Abstract
NanoScience and nanoTechnology (NST) is an interdisciplinary field which has attracted science education researchers’ interest due to its contribution in technological and scientific literacy of future generations (Hingant & Albe, 2010). Introducing NST topics in school presupposes that teachers are equipped with up-to-date knowledge and skills in order to teach such cutting edge science concepts in a way meaningful to their students (Anderson & Helms, 2001). A review on therelated empirical studies indicate that teachers do not acquire the competency to effectively facilitate students’ learning in NST topics (Bryan, Magana & Sederberg, 2015). In this view, there is an urgency regarding research on teachers’ education towards enhancing their Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK, Shulman, 1987) in NST topics in order to support them in introducing such topics in school (Jones et al., 2013a). Recently teachers’ participation in collaborative curriculum design teams has attracted major inte ...
NanoScience and nanoTechnology (NST) is an interdisciplinary field which has attracted science education researchers’ interest due to its contribution in technological and scientific literacy of future generations (Hingant & Albe, 2010). Introducing NST topics in school presupposes that teachers are equipped with up-to-date knowledge and skills in order to teach such cutting edge science concepts in a way meaningful to their students (Anderson & Helms, 2001). A review on therelated empirical studies indicate that teachers do not acquire the competency to effectively facilitate students’ learning in NST topics (Bryan, Magana & Sederberg, 2015). In this view, there is an urgency regarding research on teachers’ education towards enhancing their Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK, Shulman, 1987) in NST topics in order to support them in introducing such topics in school (Jones et al., 2013a). Recently teachers’ participation in collaborative curriculum design teams has attracted major interest in science education research literature as they impact on theirprofessional development (Voogt et al., 2011). Indeed, further research is needed on issues regarding the interactions among members and the nature of the design task, in order get an insight on how these settings contribute to teachers’ professional learning (Voogt, Pieters & Handelzalts, 2016). Aim of the study. This study focuses on teachers’ professional development in aspecialized context of a collaborative curriculum material design team. In the framework of IRRESISTIBLE EU-project (http://www.irresistible-project.eu) a Community of Learners (CoL, Loucks-Horsley, Stiles, Mundry & Hewson, 2009) was established to support five in-service teachers in the process of developing a teaching module in NST topics that integrates aspects of Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) and aspects of science communication by utilizing Information andCommunication Technologies (ICT). To accomplish this task teachers collaborated with two researchers in NST, four science education researchers and three experts in science communication which comprised members of the CoL. The aim of this study is to delve deeper on teachers’ collegial interactions in the CoL as they confront with the emerged challenges in the different stages of designing and developing a teaching module in NST topics. The research question that guides this study is: Which are teachers’ interactions in the context of a Community of Learners as they design and develop a teaching module in NST topics and how these interactions prompt their professional change? Research framework. Methodologically this study is based on the Model of Educational Reconstruction (MER, Duit, Gropengießer, Kattmann, Komorek, & Parchmann, 2012). MER brings science content structure and educational concerns into a balance when designing and developing learning environments. The model is based on a constructivist epistemological position of teaching and learning (Duit & Treagust, 2003) and consists of three closely interrelated components: a) clarification and analysis of science content, b) research on teaching and learning and c) designand evaluation of teaching and learning environments. The empirical part of this study was conducted in the framework of the model of Εducational Reconstruction for Teacher Education (ERTE, Komorek & Kattmann 2008). According to the principles of this model, studies on teachers’ PCK equally balanced with the process of clarifying concepts for educational structuring isprerequisite in order to scaffold the guidelines for efficient teachers’ education settings. Research Design. The research design was divided in three interrelated phases and lasted a year-long. In Phase A (Plan and Prepare) members of CoL were familiarized with the aspects of the module, i.e NST, teaching and learning of NST topics, RRI, inquiry, science exhibits development and ICT in science teaching. They visited science laboratories and museums, they were familiarized with nano-products and interactive science exhibits. Furthermore, they had the opportunity to interact withexemplary teaching material used in teaching and learning of NST according to the latest literature review. In Phase B (Develop), the members of CoL shared their ideas for module’s design and a shared structure of the module was developed. In Phase C (Implement & Reflect), teachers properly adjusted and implemented the shared structure of the module in their classrooms, i.e in two primary school classes (aged 11-12), two lower secondary classes (aged 14-15) and two upper secondary classes (aged 17-18). Consequently, teachers shared their reflections with colleagues in the CoL considering students’ reflections, during which the module was evaluated and finalized.Data collection & analysis. The data collection includes a questionnaire on teachers’ views regarding the aspects of the module, video-recordings of the meetings of the CoL, semi constructed interviews, and teachers’ developed modules. In data analysis the Interconnected Model of Professional Growth (IMPG) (Clarke & Hollingsworth, 2002) was used. This empirically founded model assumes that teachers professional change can be triggered in any of the four distinct domains which encompass teachers’ world, i.e External Domain (external source of informationa and stimulus), Personal Domain (beliefs, knowledge, attitudes, etc), Domain of Practice (professional experimentation) and Domain of Consequence (salient outcomes). According to the authors of this model the mechanism whereby change in one domain triggers change in another is the mediating processes of enactment and reflection. Enactment is the translation of a belief or a pedagogical model into action while reflection denotes an active, persistent and careful consideration of something previously encountered. Given the power of the IMPG as an interrogatory tool, criteria were established in order to register the correlations among the district domains of the model as they emerged from the transcribed data. Pictorial representations of theIMPG were developed for every teacher and for each phase of the research design. A comparative analysis among teachers’ pictorial representations was conducted in order to identify the overarching features in the emerged correlations of the domains of the IMPG model. In order to facilitate our deeper elaboration on teachers’ collegial interactions that elicit these correlations, there were quantitative estimates of the frequency in which individual teachers interact with peer-teachers or experts (meaning the researchers in NST, researchers in science education and experts in science communication) in the CoL. Concurrently, the specific topics under inspection duringthese interactions were registered. Results. In Phase A (Plan & Prepare) teachers enacted the information and stimulus received from the external domain throughout their interactions majorly with expertsmembers of the CoL. These interactions focused primarily on issues regarding the teaching material as long as the analysis and the clarification of the aspects of the module that are novel for them, i.e NST, RRI, exhibits. Their familiarization with nano-applications, science exhibits and the exemplary teaching material evoked multiple stimulating dialogues with colleagues, which reinforced them in contributing with new educational ideas regarding module’s design considering students’ perspectives, which they majorly addressed to the plenary of the CoL. In Phase B (Develop), teachers’ enacted the acquired knowledge and the research based educational strategies regarding teaching and learning of NST in their teaching practices given that these aspects were integrated in their modules considering students’ perspectives. In this phase, they interacted majorly with peerteachers in the CoL as they anticipate feedback from colleagues that share the same interest and concerns. The acquired feedback on their proposals and the process ofexperiencing practical alternatives challenged their personal perspectives and influenced their initial intentions regarding the development of a module that facilitates students’ understanding in NST topics. In Phase C (Implement & Reflect) teachers enacted in the implemented modules their refined ideas and optimal teaching practices regarding NST instruction. The implementation process supplied them with valuable feedback on students’ reflections regarding majorly the teaching material, students-researchers interactions and the process of exhibits development. Teachers’ collegial interactions majorly with peer-teachers in the CoL regarding their related experiences on the abovementioned aspects, triggered multiple reflection processes. These processes stimulated them in validating and revising their perspectives regarding the development of a teachingmodule that effectively supports students’ understanding in NST topics. In summary, the findings in this study highlight that confronting to the emerged challenges in the process of designing and developing a teaching module in NST topics, teachers progressively shift their focus for interaction with colleagues powered by their personal interests and major concerns on the emerged challenges of the design task. Throughout these interactions they acquire qualified feedback in order to interpret and educationally reconstruct NST topics in a teaching module that integrates aspects which constitutes an educational innovation for them and reflects in practice research based educational approaches. These interactions evoke processes that promote their professional learning in terms of the IMPG and raise an impact on the process of module’s design and development. Discussion and Conclusions. In the context of a CoL in this study, in-service teachers were engaged in learning activities and processes that challenged their personal perspectives andcultivated their proficiencies in developing teaching materials in order to introduce NST topics in class. The findings indicate that the aforementioned processes updated their knowledge base and broadened their pedagogical repertoire as they enacted the received stimulus and acquired knowledge in their teaching modules. At this end, this study confirms the findings of previous studies (Voogt, Pieters & Handelzalts, 2016; Voogt et al., 2011) which highlight the impact of collaborative curriculum design teams in teachers’ professional development. Another prominent feature of this study is that it unearths the dynamic change on teachers’ interactions with colleagues in the CoL which evoked different sequences of professional change in terms of the IMPG. Furthermore it unveils the special features of the emerged sequences of change in each phase of module’s development, identifying the mediating processes that raise an impact on teachers’ personal perspectives considering the instruction of contemporary scientific topics inschool. Such outcomes are promising in the effort to overcome traditional hindrances in teaching contemporary scientific topics which are powered by teachers’ abstract knowledge on the new science content. To this end, this study contributes in the existed knowledge regarding teachers’ professional learning in NST topics in conjunction with the literature regarding the development of their expertise in collaborative curriculum material design.
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