SCED 550
Current Issues & Research in Science Education
Prerequisite: Admission to Science Education M.S. program.
SCED 550 is a core course required of all Science Education M.S. candidates.
This survey course introduces students to the body of research and
practical knowledge shared by the science education community. Course
work includes studying and discussing articles chosen from the science
education literature relevant to key issues in science education.
(Course requirements include attending local, state, or national science
teachers conventions.) BASIC INFORMATION Semester: Fall 2004 Instructor: Alan Colburn Classroom: PH1-218 Meeting Time: W 4:00-6:50 p.m. Office: FO5-132 Office Hours: Tu, Th 11-12. These times don't work well for most of you, I know, but I usually respond to e-mails quickly, and I am on campus almost every day. Let me know when you want to come. Telephone: 562 985 5948 E-mail: acolburn@csulb.edu OVERVIEW OF THE COURSE & COURSE GOALS Welcome to the CSULB M.S. program in Science Education! This course is first in the three-course sequence
that is at the heart of the Science Education M.S. degree. ScEd 550
is designed to introduce you to the field of science education as
a scholarly discipline. In this class you will study things like science
education's history, current issues in our field, and become familiar
with the reasons we study these problems. You’ll get to know some
of the journals making up our professional literature and meet local
science education leaders. You’ll explore new issues, including those
that might become the basis for your thesis/project, while simultaneously
building upon the knowledge you gained during your credential program
and time in the K-12 classroom. My overarching mission is to create a class introducing
you to the big picture of science education. I want to help you see
your profession through a different lens. The goal is not to replace
your day to day classroom viewpoint, but to enhance it. The ability
to see your profession with various viewpoints is a necessary quality
for any educational leader. And creating educational leaders is one
of the overarching goals of the CSULB M.S. in Science Education program. This 'big picture' viewpoint includes things like
thinking about your discipline’s history, understanding how and why
people have justified science being part of the school curriculum,
the major issues to which we attend, seeing the kinds of things written
in various journals, learning about beginning teachers and induction
(since they are the group many science educators often work with),
what's going on with science education at the state and national levels,
etc. As one of my colleagues said, the purpose of the
class (and indeed the entire M.S. program) is for you to head toward
a point where you can hold your own when talking with anyone
about science teaching and the science education discipline! REQUIRED COURSE MATERIALS Text: DeBoer, G.E. (1991).
A History of Ideas in Science Education: Implications for Practice.
New York, NY: Teacher’s College Press. This text is available at
the university book store. It’s a paperback book that costs ~$25. Optional Text: Colburn, A. (2003). The Lingo of Learning:
88 Education Terms Every Science Teacher Should Know. Arlington, VA:
NSTA Press. I put this on the list solely for students who feel intimidated
by a lack of science education background. If you have never had a
Science Methods course, you might find the book a handy reference.
It's in the library at Q181 .C5265. ASSIGNMENTS & ASSESSMENT Course grades will be based on these assignments: • Reading, participation, short essays (20%): With a class this small, you will definitely participate extensively. If you’re unprepared for class for some reason, it will be pretty obvious. Sometimes you will be responsible for developing guiding questions to examine and clarify readings (perhaps posted on-line for classmates to read prior to their reading of the assignment), providing a summary of articles, or leading a portion of the weekly seminar. There’s also times when you will be responsible for finding an article(s) for everyone in the class to read. The class will also include a few small essays. I'll assign them as the class goes on, and post the information below. These assignments are short--one page maximum--and designed to get you thinking about issues. For these short essays I'll be grading on the basis of simple effort + cogency. A student will receive an A if it looks to me like s/he responded in a way reflecting serious thought, written clearly: Essay #1: As you begin your study toward an M.S. in Science Education you probably have ideas about the goals of science education, i.e., the reasons schools should offer science, and why students should take science. We'll brainstorm a list in class. Afterwards, choose a goal that seems particularly important to you and write a paragraph supporting the value of this goal for all citizens. Essay #2: Write a short essay around this sentence stem: 'When someone leaves my class they will think science is…' (How do you think your students define science, after being with you for a year?) If you're not content with the picture of science your students are currently receiving, then continue your essay around this sentence stem: 'Someday, when someone leaves my class I hope they will think science is..." (How would you like students to define science, after being with you for a year?) Essay #3: This short essay builds on what you wrote for Essay #2. Based on this last essay, now go on to write about 'I feel good about this because...' (Why do you think it's important for your students to define science the way they do? What's your rationale?) • DeBoer Assignment (15%): Teachers often think of education as being rather faddish. Ideas come and go. Most 'new' science teaching methods or ideas are, in fact, quite old--as you know, having now read DeBoer's book. Choose an educational outcome (goal) or broad instructional technique (method) that you advocate strongly. First, provide a brief justification for your goal/method. If you picked a goal, very briefly describe accompanying methods & if you picked a method, very briefly describe one or two supported goals. Next, based on your reading of DeBoer's book, outline when your goal/method was more and less supported, along with examples or other support. You don't need to write lengthy descriptions or provide long quotes; I read the book. Finally, try to figure out (social) conditions that tend to lead to or support your goal/method. Under what conditions does (or will) it fluorish? Also, what conditions lead to the goal/method being de-emphasized? See if you can predict when your goal/method will return to the forefront of discussions about educational reform. • Curriculum Project (20%): Today's hands-on science curricula owe a lot to their predecessors from the 1960's. Many still popular activities were created for these projects. The purpose of this assignment is for you to become familiar with one of the successful "alphabet soup" curricula (so named because they were know via acronyms), and educate your classmates about the project. You'll ultimately write a paper (and give a presentation) in which you provide this information:
• Conference Proposal (10%). Students are required to present at a conference sometime
before receiving their M.S. For this assignment you will submit a
presentation proposal, or at least complete the proposal for a hypothetical
presentation you will hopefully give someday soon. Beside the proposal
you’ll also provide: a list of the materials needed for the presentation,
an outline of the presentation, and copies of handouts you’ll give
attendees. • Mini-literature review (35% for paper+presentation): You will conduct a literature
review for a specific science education issue. You will present your
findings in class—in a manner similar to that of a paper presented
at a conference—and submit a scholarly literature review paper.
The paper should include comparison between research-oriented
and practitioner-oriented articles on the same topic. The presentation
will include discussion about the classroom implications of research
articles. Examples of research-oriented journals available at CSULB include:
Journal of Science Teacher Education, Journal of Research in Science
Teaching, School Science & Mathematics, Science Education, Educational
Leadership, and Phi Delta Kappan. Just about any topic, with instructor approval, is fair game. Examples include—but are not limited to:
This
assignment is an opportunity for to to explore a topic area you would
like to understand better. As you think about this assignment, think
also about your thesis/project. No one expects you to know what you’re
going to do for your thesis at this stage of your grad student time!
In fact, classes like ScEd 550 give you the chance to think about
and explore various ideas. However, if you have a broad sense of area(s)
you would like to investigate,
COURSE POLICIES Deadlines Assignments are expected
to be handed in on time. Late assignments will be marked down unless
arrangements have been made with the instructor before the assignment
is due. Attendance,
Participation Attendance and participation are essential components
of this course. If you don't come, and talk, class won't work! You
and your classmates' ideas need to be heard for individual and collective
growth to occur. As such, your final course grade will reflect your
level of attendance and participation: an "A" student will
have attended virtually all classes and participated in each. I
understand, of course, that things happen. I don't want you coming
to class if you have a contagious disease, for example! So, you can
miss one class session (of 15 total) without a penalty. However, if
you miss two sessions you will have missed more than 10% of the total
class time. In a class like this, you can't miss that much class and
learn as much as if you were present and participating. Thus, your
final grade will decrease 5% if you miss two class sessions, 10% if
you miss three class sessions, etc. If you know weeks beforehand that
you will miss a class, please let me know. Grading Traditional
grading only. Attendance and participation in class are required.
Clear communication is important as well as the ability to synthesize
complex ideas. Students earning an A will demonstrate excellent written
and oral communication skills and an ability to think critically about
issues related to science education. Disability Students with disabilities
who need reasonable modifications, special assistance, or accommodations
in this course should promptly direct their request to the course
instructor. If a student with a disability feels that modifications,
special assistance, or accommodations offered are inappropriate or
insufficient, s/he should seek the assistance of the Director of Disabled
Student Services on campus TENTATIVE COURSE SCHEDULE You and I will fill in certain schedule details as the
course progresses.
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