Implementing Reform: Teachers’ Beliefs about Students and the Curriculum

1. My observations (data) pattern more Explanations, mechanisms or relations between physical quantities different Revision check prediction Testing experiments:Does outcome match prediction based on explanation/relation? no Assumptions yes More + Applications Tara Bartiromo and Eugenia Etkina http://pum.rutgers.edu/ GSE Rutgers University NSF DRL-0733140 This study investigates the implementation of scientific inquiry practices in the classroom in the context of the new Physics Union Mathematics (PUM) curriculum. Extensive field notes and RTOP scores from classroom observations and interviews provided us with multiple perspectives on the goals of instruction, the teacher’s roles, and the students’ roles in the classroom. We show how teachers’ perceptions of the goals of instruction, their roles, and students’ roles in the classroom compare with their actual behaviors and affect what happens in the classroom. RTOP Data by Category and Teacher Three of the five teachers (AR, CK, DJ) specifically described the ISLE cycle when talking about inquiry and the PUM curriculum. All three teachers participated in the development of the curriculum materials. Implementing Reform: Teachers’ Beliefs about Students and the Curriculum AR, CK, and DJ run significantly reformed classes (RTOP > 75). KP and HD run partially reformed classes (RTOP > 50). Prop. knowledge is not correlated with reformed teaching practices. Data Processing Set-Up and Data Collection Results Data Analysis Thirty teachers implemented the PUM curriculum. We collected field notes and RTOP scores while observing teachers implement PUM. RTOP Observation Data Participating Teachers’ Information: Teaching Experience and Experience with Curriculum Curriculum Implementation and Beliefs Lesson Goals Classroom Culture The tables show that teachers are consistent with their behaviors and beliefs. AR, CK, and DJ are consistently more reformed, KP is in transition, and HD is only partially reformed in teaching practices and beliefs. We identified three main themes in teacher beliefs and behaviors from interview summaries and narratives. Five teachers volunteered to participate in the study. Teachers participated in 30-60 min. interviews. We wrote Narratives for each teacher based on RTOP scores and field notes. We wrote Summaries of interviews for each teacher. We developed Reformed-Not-Reformed continua for each behavior and belief. Conclusions * Teachers’ beliefs are consistent with their behaviors in the classroom. * Teachers with higher RTOPs have higher opinions of the reformed curriculum. * Teachers who participated in the development of the curriculum materials and who had minimal/average physics backgrounds implemented materials faithfully. They also followed ISLE framework during most lessons. * Propositional Knowledge is not correlated with reformed teaching practices. Placed teachers along continuum based on narratives and RTOPs. Placed teachers along continuum based on interview summaries. References * D. Sawada, M. D. Piburn, E. Judson, J. Turley, K. Falconer, R. Benford, & I. Bloom, School Science and Mathematics, 102, 245-253, 2002. * D. MacIsaac & K. Falconer,, The Physics Teacher, 40, 16-22, 2002. * E. Etkina & A. Van Heuvelen, in Research-Based Reform of University Physics, Vol. 1, 2007. * C. Henderson & M. H. Dancy, Phys. Rev. Special Topics, 3, 020102 2007. * P. C. Taylor, B. J. Fraser, & D. L. Fisher, International Journal of Educational Research, 27, 293-302 1997. * K. D. Squire, J. G. Makinster, M. Barnett, A. L. Luehmann, & S. L. Barab, Science Education,87, 468-489 2003. * A. Lieblich, R. Tuval-Mashiach, & T. Zilber, Narrative Research: Reading, analysis and interpretation, Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 1998.