Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Science Teacher Education and Curriculum Development: Questions for Reflection

Reflection directions: Read through the questions and then write a reflection about what you think. Feel free to post ideas in the comments.

Do you have input for teacher education and curriculum development? You might if you are an employer needing employees with math and science skills. You might if you are a parent of a young child. You might if you are a researcher with knowledge of new scientific developments. You might if you are already teaching science at any level. You might if you are a student.

To have a science that educates us for sustainability, many of your experiences contribute to developing and implementing a leading curriculum for science.

Skilled scientists and/or global citizen, we all need science education. To have it reflect the situations of the world and support diverse needs, science education continually needs to be updated. Higher-order thinking skills, critical thinking skills, are necessary to learn what we need to know to be effective global citizens building sustainability.

Science is not easy for everyone. How can the knowledge we need be transmitted? How can people stay current as times change?There is so much to know and more data available every day. How do we not get overwhelmed? How do we use the new technologies to improve science education? How do we account for diversity of experiences, linguistics, and cultures in curriculum design? How do we expand our curriculum and instruction forum to increase multiculturalism?

How can the programs developed engage the learners? How do we imagine better science education programs? How do we evaluate/assess science learned? How do we help individuals, male and female, old or young or in-between, of any culture or race or mixed races, to recognize their potential to do science...to contribute positively to the global community?

How do we use science education to foster the desire to learn continually? How do we encourage use of science knowledge to improve the world?

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