Bulletin of the American Physical Society
APS April Meeting 2010
Volume 55, Number 1
Saturday–Tuesday, February 13–16, 2010; Washington, DC
Session Y4: Panel Discussion: What Can We Learn from Physics Teachers in High Scoring Countries on the TIMSS and PISA International Assessments? |
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Sponsoring Units: FIP FEd AAPT Chair: Cherrill Spencer, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory Room: Thurgood Marshall North |
Tuesday, February 16, 2010 1:30PM - 1:33PM |
Y4.00001: Session Overview Invited Speaker: High-school teachers are amongst the most important contributors to the development of the science and technology workforce of the future. Many of the more than 23,000 US high-school physics teachers are not adequately prepared to teach the subject. Only one-third of them, for example, majored in physics or physics education. Can inadequate teacher preparation be a factor in the poor performance of US students on international assessments of their achievements in science and physics? Since 1995 the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) has been administered four times to many hundreds of thousands of students in over 60 countries. TIMSS is used to measure trends in the mathematics and science knowledge and skills of fourth- and eighth-graders. The Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) has been administered three times since 2000, it focuses on 15-year-olds' capabilities in reading literacy, mathematics literacy, and science literacy. TIMSS Advanced (1995) assessed school-leaving students who have had special preparation in advanced mathematics and physics. In all these studies the US students, including the Advanced Placement physics students, scored below the international average, sometimes in the bottom third of countries! Three speakers have been invited to talk about the physics K-12 education systems in other countries, one that consistently scores at the top of the PISA (Finland) or score much higher than the USA on TIMSS ( various Northern European countries) and significantly better on recent bi-lateral comparisons (China). What can we learn from the physics teaching systems in these high-scoring countries that might be applied in the USA? There will be a panel discussion following the 3 invited talks, audience participation will be encouraged. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, February 16, 2010 1:33PM - 1:55PM |
Y4.00002: Physics teacher education in Finland and reasons underlying the top scores of Finnish students on international assessments Invited Speaker: In Finland physics teachers have Master's degree in physics and pedagogical studies (60 cr). In addition they have introductory and intermediate studies (60 cr) in minor subjects, normally in mathematics and chemistry. The degree consists of 300 cr minimum and takes 5 years or more. In Bachelor studies (180 cr), almost identical in all Finnish universities, student teachers do the same physics courses than physicists (70 cr). Few exceptions can be found, e.g. in Joensuu we have two laboratory courses (5 cr) for student teachers. Part of pedagogical studies (25 cr) and some minor subject studies are included in Bachelor studies. Master studies (120 cr) differ more from university to university. Some universities do not make a difference between student teachers and forthcoming physicists but for instance the Universities of Joensuu and Helsinki offer several special courses for student teachers. These special courses include elements from different areas, e.g. the history of physics or the philosophy of physics, or the courses can concentrate on students' pre-knowledge or to foster students' conceptual and structural understanding of physics. In addition master's thesis can be done in the area of physics education. In summary, significant differences between universities can only be found in Master studies. However, there is no evidence that special courses for teachers produce better results than traditional master's physics courses. In fact most of the Finnish in-service physics teachers have done the traditional physics courses that do not include any influence from physics education research. Teacher education is surely one factor underlying the top scores of Finnish students. However, it is not only one and many other reasons can also be presented. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, February 16, 2010 1:55PM - 2:17PM |
Y4.00003: Teaching to Learn and Learning to Teach Invited Speaker: In STEM education, widely accepted teaching goals include not only the development of solid content knowledge but also the development of general scientific reasoning abilities that will enable students to successfully handle open-ended real-world tasks in future careers and design their own experiments to solve scientific, engineering, and social problems. Traditionally, it is often expected that consistent and rigorous content learning will help develop students' general reasoning abilities; however, our research has shown that the content-rich style of STEM education made little impact on the development of students' scientific reasoning abilities. Therefore, how to train teachers who can help students develop both solid content knowledge and adequate scientific reasoning skills has become an important question for educators and researchers. Research has also suggested that inquiry based science instruction can promote scientific reasoning abilities and that the scientific reasoning skills of instructors can also significantly affect their ability to use inquiry methods effectively in science courses. In this talk, I will compare the features of the teacher preparation programs in China and USA and discuss the possible strength and weakness of the education systems and programs in the two countries. Understanding the different education settings and the outcome can help researchers in both countries to learn from each other's success and to avoid known problems. Examples of current research that may foster such knowledge development among researchers from both countries will be discussed. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, February 16, 2010 2:17PM - 2:39PM |
Y4.00004: Are the Competencies of Science Teachers and the Scientific Literacy of Society Essential for Success of Physics Students? Invited Speaker: It is well known that students' interest in physics and technical subjects decreased dramatically in the USA and Europe during the recent years. Why did this happen?? Does the problem lie in wider socio-cultural changes, and the ways in which young people in developed countries now live and wish to shape their lives? Or is it due to failings within science education itself? To answer these questions the Nuffield Foundation (UK) took a decision to examine the actual state of art in science education in Europe and as the result a special Committee in January 2008 published a Report to the Nuffield Foundation on: ``Science Education in Europe: Critical Reflections.'' The main messages of this report are: There are shortcomings in curriculum, pedagogy, assessment and especially in science teacher competencies, but the deeper problem is one of the fundamental purpose. School science education, has never provided a satisfactory education for the majority. Now the evidence is that it is failing in its original purpose, to provide a route into science for future scientists. In such a context, to do nothing is not an option! Thus, there will be some recommendations and conclusions elaborated by the experienced European team of science educators (19) under supervision of Prof. Osborne and Dr. Dillon described, discussed and commented. But as far as the enhancement of ``scientific literacy'' of students and society is concerned, I believe that teachers, in the first place, are the real ``driving force'' of educational change in schools and in the society. Though education of teachers in Europe is very diversified, some patterns can be observed, some trends and examples of good practice identified, and on these I am going to reflect. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, February 16, 2010 2:39PM - 3:17PM |
Y4.00005: Panel Discussion |
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