Science and Engineering for Grades 6-12 Investigation and Design at the Center (2019) / Chapter Skim
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2 K12 Science Education Past and Present: The Changing Role and Focus of Investigations
2 K12 Science Education Past and Present: The Changing Role and Focus of Investigations
Pages 23-52
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From page 23... ...
These current efforts draw extensively on research from the learning sciences, cognitive psychology, and education as they aim to convey the nature of science and engineering about how scientists and engineers think and work. Science investigation and engineering design as the central approach for teaching and learning science and engineering in middle and high schools is compatible with both the current reform efforts and what is known about how students learn.
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From page 24... ...
that frame learning around engaging students in the three dimensions of science and engineering performance. We also identify some implications for equity and opportunities to promote more inclusiveness in science and engineering education.
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From page 25... ...
history, they went unacknowledged in science education reform until the mid-1980s. Early formal science instruction was for whites only.3 In the mid to late 1800s, education was initially available and accessible only to the wealthy, but later expanded to include the poor for the purposes of socialization and vocational skill development.
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From page 26... ...
These events include the Cold War, launching of Sputnik, standards-based reform movement, and federal policy such as the No Child Left Behind Act. Even though the content of these reforms are featured, it is important to note these events and their impact on science education did not significantly ameliorate the seemingly intractable exclusion, inequality, and inequity related to certain populations.
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From page 27... ...
funded other curriculum projects in earth science, engineering, physical sciences, and elementary science; these projects followed the logic of the earlier curriculum efforts. The influence of this science education curriculum reform movement continued into the 1970s, when the discourse in science education shifted from understanding the structures and principles of the scientific disciplines to developing scientific literacy.
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From page 28... ...
Alongside the goal of scientific literacy for all, a secondary goal for science education emerged in the early 2000s of preparing the future scientific and technical workforce. In 2004, the National Science Board called for improvements in science education that would increase the number of U.S.
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From page 29... ...
has dramatically influenced the current thinking about science teaching and learning. It differs from previous reform efforts by bringing the science practices into the heart of the discussion, not presenting them as a separate goal, and by including engineering practices as part of the conversation.
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From page 30... ...
Classroom instruction consistent with the Framework engages students in investigation as a strategy for developing students' knowledge and skills to make sense of natural phenomena and understand engineered solutions to human problems beyond the classroom. During science investigations, the learner's internal processes, learning contexts, and task engagement converge to foster practices, crosscutting concepts, and disciplinary core ideas into science performances for attaining the major goal of science education articulated in the Framework -- for all learners to use knowledge in preparation for their individual lives and for their roles as citizens in this technology-rich and scientifically complex world.
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From page 31... ...
Science investigation and engineering design offer a promising vehicle for anchoring student learning in meaningful contexts. Interacting with real-word phenomena allows instructional choices that better connect to students' lives, experiences, and cultural backgrounds than science instruction that is focused on discrete facts organized by discipline.
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From page 32... ...
Thus, in this report, instead of using the term "laboratory," we use "investigation" to describe both the threedimensional student science and engineering performances and the central focus of what students are doing in science classrooms to learn. While some aspect of investigation in K–12 education may include doing an experiment in a traditional science lab, investigation consistent with the Framework includes various ways that students can obtain data and information to make sense of phenomena.
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From page 33... ...
While this report does not address elementary students, it also is important to note that successful efforts to improve science and engineering education must begin before students enter middle school so that they are prepared to engage in science investigation and engineering design in the manner described here. Current Views of Investigation The context of this study in 2018 is significantly different from that of the 2006 America's Lab Report.
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From page 34... ...
. These transformations are especially pronounced in middle school. The transition to middle school itself is a significant adjustment because the structure of the school day differs greatly from elementary schools.
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From page 35... ...
middle grades science classes had 30 or more students and 23 percent had fewer than 20 students, according to the National Survey of Science and Mathematics Education (Banilower et al., 2013) .5 Because middle school is such a tumultuous time for early adolescents, many schools and districts have adopted different structural approaches to promote the engagement and success of these students.
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From page 36... ...
, so it is not surprising that middle schools across the country allocate more time in the curriculum and other resources for science learning than elementary schools. The 2012 National Survey of Science and Mathematics Education found that 57 percent of middle school teachers indicated that their facilities were adequate, and about one-half viewed their equipment as adequate.
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. Yet, high school science teachers use textbooks and modules less extensively than middle school science teachers do: less than one-third of high school teachers use them for 50 percent or more of their science instructional time compared to
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. Like middle school teachers, high school teachers often supplement textbooks and modules with other resources or skip parts they deem unimportant.
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. However, other studies suggest that middle school students view engineers as creative, future-oriented, and artistic problem finders and solvers (English, Dawes, and Hudson, 2011)
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. Regardless of test scores or performance, in general, high school and college females do not identify with science or enjoy science and mathematics as much as their male peers (Riegele-Crumb, Moore, and Ramos-Wada, 2011)
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. Research on attitudes toward science and mathematics has similarly revealed that African American and Hispanic students expressed views of these subjects that were as positive or more positive than those of white students (Muller, Stage, and Kinzie, 2001)
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From page 42... ...
enrolled in public elementary and secondary schools was 50.5 percent, reflecting the first time that the percentage of students who were white was less than 50 percent. Additionally, it is projected that the number of white students will continue to decrease, falling to 45 percent in 2026, while enrollments of Hispanic students and Asian/Pacific Islander students, in particular, will continue to increase (McFarland et al., 2017)
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From page 43... ...
For a middle school of 500 students and a high school of 1,000 students, this funding gap translates into $600,000 and $1.2 million shortfalls per year, respectively, for high-poverty districts and $1 million and $2 million shortfalls, respectively, for districts with high enrollments of students of color.
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From page 44... ...
. Moreover, because science classrooms and related equipment are expensive to establish and maintain, these schools also are less likely to have high-grade space and equipment for science (Banilower et al., 2013, p.
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From page 45... ...
Through the use of an integrative framework for learning, teachers are able to leverage the assets that students bring to the classroom through engaging with phenomenon and engineering design. This is primarily because science investigation and engineering design offer a promising vehicle for anchoring student learning in meaningful contexts.
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From page 46... ...
. NOTES: NAEP uses eligibility for the federal National School Lunch Program (NSLP)
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From page 47... ...
International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education, 9, 523-550. Beilock, S.L., Gunderson, E.A., Ramirez, G., Levine, S.C.
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From page 48... ...
. Middle school students' perceptions of engineer ing.
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From page 49... ...
. Science and language for English language learn ers in relation to Next Generation Science Standards and with implications for Com mon Core State Standards for English Language Arts and Mathematics.
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From page 50... ...
. A Framework for K-12 Science Education: Practices, Crosscutting Concepts, and Core Ideas.
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From page 51... ...
. Desiring a career in STEM related fields: How middle school girls articulate and negotiate identities-in-practice in science.
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From page 52... ...
. Increasing middle school student interest in STEM careers with videos of scientists.
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