Dr. Barbara Jordan (with Sue Smorti)

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Fearless Science in the Early Years
Co-Construction in a Rural Childcare Centre

• Dr. Barbara Jordan (with Sue Smorti)
• Massey University College of Education
• Palmerston North, New Zealand

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Science is seldom directly addressed in the early
childhood sector

• Activity theory provides the frame and support
  for this report.
• Central to activity theory is Vygotskys (1978)
  notion of activity - a system whereby a human
  subject works on an object in order to obtain a
  desired outcome.
• In doing so the subject employs the tools of
  his/her culture.
• Tools may be internal, such as plans or
  frameworks, or they may be external, such as a
  computer or language.
• Activities are motivated by the desire to
  transform the object into outcomes and tools
  mediate between the activity and the outcome.

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First generation activity
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Mediating Artefacts

• Action research
• Philosophy of fearlessness in science
• Curriculum documents (ECE and science)
• Portfolios of learning stories
• Science domain understandings planning for
  science activities

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Subjects

• Teachers, children and their interactions
• First Years Preschool Inc licensed for 13 under
  two year olds and 30 over twos.
• Two separate groups with their own specialist
  teaching team.
• The over-twos team, won the 2009-2010 COI
  contract.
• This is a well-qualified, stable teaching team.
• The research team 12 over-twos teachers,
  supervisor and manager 2 research associates.
• Teachers-as-researchers drive the research,
  generate and analyse the data and disseminate new
  understandings.

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Object

• To generate evidence of children and teachers
  being fearless and of their learning science
  understandings.
• The central research questions are
• How does our fearless teaching and learning
  approach to science, in a rural early childhood
  setting, involve children and their families in
  investigating real life science experiences?
• How does of the enhancement of teachers own
  understandings of science concepts and processes
  support childrens engagement in fearless
  science?

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Teacher Domain Understandings

• Teacher access to scientific terms and
  explanations is easy
• More of a challenge for some teachers is
  understanding the implications of this knowledge
  for childrens learning
• Concern also relates to the time it takes to
  undertake the research, alongside similar
  research for other childrens interests.
• Also whether or not, and if so, how to share
  science knowledge with the children.
• Children can learn new words, such as herbivores
  (that eat plants and have flat teeth) and
  regurgitate them on demand, may be evidence of
  every-day, though not yet formal understandings
  of scientific concepts or patterns.

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Investigations

• A series of learning stories about the same topic
  over a period of time, provides a record of the
  development of the investigation.
• Teachers use brainstorms, prior to and at the end
  of an investigation a crude indication of
  learning
• Activities included cleaning and re-establishing
  the worm farm, adding moss, compost, newspaper,
  hosing with water and adding the worms regularly
  feeding worms, using the tea to feed plants and
  sometimes putting worms onto the glass table lit
  from underneath, to examine their movements.
• The challenge for teachers was to provide
  evidence of childrens transformation of
  participation, their creative application of
  understandings developed in one situation and
  applied in a novel situation.

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Interactions

• First Years teachers learning stories provide
  examples of their scaffolding of childrens
  thinking.
• The challenge now is for the childs own science
  thinking to be documented in the learning
  stories, alongside that of the teachers voice.
• Authentic engagement in childrens science
  explorations requires a high degree of
  co-constructed dialogue.
• Whether the topic of investigation originates
  with the child or with the teacher is less
  important than that they become co-inquirers in
  making their meanings (Wells, 1995).

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Figure 2 Structure of a human activity system
as employed in First Years Preschool (adapted
from Engestrom, 1987, .78)
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Rules

• Be fearless in science.
• Be holistic.
• Integrate.
• Science and literacy are inextricably linked
  without personal literacy individual children
  will find it more difficult to engage with
  science the partnership between literacy and
  science is two way science offers natural
  contexts for the use and development of literacy
  skills and understanding whilst literacy helps to
  offer the individual access to the exciting and
  challenging world of science. Skamp (2008, p.
  76)
• Co-Construct science understandings.

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Looking After the Worm Farm

• Max has been very interested in the worm farm.
  This is full of tiger worms, which are a
  different breed from our common garden worm.
  Tiger worms are special creatures that only live
  above the ground in mucky organic matter (not
  soil). They have lots of babies, and at a very
  early age, making tiger worms fascinating for
  children to be involved with. Max and his friends
  examined the vigorous, wriggly creatures. We put
  some worms in a jug so Max could examine the
  worms closely. Max was thrilled to be able to
  show his friends the creatures. This is a lovely
  way for Max to share with his friends, as each of
  them took turns to take a glove and hold the
  worms.
• Max poured water into the worm juice (tea) that
  we harvested from the bottom of the worm farm. He
  was VERY careful look at the concentration
  evident in Maxs body position. And heres my
  friend Max ready to pour the worm juice onto our
  plants. This is very special as we had to go
  outside the centre, which is considered a
  privilege by Maxs friends.
• Thank you Max. Youve been so helpful.

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(No Transcript)
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In this one-page learning story, the teacher
demonstrates her attention to many aspects of
both hard and soft learning, including

• Sharing some of her own understandings of science
  content knowledge, with respect to tiger worms
  (that tiger worms are a re different breed from
  earth worms that they live in mucky organic
  matter, produce lots of babies and worm juice,
  which is useful to feed to plants)
• Tuning in to Maxs ongoing interest and
  understandings in the worm farm valuing this
  interest and providing opportunity for further
  investigation through a variety of related
  activities
• Providing positive reinforcement for contribution
  and leadership, supporting Maxs competence and
  confidence in pouring and dispensing liquids, in
  being careful and in concentrating so well.

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Rural Community of Learners

• First Years manager
• teachers
• families
• children
• Parents central roles are central in their
  childrens learning

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Roles

• Parents central roles in their childrens
  learning are demonstrated in the extension of
  understandings about worms and of wider concepts
  such as habitats, in which Minnie and her parents
  engaged at home.
• Minnie was very proud to come home with a box of
  tiger worms for the weekend. She showed Dad the
  worms straight away and explained to him that
  they like wet newspaper and the sort of scraps
  they eat. Min was very specific and told Andrew
  that worms didnt like oranges or yoghurt. We had
  a neat time looking at the worms, when we had
  done Minnie said we needed to put them back in
  their habitat.

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Story from home. Worms for the weekend (September
2008). (Minnie was 29)

• Over the weekend the worms came out frequently,
  we would tip them into a planter tray so we could
  spread them out and see them. We used a jug to
  wet the concrete so the worms could move easily
  we noticed that the worms all followed the path
  where the water had run down towards the grass.
  Three of them escaped into our herb garden and we
  watched them burrow down. One worm was taking
  some time so Minnie wet the ground around the
  worm and covered it over with a shell she said
  they liked the dark. The next day when we checked
  under the shell the worm wasnt there so Minnie
  concluded that it must have burrowed all the way
  under the ground.
• Unfortunately we left the worm habitat out in the
  sun when we went out on Sunday and when we opened
  it up there was a bad smell and lots of the worms
  were not moving. There were a few that wriggled
  when we cooled them with water so we encouraged
  them to burrow into the herb garden. We left the
  still worms on top of the soft soil Minnie
  thought they might burrow down if they were still
  alive. When we returned to check they were still
  lying on the top and not moving. Minnie thought
  that maybe the worms could go to the doctor, she
  said I think the worms might need anti-biotics,
  maybe they do mum We decided that it was too
  late the worms had died so we covered them over
  in the soil.
• Thank you Julie for the opportunity to bring some
  worms home for the weekend. Lots of love from
  Bex.

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Outcome

• Extended understandings in response to research
  questions
• In response to Minnies parents learning story,
  the teachers posed some questions for their own
  research
• Where do the worms eggs come out (of the parent
  worm)? Do they come out of the saddle?
• Considering that worms are hermaphrodites, when
  they mate which worm lays the eggs? Or do they
  both?
• If a worm is left in a puddle will it drown?

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Excited Feedback from Minnies Mum (Minnie now
37),

• What luck! Last night while reading Jack and the
  beanstalk Minnie said that "the castle was the
  giants habitat, aye mum".
• A transformation of participation (Rogoff,
  1998)
• Minnies experiences related to worms, frogs and
  snails led to her use of the generalised term
  habitat.
• And in further creative thinking about the
  giants surroundings she was able to respond in a
  different manner than she would have been able to
  without those prior experiences. I (her Mum)
  asked her what a habitat was "it's just a home"
  she said. I asked what her habitat was, she said
  I don't have one, it's just for animals".  

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Action Research on Contradictions
Reification congeals a communitys practices,
making them less available for critique. Some of
communitys practices are inherent in the
abstractions, tools, symbols, stories, terms and
concepts (Wenger, 1998, p.59) Action research is
an ideal tool for teachers use to identify and
address the current relevance of abstractions
that served earlier guiding paradigms. Action
research change based on evidence Generating
evidence of practice is a challenge.
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• Teachers have yet to demonstrate courage in
  documenting childrens improved understandings.
• Teachers did recognise a parents documentation
  of her childs extended science.
• Contradiction 1 (Figure 2) relates to the
  teachers being less than fearless in this
  component of activity.
• It is expected that the teachers will identify
  further contradictions between many points on the
  model, as their research progresses.

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Conclusion

• A fearless mantra provides a sound foundation
  for science domain learning and the
  implementation of collaborative and holistic
  activity.
• Collaboration with rural families ensures that
  investigations are based authentically on
  childrens interests.
• Holistic science investigations are natural
  starting points for integrated and multi-literate
  learning.
• Teachers require hard and soft science
  knowledge to investigate science with children.
• Community and families work with teachers to
  co-construct understandings across two or more
  generations of learners - a passion for science
  learned in early childhood is reinforced
  throughout life.

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• The soft elements allow science to become a
  fearless and leads to understanding of hard
  elements.
• Children learning respect, curiosity, trust,
  reflection and a sense of belonging, confidence,
  independence and responsibility are key
  attributes of a life long respect for science and
  our environment.

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With thanks for their data and for feedback, to
the First Years Preschool leaders Rebekah
Cooper, Manager Lisa Bond Head Teacher Sarah
Graham and Julie Sargent and to the remainder
of the teacher-researcher team Michelle Mullins
Casey Gilmore Leanne Rider Sarah Newell Jo
Hansen Kelsey Newell and Kristi Withey.
Special thanks also to Sue Smorti, co-Research
Associate in First Years Preschools Centre of
Innovation research.
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• This project has been reviewed and approved by
  the Massey University Human Ethics Committee
  Southern B, Application 09/08.  If you have any
  concerns about the conduct of this research,
  please contact Dr Karl Pajo, Chair, Massey
  University Human Ethics Committee Southern B,
  telephone [phone], ext 6929, email
  humanethicsouthb_at_massey.ac.nz.

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