When I was a high school student, I was interested in science to a point but did not believe that I was cut out for a career in science. In fact, I did not even consider studying science in college until I participated in the Watershed Watch program at UNH. The two-week environmental science seminar was intense. Guided by experienced scientists, students were empowered to build foundational knowledge of basic information and research techniques, and used that knowledge to conduct their own scientific research. My experience in the program took my fledgling interest in botany and turned it into a viable and fascinating area of study. For months afterward, I was excitedly identifying neat plants that I saw to anyone that was around.
My goal is to extend this kind of renewed appreciation and love of science to others. I have always wanted to make some kind of positive impact in the lives of others, and I can think of no better way to achieve this than to be a high school life sciences teacher. By presenting course material in an innovative way that showcases how dynamic and fa...
Professor Valerie Felicity Frizzle, or The Friz, has a very unique way of teaching her class science concepts. Every lesson begins about the same, we usually listen to Mr. Frizzle talk about a topic or do our own research. Then she eventually will get bored and wants to show us “a closer look.” We have been on many
I had the pleasure of observing Mrs. Smith 11tth and 12th grade AP Biology course at St. Paul School for girls. During my observation, I noticed that Mrs. Smith displayed a strong interaction between her and her students. There were no challenges that hindered her ability to effectively communicate and interact with her students. She had a great communication with her students because she listened to their concerns and problems and guided them through numerous strategies that helped strengthen their problem solving skills. For example, a student was working with a microscope and had a difficult time cell staining a certain cell component. Mrs. Smith encouraged her to repeat her process and listened to her while she verbally explained the procedure
Going to college is something that has been drilled into my brain by the public education system since I was in first grade. They obviously did a phenomenal job because here I am, a high school senior, applying to various colleges and universities trying to find the right fit. There are many reasons why I want to go to college, but there is one reason above all others, and that is that I want to be able to share my passion of music with others in hopes of sparking a similar passion inside of them.
The reason I chose upper level Biology and Natural Science as a concentration is I have a passion for nature and science. I think that many times, children are not exposed to these things when they grow up for one reason or another. As a teacher, I plan on instilling a since of appreciation of nature and the environment into the children as much as possible. I understand that there are limitations onto which this can be done including student background, lack of resources, and limited time constraints but I would take it on myself to do what I can learning science as exciting as possible.
I knew I wanted to pursue science, but I wanted to help people as well. I wanted to help people who couldn’t help themselves. I wanted to help those less who didn’t have my luck in the world. During my senior year in high school I helped at the Vannie Cook Hematology Center, seeing those kids made me realize that I could help them. I was aware that I could grow up to change their life. There I realized- I knew I wanted to make a difference for those people, and people who suffer similar faiths. My junior year I changed my cluster to Health Sciences. I never changed it again. In fact, on the next 10 years, I hope to attend Medical
Spurring from a growing concern over the literacy requirements of students in a Middle school science class, Holli Eddins Forrest in “Using Literacy to Engage Adolescents in Science,” asserts that it is not literacy that causes students to “hate science,” but the way in which information is presented. In the article, Forrest aims to analyze motivation and engagement of Middle school children in a Science class, to determine the root of the problem and highlights ways in which educators can cultivate the necessary literacy skills required to keeps students motivated and engaged.
Over the years, I have developed an innovative approach to teaching and conducting research with undergraduates through creating and presenting course materials in both laboratory and classroom settings. In my experience, the best teaching involves concrete, hands-on examples, so I engage students in my courses by encouraging the maximum laboratory participation possible.
5. How did your lesson plan and instruction change over time to consider your student’s language and home culture? How have you ensured that you have made science learning accessible and relevant to
Passion for Family, Community, Business, Technology and Intellectual growth are what motivate me on the daily basis. These are vital parts that have contributed to framing me into the person I’ve become. They have also shaped my short-term and long-term goals in life. It’s critical for one to have a vision for their life and what they anticipate to accomplish. Without a vision or desire there is no hope for one to continue and to purse anything. My experiences with in my passions have helped me aligned my vision for my life. They have given me the valuable knowledge that have set me up for success to get to this point in life.
Over the past 25 years, multiple attempts and efforts have been made to reform and improve education, particularly in science, in the United States. (Singh et al....
...o listen carefully to ensure that kids are discussing scientific ideas, not socializing. The teacher's role is to ensure that students achieve their primary goal: meaningful understanding of scientific concepts. The practices described in this article help bring this about in several ways. When instruction centers on students and focuses on hands-on experience with scientific phenomena, science class becomes an exciting place. When instruction concentrates on the investigation of current problems and issues through scientific inquiry, science class becomes a relevant and meaningful place. When instruction emphasizes the development of communication skills, science class becomes an invaluable place for preparing children to tackle the challenges of adulthood. And the education community owes it to its students to assess their academic progress fairly and accurately.
When we sit in a science class, most of the time we are bored as bored can get. We really do not get a chance to explore on our own to find out what’s really out there. Teachers sometimes are not able to get in depth outside the textbook because they are required to teach that all in the year. That is why a lot of kids do not really get into science because they are stuck to the book all the time. Some kids love science and do not really care about the work they have to do. Environmental science, is more than the book really says.
When integrating Nature of Science into curriculum, assumptions are made about students and instructors. These assumptions include that students are all at the same level in terms of science understanding and concepts as the rest of their classmates, and also assumes that the students learn at the same rates (NGSS: Appendix A). These assumptions are detrimental to science education when focus needs to be on the content being taught rather than teaching background of science as a standalone. Teaching NOS explicitly becomes increasingly difficult when students aren’t given access to proper science learning environments. As mentioned in the High Hopes – Few Opportunities reading, it is stated that, “California students do no typically experience high-quality science learning opportunities[.]” (Dorph et al., 2011). When students don’t have a basis for scientific concepts, it becomes increasingly difficult to teach NOS. America’s Lab Report further expands on the idea that this style of learning is not likely achievable, as “[N]o single […] experience is likely to achieve all of these learning goals.” (Schweingruber et al., 2005) where learning goals is referencing the goals of laboratory experiences that include understanding Nature of Science. Again, when a lack of understanding for general science exists, its arguably much more difficult to teach
In closing, science education is like an invisible force that pushes everything forward. It is not always noticed, but the results of teaching science in schools could be world-changing. Science has helped in so many different industries such as the medicine field where it has been helping throughout the ages to save lives. In addition, if earth science is taught, everyone will live in a world with cleaner air, because more people will be educated to make the right decisions and help this planet. With that it is clear that teaching science education in classes is extremely important for everyone’s future.
Zion, M. & Sadeh, I. (2007, Autumn). Curiosity and open inquiry learning. Journal of Biology Education, 41(4), 162-168. Retrieved from ERIC