Curriculum

1
Characterizing the Quality of Second-Graders
Observations and Explanations .Carrie J. Beyer,
Elizabeth A. Davis, School of Education,
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
Introduction
Results Discussion

• Inquiry Practices of Interest in this Study
• Recording observations describing objects
  events in the natural world
• Constructing explanations using data as
  evidence in support of a claim
• Benefits of Recording Observations and Building
  Explanations
• Is central to the work of scientists (Driver et
  al., 1994)
• Enhances students understanding of science
  concepts, the nature of science, and methods of
  investigation (Bell Linn, 2002 Sandoval
  Reiser, 2004).
• Struggles Strengths
• Fostering explanations is challenging for
  teachers (Newton, Driver, Osborne, 1999)
• Engaging in these inquiry practices is difficult
  for students (McNeill et al., 2006).
• However, findings show that even elementary
  students can
• distinguish between inference and observation
  and
• draw conclusions from data
• when provided with support from curriculum
  materials and teacher guidance (Herrenkohl
  Guerra, 1998 Metz, 2000).
• Purpose of Study
• To describe early elementary students
  observations and explanations and their struggles
  in order to inform the design of educative
  curriculum materials to support both student and
  teacher learning about these two inquiry
  practices.

Students Drawings of their Observations

• Analyzed drawings for accurate size, accurate
  shape, details, and use of color.
• Half of the students met at least 3 drawing
  criteria.
• Thus, students were fairly successful in using
  drawings to record their observations.
• However, students sometimes failed to draw
  objects to size and include detail and color in
  their drawings.

• Students Descriptions of their Observations
• Analyzed descriptions for
• Sufficiency (i.e., two or more details)
• Appropriateness (i.e., clear, accurate,
  objective, non-inferential, relevant details)

• Students Explanations
• Analyzed claims and evidence for
• Accuracy (i.e., scientifically correct and
  relevant)
• Completeness (i.e, ideas logically connected no
  inference required by the reader)
• .
• Many students (54) stated accurate, complete
  claims.
• However, few students (19) provided accurate,
  complete evidence, despite the supports in the
  worksheets.

• Most students (74) gave at least 2 details.
  Therefore, students were fairly successful in
  providing a sufficient number of details in their
  descriptions.

Examples of Students Evidence Claim Plants need
sunlight. Range of Evidence Given by Students

• However, less than half of the students (39)
  used only appropriate details. In particular,
  students struggled most with providing clear
  details.

Methods

• Therefore, providing appropriate details in
  their descriptions was challenging for students,
  especially with giving clear details.

Implications Informing the Design of Educative
Curriculum Materials

• Student supports
• Drawings Provide large spaces prompts for
  labels.
• Descriptions Provide prompts that ask students
  to state what part of the object they are looking
  at before having them describe it and prompts
  that guide students to use the drawing criteria
  to develop descriptions.
• Explanations Provide prompts that help students
  use their descriptions drawings to explain how
  they know their claim is right.
• Explain the importance of these inquiry practices

• Teacher supports
• Drawings Provide a list of drawing criteria
  with descriptions.
• Descriptions List description criteria
  lesson-specific examples.
• Explanations Provide examples of possible
  student explanations.
• Explain the importance of engaging students in
  these inquiry practices

What I Learned About How Seeds Move Day 3
Designing My Own Seed 1. My seed depends on
_________ to move. 2. Explanation During your
seed activities, what did you do or see that
makes you think that your seed can move in this
way? I think my seed can move in this way
because__________________.
Example of Student Supports for Explanations
This research is funded by the National Science
Foundation through a PECASE / CAREER Award grant
number REC-0092610 and the Center for Curriculum
Materials in Science, a CLT, grant number
0227557.
Curriculum Access System for Elementary Science