliefs have high durability in adulthood, even in the face of contradictory evidence. Consistent with this prior work, we found some evidence that episodic memory, or recollection of an event in a preservice teacher’s past, shaped that person’s beliefs about field-based learning. Since beliefs play a critical role in defining intentions and future behavior, it is important for university geoscience educators who work with preservice teachers to understand the educational beliefs of their students. Perpetuating field-based learning opportunities for future generations of K-12 students will require that entering beliefs about field-based learning are taken into account as part of earth science teacher preparation programs, as those beliefs are likely to impact future teaching practice and be resistant to change.