Module # 6

Module 6

Article # 5

Bringing the Real World of Science to Children: A Partnership of The American Museum of Natural History and the City University of New York by Anthony G. Picciano

Synthesis:

   The article begins by explaining the rationale behind the partnership; the need to improve the way teachers are trained and students are taught. Data shows that many rural and urban schools lack qualified teachers and adequate resources, especially in subjects like math, science, and technology.
   One of the more successful projects resulting from this partnership, is the Seminar on Science (SoS). The American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), made its vast resources available through online programs, to develop teacher education and provide access to cutting edge reseach. Because these resources are available to teachers across the United States and all around the world, the program has been highly effective in improving the quality of instruction, as well as the resources needed to deliver instruction effectively.
   The goal of the SoS is to continue to prepare, retain, and sustain enough qualified science teachers to ensure an adequate STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) workforce, as well as a scientifically literate public.
   The model was evaluated by Inverness Research Associates in California, and found that the majority of teacher participants reported that they had improved content knowledge, that their students were more able to connect science in school to the real world, and that their students' understanding of inquiry based science was improved.
   The AMNH has since expanded its partnerships to include institutions such as the Nova Southeastern University, and the International Baccalaureate Organization. Some of the chllanges of the partnership have been financial constraints and the long term sustainability of the programs. However, in terms of meeting the need for access to current thinking and practicing experts this program has proved to be beneficial to teachers in all schools.

Reflection:

   The need for qualified teachers is discussed as a major problem in rural and inner city schools, where teacher turn- over tends to be greater, and resources fewer. I think the need for qualified teachers goes beyond this, and is a problem even in schools that are perceived to be priveleged. I thought about my own school, which could be considered somewhere "in-between", neither wealthy nor very needy. However,while the teachers in our school are hard working and well meaning, I can see that having access to the expertise as described in the article would be highly beneficial to all of us. I decided to find the courses described in the article, and see whether they are available to us. They are, but at a cost of $495.00 per course, with a $25.00  registration fee. I thought about the practicality of this. If one teacher was to do a course, she could redeliver the material to her colleagues, but it wasn't clear as to how accessible all the resources would be. This means that schools or teachers would be required to pay a fairly significant amount of money to get the benefit of these courses.
   Another factor I thought about in terms of professional development, is the need for teachers to have modeling and ongoing mentorship, in order to implement new standards and methods of teaching students. I love the inquiry based and problem solving methods of teaching we have read about, but feel I would need some guidance to feel really confident about the direction I was taking. I also would need to develop my own resources. It seems to me that we need more partnerships, perhaps with local universities, such as the Georgia Institute of Technology, and the University of Georgia. Involvement with these institutions of higher learning, could provide teachers with hands on learning and ongoing mentorship.
   While I think the partnerships and programs started by the AMNH are wonderful, I would like to see something closer to home which is more readily available to teachers, and which might provide us with the guidance we need to truly change the way science education looks in the elementary classroom.

References:
Picciano, A.G. (2008). Bringing the Real World of Science to Children: A Partnership of the American Museum of Natural History and the City University of New York. Journal Of Asynchrounous Learning Networks, 12 (1), 69-84.

Student Profile

Student 1:   

• Male-not much parental support, typically doesn't complete homework, non-conformist.                                                                                      
• Has a Concrete Learning style (Gregorc)
• Intuitive, enjoys finding alternative ways of solving problems
• Has logical/ mathematical intelligence
• Is a low reader and writer

Activities:

• build models to demonstrate understanding
• provide choices for assignments, include opportunties to draw and solve problems
• Find unique ways to solve a problem
• Use technology to solve problems and research concepts

Student 2:

• Female, Mexican, supportive home environment, but parents don't speak English
• Imaginitive, artistic
• Looks at the whole rather than parts
• A people -person, emotional, operates well in humanities and liberal arts
• Organized information through sharing and discussing (Gregorc)
• English Language Learner

Activities:

• Make posters or diagrams to explain concepts
• Collaborate to create presentations
• Create mini-books or posters to show understanding, or as a means of assessment.

Student 3:

• Male
• Poor retentive memory
• Reading ,writing disability- reads at 1st grade level
• Verbally proficient, can reason and answer questions verbally
• Has spatial intelligence
• Parents "over support", tend to do homework and projects for him.

Activities:

• Illustrations, drawings and maps are easier for him to interpret
• Use graphs and graphic organizers
• Student needs to manipulate materials, use technology for assessments and to demonstrate understanding

Student 4:

• Female, ELL, has been in the US for a year.
• Has little English, but highly motivated, hard working and intelligent
• Has logical and mathematical intelligence

Activities:

• Conducting expaeriments, inquiry based learning, and presenting findings in a mini-book, diagrams, brochures
• Extensive use of technology for research, and to present findings
• Needs background and vocabulary preteaching

Student 5:

• Male, hispanic, good home environment, no English spoken at home
• Practical, logical, mathematical thinker
• Challenges in speaking and writing

Activities:

• Use diagrams, concept maps flow charts to explain concepts and take notes
• Collaborate with others to create group presentations
• Use graphs, tables, charts to represent data
• Conduct experiments, inquiry based learning

Student 6:

• Male, severe reading disability, problems with math problem solving
• Poor retentive memory
• Good support from home
• Bodily kinesthetic intelligence- highly athletic

Activities:

• Learns best through realia, field trips, hands on activities and experiments
• demonstrate understanding through role play, puppets, creating models.

Student 7:

• Male, strong support from home
• Speech disability, transfers to poor writing
• Mathematical and logical intelligence

Activities:

• Use problem solving, practical inquiry and problem solving situations
• Use graphs, diagrams, brochures, technology for assessments
• Avoid presentations in front of whole class

Student 8:

• Male, unstable home life
• Logical  and mathematical thinker, also a strong reader and writer
•  Emotional Behavior Disorder

Activities:

• Needs a quiet, highly structured environment
• Needs to be kept busy with his hands, as well as to be mentally stimulated
• Create songs, raps, and poems connected to science concepts
• Express ideas thriugh role play, movement, dance

Student 9:

• Female, in Advanced Learning Program
• Strong home support
• Strengths in logical and mathematical thinking, and also linguistic thinking

Activities:

• Exploring probability
• inquiry based learning and problem solving
• research and report writing

Student 10:

• Male, mother works overseas, father doesn't speak English
• Attention Deficit Disorder
• Linguistic intelligence
• poor logical mathematical ability

Activities:

• write short summaries on science concepts, use flow charts and diagrams
• highlight key ideas in notes
• use technology to do research and review concepts

Reflection:

   Gregory and Hammerman state that "students and their life histories should be placed at the center of the teaching and learning process, and that pedagogy should occur in a context that is familiar to students and that addresses multiple ways of thinking". (p. 25)
   Looking at the list of students in my class, there is a wide range of abilities and cultures, levels of English proficiency, and learning and thinking styles. How do I begin to ensure that each child is learning in a way that makes sense to them, and enables them to construct meaning from their learning? This is a daunting task, but there are ways to overcome it. Choice can be provided in the way that students acquire knowledge; this could include reading text, doing hands-on activities, using technology, or using flow charts and concept maps. Assessment can also be geared towards ensuring that students use their strengths to show what they know about a concept. How do we accommodate students from different cultures? We could include important scientists and scientific discoveries from other cultures, to affirm the contribution that all cultures have made to the world of science.
   Knowing about a student's cultural background could also help to explain attitudes to the subject. In some cultures, girls may be seen as "not being good" at science and math. Also, if a student comes from a background where parents are not academically inclined, or have little education, the expectation from home may be low. It would be the teacher's responsibility to create a classroom environment where all students feel they have the ability to achieve success.
   Students who have difficulties in terms of language proficiency may need to have basic vocabulary, beyond that of the standards, explained to them. For example, if a lesson asks students to observe, the students may not quite understand what this means.
   I believe that teachers need to have a thorough knowledge of students' backgrounds, as this helps her to plan lessons and activities that will be relevant and meaningful to all students.