The impact of an immersive professional development program on K-8 inservice teachers' planning and implementation of reform based science lessons and self-efficacy for teaching science in the classroom
Nolan, Margaret D.
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Although reform measures in science education have been promoted for over a decade, teachers' instruction in the K-8 science classroom remains unaligned with the principles of reformed teaching outlined in the national standards. K-8 teachers continue to rely on traditional teaching methods such as teacher telling, worksheets and memorization that are ineffective in developing student's ability to reason scientifically. These findings support the notion that change is needed in how professional development programs prepare K-8 teachers to implement reform based measures in the science classroom. Professional development designers have proposed an alternative model that actively immerses teachers in learning experiences that reflect how they are expected to teach science in the classroom. This study sought to understand the impact of an immersive professional development program on 27 K-8 teachers planning and implementation of reform based science lesson plans in the classroom. A mixed methods design involving quantitative and qualitative data was used to address the research questions. The quantitative data examined changes in teachers' writing ofreformed science lesson plans and efficacy for teaching science. The qualitative data provided insight into a select group ofteachers' implementation of reform-based teaching in the classroom and understanding of how the key imrnersive design elements influenced their knowledge of science and scientific processes. The study findings indicated that the immersive professional development program had a significant impact on teachers' ability to plan and implement reform based science lessons for use in the classroom. Significant gains were found in teachers' ability to write student-centered science lessons that focused on the procedural aspects of an inquiry investigation. Significant gains were also found in teachers' abilities to write reform-oriented lessons that engaged students in processes of scientific thinking associated with inquiry. However, teachers' ability to write lesson that engages students in critical thinking remained a weakness. Further, the study fmdings revealed that the imrnersive professional development had a significant impact on teacher self-efficacy for science, which may have influenced their willingness to implement reform based instructional methods in the classroom.
Thesis (Ed.D.)--Boston University