Science Methods for Unified Elementary ProTeach Students Dr. Rose Pringle, assistant professor of Science Education, and Meral Hakverdi, a Teaching and Technology fellow, are working to create a suite of science activities for teachers and students that incorporate technology into the teaching and learning of elementary science content. This process began by surveying students about their attitudes toward technology. This helped the team to understand preservice teachers background knowledge and their skill in using educational technology tools. In the development process of the science activities, students were observed and recorded while they were doing experiments throughout the fall term in an elementary science methods course. Below are links to some of their activities that integrate science content standards and educational technology. Electricity and Simple Circuits In a lesson on electric circuits, student explore simple circuits, work in groups and construct circuits in different ways. As they work on their project, pictures are taken. Those pictures are organized as assessment tool and uploaded on a computer as an I-movie. This I-movie forms the framework for discussing alternative assessment strategies. Student watch the movie and on the basis of given instructions each student describes the circuits on the movie and tries to answer the question asked on each screen. Through this activity students consider how technology can be used as a tool for assessing science content and see such strategies modeled by their instructor. Electricity and Simple Circuits (QuickTime 1Mb) Germination Students use I-Movie as a continuous data collection tool and as tool to review science content found in the Sunshine State Standards. In this course students explore the growth of flowering plants, observe a variety of seeds, investigate the internal structure of a red bean and consider how to best teach these topics to elementary students. As a classroom project, students observe the growth of seeds from seed to seedling through to flower and fruit. Student keep a log of their plant growth by drawing, measuring and writing a narrative about the changes on their plants. Besides those data collection, they also take images using a digital microscope that are uploaded into the computer to prepare an I-Movie about the growth of flowering plant. Students take pictures for every day until they get picture of the first leaves. After first leaves grows, student take pictures every week until first seedling grows. By using all pictures, they prepare an I-Movie that shows all stages of plant growth. The I-Movie is then used to discuss the content, instructional pedagogy and management strategies involved in such an activity at the elementary level. Science Lesson on Germination (QuickTime, 7.17Mb) During the third year, we continued to incorporate educational technology into the science method course. Specific lesson ideas were changed based on our evaluations and reflections over the previous year. In addition, PASCO probes were introduced and used into graduate level science specialization courses. Foundation of Elementary Science and PASCO Probes: Using PASCO probes, students collected, displayed and analyzed scientific data in real time by using Data Studio software. Emphasis was on comparing traditional measurement techniques and those done with educational technology tools such as the probes. Data Studio software automatically graphed the results of experiments and students appreciated the ease at which they were able to analyze the results, and compare relationships. Xplorer datalogger also gave students the freedom to collect data outside of the science laboratory. The data was then transferred to the computer by simply plugging Xplorer into the USB port. Workshop: This year we continued to integrate educational technology into the science education courses. Where appropriate, educational technologies were used to complement both the learning of science content knowledge and pedagogical knowledge. However, a high point of the year was the development and implementation of a three-hour workshop for SCE 4310. Dr. Pringle and Meral designed the workshop type lesson as part of 'SCE 4310 - Elementary Science Methods for the Inclusive Classroom' to teach pre-service teachers how to integrate technology into elementary science classrooms. This workshop was implemented in all sections of the course. Our main goal for creating this workshop was to provide additional experiences for the students to effectively integrate educational technology into their science lessons. The activities of the workshop were organized around centers and designed to provide examples of different educational technologies. These activities included a self-directed PowerPoint presentation, Software analysis, Digital Microscope, Science Probes, and self-reflection. Workshop handouts (available upon request from Dr. Pringle or Meral Hakverdi) provided instructions and description for each activity. At the center with the PowerPoint, students observed a presentation that provided background information on educational technologies, standards, and science teaching and learning. At another center, the students first observed a variety of Software and then selected one for further analysis. Guided by the worksheet, they analyzed the effectiveness of the software for use in elementary classrooms. During the Microscopy activity, students explored three different kinds of microscope: light microscope, toy microscope and digital microscope. The students prepared their own specimen for viewing as they compared the microscopes. At another center, students investigated chemical reactions and temperature changes using the probes. The last section of the workshop, 'Looking Back -Looking Forward' consisted of questions that required the students to reflect and document their reactions to the workshop, the use of the technologies, and their attitudes toward technology use in elementary classrooms. This workshop allowed the pre-service teachers to deepen their understanding of effective technology integration into elementary science course. In addition, this workshop provided an opportunity for pre-service teachers to explore new technologies.
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