Education Commons^™

Fostering Preservice Teachers' "Nature Of Science" Understandings In A Physics Course, Ehsan Kattoula, Geeta Verma, Lisa Martin-Hansen

Geeta Verma

In this paper, the authors examine an algebra-based physics course designed for preservice teachers and explore how the course integrated two pedagogical strategies to bridge the gap between inquiry-learning experiences and the teachers' nature of science (NOS) understandings. The results of this research show that the explicit, reflective process allowed participants to examine their NOS understandings, which thereby fostered changes in their understanding.

Examining The Mediation Of Power In A Collaborative Community: Engaging In Informal Science As Authentic Practice, Anton Puvirajah, Geeta Verma, Horace Webb

Geeta Verma

Focusing on the interplay of context and language, this study examined a group of high school students and their mentors’ use of language during a robotics competition. This informal setting allowed us to gain insights into the mediation and manifestation of power within the group. Using critical discourse analysis of competition transcripts and interviews we found that both students and mentors felt a sense of ownership and community leading to symmetry in power amongst them. The shift in power led to greater student ownership and agency and created a space for authentic and meaningful science learning. The context of the …

Middle Grade Teachers’ Perceptions Of Their Chemistry Teaching Efficacy: Findings Of A One Year Long Professional Development Program, Issaou Gadp, Geeta Verma, Doris Simonis

Geeta Verma

A professional development (PD) program, Conceptual Chemistry for Middle School Teachers, was designed to facilitate teachers’ learning and teaching of basic chemistry concepts. This study explored (a) whether the PD increased teachers’ self-efficacy and teaching outcome expectancy and (b) how the PD program influenced teachers’ chemistry content knowledge and attitudes toward learning chemistry concepts. Thirty-six teachers (N = 36; 26 women, 10 men) who taught grades 5-9 were selected from a population of science teachers in north eastern Ohio. A mixed method approach was used in the study and qualitative and quantitative data were collected and analyzed simultaneously. The quantitative …

Enacting Acts Of Authentication In A Robotics Competition: An Interpretivist Study, Geeta Verma, Anton Puvirajah, Horace Webb

Geeta Verma

While the science classroom primarily remains a site for knowledge acquisition through teacher directed experiences, other sites exist outside of the classroom that allow for student generation of scientific knowledge. These sites provide opportunities for linguistic and social interactions to play a powerful role in situating students' science learning experiences. Augmenting students' formal school science experiences with informal experiences outside of the classroom enables them to intersect their personal knowledge with canonical disciplinary knowledge. This allows for conditions of practice that are more relevant to the students. In this study we introduce the notion of acts of authentication to examine …

Embracing Learner’S Ideas About Diffusion And Osmosis: A Coupled-Inquiry Approach, Ryan Sweeney, Lisa Martin-Hansen, Geeta Verma, John Dunkhase

Geeta Verma

Learning about osmosis and diffusion is often a challenging task for middle school students. Here the authors present a lesson that was converted from a “cookbook” lab (McLaughlin and Thompson 2007) into a more inquiry-oriented lab that uses inquiry teaching strategies and hands-on investigations to teach middle-grade students about osmosis and diffusion.

Wind Solvers: A Conventional Wind Vane Activity Becomes An Opportunity For Problem Solving, Ryan Sweeney, Geeta Verma, Lisa Martin-Hansen

Geeta Verma

Weather happens all around us every day. Students can take for granted the different elements of the weather that they experience. Measuring real weather provides a nice opportunity for data collection and problem solving when students work to create a procedure before they gather data. It is also a powerful way to get students to notice the weather. As we collaboratively created a unit on weather and taught it in a fourth-grade classroom, we took the common activity of having students construct a wind vane a step further. In this lesson, the data collection process is changed from a "cookbook …

Narrating International And National Trends In Us Science Education: An Autobiographical Approach Showcasing Dr. Robert Yager, Geeta Verma, Lisa Martin-Hansen

Geeta Verma

This biographical piece is based on a conversation involving Bob Yager, Geeta Verma, and Lisa Martin-Hansen which took place at the National Association for Research in Science Teaching (NARST) conference in March, 2008. The unique aspect of this autobiographical piece is that it highlights Dr. Yager's account about the emergence of the science education field of study and his engagement with the field over a period of more than 50 years. The piece is organized using conversation topics through a biographical narrative format that starts at the beginning of Dr. Yager's career, establishing science education at The University of Iowa, …

Http://Www.Ejmste.Com/V4n4/Eurasia_V4n4_Verma_Martin-Hansen.Pdf, Geeta Verma, Lisa Martin-Hansen

Geeta Verma

No abstract provided.

Influence Of A Science-Focused After-School Program On Underrepresented High-School Students' Science Attitudes And Trajectory: A Survey Validation Study, Anton Puvirajah, Geeta Verma, Hongli Li, Lisa Martin-Hansen

Geeta Verma

As engagement with science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) increases in after-school programs (ASPs), it is important to examine the impact of this engagement on students' academic achievement, STEM participation, and affinity toward STEM. Results of these examinations can offer insights into both best practices that could be replicated and possible poor practices that could be avoided in ASP sites. This study describes the validation process that was undertaken on an instrument developed to measure science-related attitudes, and education and career trajectories of students participating in a STEM-focused ASP. We then use the validated instrument to draw certain conclusions about …

Using Scholarship Of Teaching And Learning (Sotl) To Inquire Into Pre-Service Teachers’ Science Lesson Planning Considerations, Geeta Verma

Geeta Verma

This paper shares my experiences with the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) framework in my university science methods course. Incorporating SoTL not only enabled me to inquire into my own teaching as a scholarly activity but also engaged my students in critical reflections. I used the principles and characteristics of SoTL to design this inquiry by a) creating a new instructional framework for lesson planning; b) facilitating students’ reflections on their experiences with the new framework; and c) documenting and presenting this inquiry as a scholarly activity. Forty-eight pre service teachers (N = 48), 43 women and 5 men …

Colonial And Postcolonial Science In India: Reenacting And Replaying Similar Themes In The Us [Book Chapter], Geeta Verma

Geeta Verma

No abstract provided.

Science And Society In The Classroom: Using Sociocultural Perspectives To Develop Science Education, Geeta Verma

Geeta Verma

In 21st-century America, one of the goals of the education is to successfully prepare students for their meaningful, sustained, and robust participation in a democratic society. In the context of K–12 science education, this means educating students so that they develop into future adult citizen capable of considering and deciding on conflicting issues and policies influenced by science, technology, and sustainability issues. The challenge for science education is thus to find successful ways to integrate content, pedagogy, and citizenship education.

It is important to examine curricular approaches in science classrooms since most of the science education a student receives take …

Critical Mass In The Teacher Education Academy: Symbiosis And Diversity, Gertrude Tinker Sachs, Geeta Verma

Geeta Verma

Critical Mass in the Teacher Education Academy is a book that will generate a great deal of conversation about the value and contributions of teacher educators in preparing the next generation of teachers and teacher educators. Our work in the field of teacher education is ultimately grounded in who we are, where we have come from, and the extent to which we are prepared to acknowledge and critique our learning experiences. This book affirms the value of theorized self-critique and critical reflection in anchoring the field to empower educators to be active agents of change for the greater good. The …

Dps Exemplary Schools Case Study: A Cross-Case Analysis, Honorine Nocon, Alan Davis, Tracy Keenan, Ruth Brancard, Barbara Dray, Heather Johnson, Kara Mitchell, Sally Nathenson-Mejia, Nancy Shanklin, Sheila Shannon, Shruti Poulsen, Maria Thomas-Ruzic, Ron Tzur, Geeta Verma

Geeta Verma

No abstract provided.