Provocations for science educators

The Science Learning Hub Pokapū Akoranga Pūtaiao invited classroom teachers and science/pūtaiao educators to discuss science education. They shared their understanding and insights, along with pedagogical practices.

We’ve used these discussions to create short videos – their purpose is to encourage discussions regarding science education. Each video includes pātai/prompting questions to get the conversation started.

Find out more about this project, along with links to supporting resources in the article Inspiring science teaching discussions.

Transcript

The purpose of science education

Science is one of the eight learning areas specified in the New Zealand Curriculum. The curriculum provides ideas on why ākonga should study science as part of a broad general education, with specialisation in years 11–13.

In this video, teachers briefly share their personal ideas on the ‘why’ aspect of teaching science – its purpose and place within their classrooms.

Prompting questions/ngā pātai

What are your ideas about the purpose of science education in Aotearoa?

• Is science about the facts we need to understand the world around us, or does it go beyond this?

• Should the focus be on learning facts or instilling curiosity to want to discover and learn the facts?

• Does the purpose for teaching science remain static over the years? Does it change from primary to secondary? From junior to senior secondary?

Select here to view prompting questions, video transcript and copyright information.

Decolonising science education

An inclusive curriculum recognises and values Indigenous knowledge and diverse voices. Mātauranga Māori and science are distinct knowledge systems that sometimes intersect. These intersections provide authentic contexts for working within and between the two knowledge systems.

Decolonising science places value on mātauranga Māori for all ākonga and honours te Tiriti o Waitangi.

Decolonising science also recognises other Indigenous knowledge systems within the school or local community.

Prompting questions/ngā pātai

• What are some examples of old and new mātauranga/knowledge?

• What pūrākau are associated with your local area? How might you identify and include them in your classroom?

• What other Indigenous knowledge systems feature within your local community?

• What barriers exist to decolonising science in your educational setting?

Select here to view prompting questions, video transcript and copyright information.

Enhancing equity through partnership

Tāhūrangi, on the science of learning, says:

“We learn best when we experience a sense of belonging in the learning environment and feel valued and supported. Students bring with them different cultural identities, knowledge, belief systems, and experiences. They need to see that these are valued and reflected in a school environment characterised by strong relationships and mutual respect. Students’ sense of belonging is enhanced by sensitivity to their individual needs, emotions, cultures, and beliefs.”

Recognising the value of local curriculum and local partnerships can enhance students’ sense of belonging. Engaging in authentic learning builds students’ science capital as they are able to ‘see’ themselves in science.

Prompting questions/ngā pātai

• What does belonging look like in a science classroom?

• What does equity look like in a science classroom?

• What does science look like within an Aotearoa New Zealand context?

• What does science look like within a local context – for example, local research institutes, kaitiakitanga/conservation groups and/or industries/occupations?

• What relationships does your school already have within the local rohe/community?

• How might you begin to establish relationships with local iwi and the local science community?

Select here to view prompting questions, video transcript and copyright information.

Being creative in science education

There’s a common myth that science is procedural rather than creative. In fact, creativity underpins much of science research – from coming up with research questions to novel ways of finding answers.

Teaching science is similar. Educators can be creative in how they lead learning to build key competencies and science capabilities.

Prompting questions/ngā pātai

• As you watch the video, are there words, ideas or phrases that resonate with you?

• How have your teaching practices evolved over time or with experience?

• What are some possible constraints to being creative in science education?

• How does the concept of mātaioho – contextualised local, national and global contexts – encourage creativity in what or how you teach?

Select here to view prompting questions, video transcript and copyright information.

Tackling big issues

Young people need to be equipped to deal with the future they’ll be living and working in.

Socio-scientific issues – big issues – can form rich, real-life contexts for developing students’ thinking, visioning and problem-solving skills, action competence and an array of key competencies. They can also be embedded in local curriculum.

Big issues, by nature, are complex and difficult to solve – and they can be overwhelming to explore as a whole. Breaking them down to focus on one or two questions for inquiry-based learning is a useful strategy.

Enabling ākonga to make informed decisions and build hope for the future should underpin any big issue we tackle in the classroom.

Prompting questions/ngā pātai

• How do you define what constitutes a big issue/socio-scientific issue?

• Are all big issues socio-ecological?

• Can you name some big issues underpinned by chemistry and physics as well as biology and Earth science?

• What big issues do you face in your local area?

• Why is it important to include time to find solutions and be proactive with decisions?

• The teachers in the video were prompted to use climate change as the topic for discussion. Are their comments still valid when tackling other big issues?

Select here to view prompting questions, video transcript and copyright information.

Leading learning through the science capabilities

The nature of science strand explores how science knowledge is created and used. The science capabilities help ākonga develop and build their understanding of what it is to engage with the practices of science.

Explicit teaching and use of these capabilities provide platforms/reasons for learning content and using science knowledge when considering participatory decisions and actions.

Prompting questions/ngā pātai

• What do you know about the science capabilities?

• How do you use them or how have you seen them used in science teaching?

• How do the capabilities bring science to life?

• How do they help students become functional and participating citizens?

Select here to view prompting questions, video transcript and copyright information.

Rich contexts for science teaching

The New Zealand Curriculum is framed within the whakapapa of Te Mātaiaho. One component – mātaioho – is the process by which schools bring the national curriculum to life through local, national and global contexts. Learning locally – Connecting kids to their community outlines the benefits of local curriculum design.

The teachers in this video offer a selection of contexts to springboard ideas.

Prompting questions/ngā pātai

• How does mātaioho add relevance to ākonga and your teaching?

• How might local contexts help ākonga build lifelong learning capabilities?

• What are some rich contexts that you would like to explore?

• What would boost this context from a learning experience to a rich learning experience? Why does this matter?

• Are there local people and/or organisations that you can tap into for expertise?

• How does collaboration with mana whenua fit into planning a rich context?

Select here to view prompting questions, video transcript and copyright information.

Science teaching through contexts

Teaching science through contexts bridges science concepts with real-world situations. A contextual approach can make science more relevant to ākonga as it demonstrates how science impacts their lives and how school learning is connected to their lived experiences. Teaching through contexts also lends itself to cross-curricular learning.

Prompting questions/ngā pātai

• What does science teaching through contexts mean to you?

• What might contextualised science look like for junior students? For senior students?

• Does the school’s overarching curriculum plan enable you to identify opportunities for teaching through contexts?

• How does teaching through contexts support local curriculum?

• How can teaching through contexts draw on different knowledge systems?

Select here to view prompting questions, video transcript and copyright information.

Choosing contexts for teaching

Science teaching and learning is both theoretical and practical. It is also embedded within the culture of Aotearoa and with ākonga who are aware of and connected to local and global issues.

The NZCER report Enduring competencies for designing science learning pathways moves beyond content to competencies that students need in the short term and that are also ‘lifeworthy’:

• Drawing on different knowledge systems.

• Enacting a range of science inquiry practices.

• Working with literacy practices of science.

• Using science for decision making and action.

With all this in mind, how do we choose what to teach? How do we design robust context-driven units? The teachers in this video briefly explain what constitutes a ‘gold standard’ context for their science teaching.

Prompting questions/ngā pātai

• How do you choose what to teach?

• How do school expectations and curriculum coverage influence what is taught?

• Is there a difference between contexts and topics?

• Is there flexibility within the programme to choose contexts for science teaching?

• What are some important contexts for school science? Why?

• How might contextual teaching enable you to design a programme that meets curriculum coverage and content knowledge while growing capabilities and competencies?

• If this sounds overwhelming, what are some steps that you might take to make this type of planning achievable?

Select here to view prompting questions, video transcript and copyright information.

Weaving concepts into contexts

Contexts can be a powerful way to grow students’ content knowledge and conceptual understanding. For example, stream monitoring and assessment involves learning about pH (chemistry/acids and bases), stream flow (physics/velocity), macroinvertebrates (biology/habitat) and substrates (Earth systems/geological characteristics).

The context adds relevance, which might be missing if the content/concepts were taught in isolation.

When choosing a context, consider the underlying science concepts that you want to cover.

Ākonga understanding of concepts tends to build in sequence and become more fully developed over time. Repeated experiences with concepts via a number of topics or contexts enables ākonga to consolidate this knowledge and understanding. By having an awareness of these concepts, you can scaffold student understanding while engaging them in a meaningful context.

Prompting questions/ngā pātai

• What are science concepts? Can you name some?

• Is there a difference between science contexts and science concepts?

• Why is it important to know which concepts underpin a topic or context?

• What does it mean when we say the understanding of science concepts builds in sequence and becomes more fully developed over time?

• Does your current planning system include science concepts? If not, how might you change this to include them?

• The progression model encourages us to engage students with increasingly complex contexts. How can this also build students’ conceptual understanding?

Select here to view prompting questions, video transcript and copyright information.