In this study, we explored how science teacher candidates construct ideas about science teaching and learning in the context of partnerships with urban community-based organizations. We used a case study design focusing on a group of 10 preservice teachers' participation in educational programming that focused on environmental racism and connected science to larger social issues in an economically dispossessed Mexican community in Chicago. Using theoretical lenses of humanistic science education, justice-centered science pedagogy, and structure-agency dialectic, we studied how preservice high
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Maria VarelasDaniel Morales-DoyleSyeda RazaDavid SeguraKaren CanalesCarole Mitchener
The ethnography presented by van Eijck and Roth focuses on the activities of people involved in a government funded internship program in conservation and restoration, which was offered by a 'multidisciplinary research center' through a local First Nation adult education center. The internship was designed, in partnership with a local non-profit conservation society (OceanHealth), to appeal to First Nation men and women considering career change, returning to school, or re-entering the work place. The primary aim of the internship was to 'provide authentic science for diverse student
The goal of this study was to investigate the degree to which school-based and nonformal education programs that focus on air quality (AQ) achieved measurable AQ improvements, and whether specific instructional methods were associated with those improvements. We completed a standardized telephone interview with representatives of 54 AQ education programs. Quantitative analysis of these interviews generated three key findings: (1) nearly half (46%) of the programs we studied reported evidence that AQ had actually improved over the course of their projects; (2) most (89%) of the programs we
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Brian JohnsonMichael DuffinMichael Murphy
Learning environment studies acknowledge that learning takes place within the social realm and that social conditions contribute to the quality of both learning and experience. This can be said to be especially true for environmental learning programs. To access information about students' perceptions of their learning environment, a robust instrument for describing and measuring student perceptions of environmental education in place-based educational settings was developed and validated. Focus groups with environmental educators were formed to explore (from teachers' perspective) the factors
How do informal learning organizations work with schools as part of a broader educational ecology? We examined this question through a comparative case study of two collaborative efforts whereby informal arts education organizations, a children's museum and a community-based organization, worked with an urban school district to redefine the provision of educational services for children and youth. Grounded conceptually in organizational theory, our study identified factors that enable and constrain collaboration across the formal-informal divide. We argue that examining the dynamics of cross
This response to Mitchell and Mueller's 'A philosophical analysis of David Orr's theory of ecological literacy' comments on their critique of Orr's use of the phrase 'ecological crisis' and what I perceive as their conflicting views of 'crisis.' I present my views on ecological crisis informed by standpoint theory and the definition of crisis as turning point. I connect the concept of turning point to tipping point as used in ecology to describe potentially irreversible changes in coupled social-ecological systems. I suggest that sustainable societies may provide models of adaptive learning in
This paper discusses three case studies – an exhibition on biodiversity, a hotel water conservation program, and a partnership between a nature center and urban public schools – to establish parameters for designing learning experiences that accommodate the varied worldviews and attitudes of learners. Positive outcomes occurred in all three cases, but could best be interpreted if sub-samples of participants were distinguished based on their readiness to embrace conservation messages. The studies demonstrated the limitations of narrowly defined learning outcomes as benchmarks for success or
The authors of this article discuss three pedagogical approaches, learning community, community of practice and community learning, and analyse their significance for knowledge acquisition and construction in higher education. The authors also explore the roles of technology in creating adequate environments for educators to implement teaching practices supported by these approaches and explain, through an illustrative course example, how technology and teaching methods can be used together to promote interaction among learners and help them achieve course goals.
The article reviews the strikingly divergent viewpoints of intellectuals—scientists and non-scientists—about “Science” and “Technology.” It shows that while scientists implicitly accept the difference between “Science” and “Technology,” to non-scientists that difference is irrelevant. The most important differences between “Science” and “Technology” that lie in their relative scales, outputs and accuracy of predictions are highlighted. The complexity of and difficulty in trying to quantify the contribution of science and technology to economic growth are discussed. Views of science and
The article provides information regarding a community service-learning project concerning the Boulder Creek stream performed by a fifth grade class in Donnelly, Idaho. Topics include the participation of students from the University of Idaho McCall Outdoor Science School (MOSS), the development of the IdaH2O Master Water Stewards citizen science project, and the involvement of the community in the student-led restoration project.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Jennifer SchonKarla EitelDeirdre BingamanBrant MillerRebecca Rittenberg
Although there has been considerable focus on the underrepresentation of minorities in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines and the need for science instruction that fosters diversity, much of the associated effort has focused on the goal of diversity and tended to assume that science and science learning are acultural. We describe a conceptual framework employed in our work with both urban and rural Native American communities that focuses on culturally based epistemological orientations and their relation to the cultural practices associated with science
The increasing need for communicating science to the public suggests that future scientists and science educators should be educated in science outreach and trained to communicate with lay audiences. We present a recently developed novel graduate course, which trains students in outreach efforts aimed to increase the public's understanding of science and of the role of science in our daily lives. In this course, the students, with the help of expert faculty mentors, prepare lay-language presentations about science-related topics of their choice and take the presentations to adult venues in the
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Hannah AlexanderAnna WaldronSandra Abell