Sustaining Professional Development: The Influence of a ResearchBased Rationale on Science Teachers

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Sustaining Professional Development The
Influence of a Research-Based Rationale on
Science Teachers Beliefs and Practices

• Thomas J. Diana, Jr., Ph.D.
• Department of Education
• Utica College
• 2005 ASTE-NE Conference Amherst, MA

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Overview

• Rationale for study
• Goals of study
• Context of study
• Research questions
• Description of study research methodology
• Major findings elicited from study
• Implications for science teacher education
• Future research considerations
• Questions

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Rationale for Study

• Current national reform priority in science
  education
• Performance of U.S. students in mathematics and
  science
• Role of teachers in the reform process
• Researchers have argued that teacher education
  programs can and do play a fundamental role in
  recruiting, preparing and supporting future
  teachers in becoming effective school leaders
  (Luft and Cox, 2001 Luft and Patterson, 2002).
• Research has also shown the strong influence of
  teachers beliefs on classroom practices and the
  overall teacher change process (Nespor, 1987
  Pajares, 1992 Richardson, 1996).
• Past research has proposed that learning to teach
  takes place along a continuum of professional
  development experiences (Feiman-Nemser, 2001
  Wilson, Floden, Ferrini-Mundy, 2002).

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The Role of Research in Science Teaching

• Researchers have documented much of what has
  become known as best practice in teaching.
• Effective science teachers promote learning by
  understanding and using research and practices
  known to work (Penick Harris, 2005).
• The goal of the research-based rationale (RBR)
  experience is for science teachers to learn how
  to find, combine, and use these findings
  systematically to inform, guide, and ultimately
  improve their teaching performances.

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Goals of Study

• the exploration of science teachers current
  teaching beliefs and practices at key stages of
  the teacher development continuum
• Preservice Teachers (PT)
• Induction Teachers (ITs) (Years 1-4)
• Post-induction Teachers (PITs) (Years 5)
• the examination of how these beliefs and
  practices are influenced by both the RBR and by
  other factors within the school environment

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Context of Study

• Sample - twelve research participants
• Three (3) cohorts of four (4) individuals who
  were at various stages of the science teacher
  development continuum (PTs, ITs, PITs).
• Each participant was currently enrolled or
  previously graduated from a secondary science
  teacher education program (SSTEP) at a private
  doctoral granting institution in the Northeast
  U.S.

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Research-Based Rationale

• Each preservice student in the SSTEP program
  composes and orally defends their RBR for
  teaching science.
• RBR typically includes the following sections
• goals for science instruction
• student actions consistent with these goals
• teacher behaviors that will lead to the
  attainment of these goals
• student assessment and teacher self-evaluation
  related to these goals and actions (Tillotson
  Diana, 2005)
• Each of these four components are
  research-supported.

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Implementation of the Research-Based Rationale

• Goal articulation
• A scenario is posed in which they are asked to
  picture themselves as a seasoned veteran in
  science teaching with ten years of experience
• Goal reduction
• Students reduce the list to a set of goals that
  the entire class must agree on as being the most
  essential
• Connecting goals to a rationale
• Determine the student actions and experiences
  that are most appropriate if the specified goals
  are to be met
• Exit interview
• Students verbally articulate the ideas they have
  written about in their RBR

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Research Questions

• How are personal beliefs and practices expressed
  in science teachers RBR reflected in their
  current curriculum materials, science teaching
  strategies, assessment practices and classroom
  behaviors?
• What effect do current Secondary Science Teacher
  Education Program (SSTEP) students and graduates
  perceive the RBR experience having on their
  development as science teachers?
• At various stages of teacher development, what
  factors support or impede the teaching of science
  according to the teachers original RBR? A) To
  what extent do science teachers critically
  reflect on their work?
• To what extent are science teachers beliefs and
  practices influenced by education research at the
  various stages of teacher development?

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Research Methodology

• Qualitative research methods
• To determine accurately the preservice and
  beginning teachers beliefs and practices,
  multiple measures consisting of a variety of data
  collection and analysis techniques was used
  (Bogdan Biklen, 1998).
• The constant comparative approach (Glaser
  Strauss, 1967) was used in the process of
  collecting, organizing and analyzing the data.

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Data Collection

• In-depth, semi-structured interview -TPPI -
  Teachers Pedagogical Philosophy Interview
  (Richardson and Simmons, 1994)
• Classroom observation - STAM - Secondary
  Teaching Analysis Matrix (Gallagher and Parker,
  1995)
• RBR documents
• Document analysis (lesson/unit plans, classroom
  artifacts, and curriculum materials)
• Journal entries (pre and post instruction)

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Data Analysis

• Data was continuously analyzed as it was
  collected beginning with PT cohort
• The research questions formed the initial
  categories of data classification
• Data was reviewed in search of key issues and
  recurrent events that then became categories of
  focus
• More categories emerged as more data were
  analyzed
• New themes were defined or redefined as more data
  were collected and analyzed

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Major Findings

• The development of and defense of the RBR for
  teaching science is perceived as one of the most
  influential aspects of the SSTEP program in
  preparing future science teachers to be
  successful in the classroom
• each of the participants in the study reported
  the development of a teaching rationale as a
  highly effective experience in getting them to
  shape their pedagogical beliefs and practices

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Major Findings

• Original RBR documents and TPPI interviews
  revealed that all of the PTs, ITs and PITs who
  participated in the study held conceptual and
  constructivist philosophies.
• STAM analysis and observational field notes
  revealed that five out of twelve individuals
  displayed teaching practices that are consistent
  with their teaching beliefs.

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Major Findings

• Many teacher beliefs and proposed teacher actions
  described in their original RBR document were not
  displayed in their current classroom practice
• My rationale paper was a dream world. What
  things would look like and what I think a good
  classroom environment would look like. And my
  rationale for what I do now is a major compromise
  based upon what things Ive already tried in
  here. Things that dont work versus things that
  do work. (Nick - 9th grade earth science teacher)
  
• Participants from all three cohorts described
  several social and cultural factors having an
  influence on their actual classroom practice.

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Factors Influencing Instruction

• Social and cultural factors expressed as having
  an influence on their current teaching practices
  include
• Administrative pressure
• Unmotivated/uninterested students
• State learning standards and assessments
• Instructional time constraints
• Departmental influence
• Classroom management struggles
• Differences among mentor teachers philosophy

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Conclusions

• The findings of this study provide an
  understanding of how individual science teachers
  beliefs and practices are affected by the
  experience of developing the RBR for teaching
  science.
• The data yielded thus far provides a deeper
  understanding of the extent to which science
  teachers at three key levels are influenced by
  one professional development experience during
  their preservice education.
• PTs struggled the most to maintain
  student-centered practices.
• ITs had the most success in maintaining their
  student-centered practices.
• PITs also experienced difficulty in maintaining
  their student-centered practices.
• This study calls for science teacher educators to
  begin examining the impact of specific
  professional development experiences their
  preservice teacher preparation programs offer and
  determine the influence(s), if any, they have on
  science teachers throughout their career.

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Implications

• Teachers do play a crucial role in education and
  the reform process.
• Teacher education needs to be focused primarily
  on research.
• More in-depth, longitudinal studies
• Greater dissemination of results
• Standards in science teacher education
• Increased research studies on induction and
  mentoring programs for graduates of teacher
  education programs to examine how to best support
  beginning science teachers.

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Future Research Considerations

• Examine how the RBR is implemented into the SSTEP
  and determine ways in which the experience can
  have lasting effects throughout science teachers
  careers.
• Examine how social and cultural factors can be
  diminished so that cohesion may take place
  between science teachers RBR and their classroom
  practice.
• Examine how science teacher educators can
  continually support past graduates.
• Examine further the impact of research on science
  teachers beliefs and practices.

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Questions