Identification and Interpretation: A Framework of Naturalistic Epistemology Perceived by Korean Pre-Service Science Teachers

Abstract The epistemology of science and teachers' perspectives on it have been major lines of investigation in science education research. The role that epistemology should play in science education has become increasingly relevant because of its incorporation within some important curriculum reform movements around the world. Improving teachers' perspectives and designing advanced teaching-learning sequences along them have been substantial parts of the science education reform. Such efforts are having been active when a new epistemological position emerged. The present inquiry has been conducted at the interface of these two lines of research. The main focus of the study is analyzing the way Korean pre-service teachers interpret epistemological aspects of scientific knowledge. A questionnaire to explore pre-service teachers' epistemological beliefs was developed for developing frameworks of naturalized epistemology. The questionnaire is composed of items using Likert scale and open-ended items. Two groups of pre-service teachers participated in this exploration: in an elementary teacher education universities and a secondary science teacher education university. Epistemological beliefs of prospective elementary teachers were identified through qualitative analysis of the answers to the open ended questions as well. Suggestions for curricula change and teaching-learning strategies being involved in the incorporation of scientific epistemology are considered

Pest or pastime? Coarse fish in Aotearoa/New Zealand

Freshwater ecosystems are extremely important, both socially and ecologically, in Aotearoa/New Zealand. However, through detrimental practices of land-use change and the introduction of non-indigenous aquatic species, the health of freshwater areas is increasingly under threat. Coarse fish are one group of non indigenous fish that are largely perceived to have a negative effect on freshwater biodiversity and water quality. Despite this, there are people in New Zealand that value coarse fish highly, and consider their lives to be enriched through the practice of coarse angling. This thesis examines the diversity of perceptions and values ascribed to coarse fish by a variety of different environmental managers and resource users to understand how these multiple meanings influence approaches to freshwater biodiversity management in Aotearoa/New Zealand. As coarse anglers are often considered responsible for deliberate translocation of coarse fish, a space for communication and compromise between these stakeholder groups is also identified. Additionally, appropriate and effective educational methods to raise awareness of freshwater ecosystem restoration and non-indigenous invasive fish are discussed. Social factors are often the primary determinants of whether conservation efforts succeed or fail. Grounded in the theoretical perspectives of social construction, environmental perception, political ecology, and critical environmental adult education, this thesis provides an important contribution to the practice of interdisciplinary research by demonstrating the ways in which social science complements scientific approaches to environmental management. Utilising semi structured interviews with multiple stakeholder groups and an internet survey targeted at coarse anglers this research found that, while a multitude of perceptions of coarse fish exist, there is also willingness on both sides to engage in communication and develop effective practices to aid in managing the freshwater environment. A number of suggestions for improving legislation that addresses invasive freshwater fish, and several ideas regarding education and compliance, also emerged

Plenary: Les Kirkup Memorial Presentations

This session commemorates Professor Les Kirkup for his influential work on inquiry learning. Inquiry learning has always been a feature of ACSME conferences, with many of us benefitting from Les’ work and guidance. Les was the recipient of a National Teaching Fellowship in 2011 to pursue this on a wider scale with the project Inquiry-oriented learning in science: Transforming practice through forging new partnerships and perspectives. Further national recognition followed in his discipline, with Les winning the Australian Institute of Physics Education Medal in 2014. Les aimed to make both lectures and labs interactive and inquiry-based, engaging students to think and learn, instead of adopting more traditional “cook book” approaches to science laboratories. He engaged students in groups to design and carry out investigations themselves. In this way, students from first year on experienced the joy of research themselves by learning through inquiry. He recently wrote a defence of the live lecture in Campus Morning Mail, where he argued for the value of live and participatory demonstrations that generated ‘engagement, involvement, exploration and explanation.’ Les was passionate about many aspects of teaching and learning. He was also committed to improving assessment and to supporting tutors and demonstrators. He will be much missed at ACSME for his lively engagement with a range of topics. Les was well known and respected for his ability to ask pertinent questions, maintaining his energy throughout the conference. We hope that this session, with a focus on inquiry learning, and future ACSME conferences will continue to generate such productive and good-humoured debate

The Role of Faculty Mentoring in Improving Retention and Completion Rates for Historically Underrepresented STEM Students

There is a growing recognition of the need for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) workers who provide diverse perspectives enabling companies to keep up with the demands of the 21st -century workforce. Creating a diverse workforce requires improving access to STEM education for historically underrepresented students, including low-income students and first-generation students. However, significant challenges and barriers exist. The purpose of this paper is to showcase an innovative approach to mentoring historically underrepresented STEM students which integrates photovoice and photo-elicitation. This new approach in mentoring takes student participation one step further by asking students to document and share their lived experiences through photographs (e.g., photovoice). Then, photo-elicitation is used to further engage students in discussing what led to their subsequent empowerment in leveraging successes or overcoming barriers. The study was conducted with 19 participants who were primarily American Indian students attending a small college in Wisconsin, USA. The findings suggest students benefited from the mentoring program and perceived it as an enriching learning experience which aided in goal development, accountability, and an opportunity to learn more about strategies for student success. The implementation of this new approach and the results gathered from this study are important as they may inform educational leaders and postsecondary institutions serving historically underrepresented STEM students on supports and strategies that could be carried out on their campuses

Replacing the ‘View from Nowhere’: A Pragmatist-Feminist Science Classroom.

ABSTRACT Despite the importance of having an appropriate, coherent, and defensible philosophy of science, many science teachers have either given this part of their profession little thought or adhere to problematic and outdated philosophies. This article begins by tracing a brief history of the view from nowhere and its adoption by many teachers as the epistemological framework for teaching science. This conception of objectivity and its corresponding philosophy of science are shown to be problematically masculinist, disembodied, and aperspectival. Within this discussion, a new notion of pragmatist-feminist objectivity, as the socially conscious intersection of multiple and diverse perspectives in regard to the lived world, is developed. Finally, suggestions are offered on how this type of objectivity and larger understanding of science could be used in both the pedagogy and curriculum of the science classroom

Enhancing Departments and Graduate Education in Geography

This paper describes the development, implementation, and preliminary outcomes of Enhancing Departments and Graduate Education (EDGE) in Geography, a multi-year project begun in 2005 to study the process of professional development in graduate geography in the U.S and sponsored by the National Science Foundation. As a research and action project responding to the needs of graduate geography programs, EDGE seeks to provide academic geographers with an empirical perspective of disciplinary as well as interdisciplinary and generic skills that M.A./M.S. and Ph.D. students develop as a result of graduate education. Related objectives are to understand how disciplinary skills are applied by geography graduates once they enter the professional workforce in both academic and non-academic professional settings, and to gauge the extent graduate programs are sufficiently preparing geography graduates for those careers. We begin by summarizing the research goals and design of EDGE, highlighting the roles and contributions of geographers and educational researchers, and noting the interplay and synergy between disciplinary and interdisciplinary methodologies and practices. To date, research has focused on: 1) assessing contemporary workforce competencies in professional geography and 2) examining the role of department climate and culture on student experience and faculty development within masters and doctoral programs. Although the EDGE research efforts are still underway, we present some preliminary research findings and discuss the implications of those outcomes for professional development in geography and related social and environmental sciences. Also discussed is the complementary nature of discipline-based and interdisciplinary professional development efforts

Student Learning Plans: Supporting Every Student's Transition to College and Career

Student learning plans (SLPs) represent an emerging practice in how public schools across the country are supporting the development of students' college and career readiness skills. Learning plans are student-driven planning and monitoring tools that provide opportunities to identify postsecondary goals, explore college and career options and develop the skills necessary to be autonomous, self-regulated learners. Currently, 23 states plus the District of Columbia require that students develop learning plans, and Massachusetts state policymakers are considering whether all middle and high school students should be required to develop learning plans. Legislation is currently pending that calls for the Executive Office of Education to convene an advisory group to investigate and study a development and implementation process for six-year career planning to be coordinated by licensed school guidance counselors for all students in grades 6 to 12.The purpose of the policy brief Student Learning Plans: Supporting Every Student's Transition to College and Career is to provide policymakers in Massachusetts with a better understanding of what student learning plans are as well as how and to what extent their use is mandated in other states. The brief is organized into five major sections: an overview of SLPs and the rationale for their use in public K-12 education; an overview of the research on the effectiveness of SLPs on improving a variety of student outcomes, including engagement, responsibility, motivation, long-term postsecondary college and career planning; current state trends in mandating SLPs for all students, including the structure and implementation of SLPs, their connection to other high school reform initiatives and their alignment with state and federal career awareness and workforce development initiatives; promising implementation strategies; and, considerations for state policymakers.Considerations for Massachusetts policymakers include: learn from states that are pioneers in the implementation of SLPs for all students; develop a comprehensive implementation plan; and, strengthen career counseling and career awareness activities in Massachusetts schools.The policy brief was the subject of discussion during a public webinar on June 30, 2011

Improving Community Advisory Board Engagement In Precision Medicine Research To Reduce Health Disparities

Community Advisory Boards (CABs) are used in efforts to reduce health disparities; however, there is little documentation in the literature regarding their use in precision medicine research. In this case study, an academic-CAB partnership developed a questionnaire and patient educational materials for two precision smoking cessation interventions that involved use of genetic information. The community-engaged research (CEnR) literature provided a framework for enhancing benefits to CAB members involved in developing research documents for use with a low-income, ethnically diverse population of smokers. The academic partners integrated three CEnR strategies: 1) in-meeting statements acknowledging their desire to learn from community partners, 2) in-meeting written feedback to and from community partners, and 3) a survey to obtain CAB member feedback post-meetings. Strategies 1 and 2 yielded modifications to pertinent study materials, as well as suggestions for improving meeting operations that were then adopted, as appropriate, by the academic partners. The survey indicated that CAB members valued the meeting procedure changes which appeared to have contributed to improvements in attendance and satisfaction with the meetings. Further operationalization of relevant partnership constructs and development of tools for measuring these aspects of community-academic partnerships is warranted to support community engagement in precision medicine research studies

Considering Teaching Excellence in Higher Education: 2007-2013: A Literature Review Since the CHERI Report 2007

No abstract available

ILR Faculty Publications 2014-15

The production of scholarly research continues to be one of the primary missions of the ILR School. During a typical academic year, ILR faculty members published or had accepted for publication over 25 books, edited volumes, and monographs, 170 articles and chapters in edited volumes, numerous book reviews. In addition, a large number of manuscripts were submitted for publication, presented at professional association meetings, or circulated in working paper form. Our faculty's research continues to find its way into the very best industrial relations, social science and statistics journals.FacultyPublications_2014_15_final.pdf: 24 downloads, before Oct. 1, 2020