Primary teachers’ experiences of engaging in professional development to develop science inquiry skills across the curriculum

Griffiths, J., Christodoulou, A., Stevens, C., Gray, S. and Denley, P. (2015) Primary teachers’ experiences of engaging in professional development to develop science inquiry skills across the curriculum. European Science Education Research Association (ESERA), Helsinki, Finland. 31 Aug - 04 Sep 2015.

Abstract

Science education should offer students the opportunity to learn and engage with the practices of science across their formal education years. However, there still exist concerns that elementary science is being undermined as a core subject of the curriculum and that elementary school teachers are not well-equipped or confident to teach science. This study aimed to investigate the effect of a collaborative, cross-curricular professional development program on 11 elementary school teachers’ skills and attitudes towards teaching inquiry-based science. This professional development program involved the ?collaboration between a Higher Education Institution, an innovative museum/science centre, and practising scientists for supporting and developing the teachers’ cross-curricular inquiry teaching ?skills. The main themes emerging from the teachers’ narratives on taking part in the action research project were views of scientific inquiry, alternative means of assessment and impact on students. Student impact was a guiding factor throughout, and features such as the scientist-teacher collaboration both in and out of school had a positive effect on the teachers’ views of scientific inquiry and facilitated their motivation to teach science inquiry. Implications for in-service professional development are discussed

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Contributors

Author: A. Christodoulou

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