Research Critique of A Case Study of Teacher Beliefs in

Summary of Research Study
The researchers, Jennifer Fischer-Mueller and Dana Zeidler, in their article A Case Study of Teacher Beliefs in Contemporary Science Education Goals and Classroom Practices, conducted a case study involving science teachers and students in a classroom setting. Fischer-Mueller and Zeidler tried to determine if teachers who believed that science should be taught as inquiry (Constructivism) rather than instruction based (Cognitivism), actually practiced their belief in the classroom. The researcher (Fischer-Mueller), teachers, and students in the case study were from Souhegan High School in New Hampshire. The researchers used a qualitative research approach, a case study, to investigate “the degree to which teachers believe in the contemporary goals and whether classroom practice is changing in support of these goals is indicated” (Fischer-Mueller & Zeidler,2002). The instruments used in the case study were: surveys, observations, examining types of assessment, and interviews. The survey used was a quantitative instrument to determine the strength of the teachers’ beliefs in the contemporary goals of science education.
Participants
The student population at Souhegan High School is middle class to upper middle class. The school in Amherst, New Hampshire is located in an urban to suburban area. A purposeful sampling of nine teachers netted a group of three teachers who agreed to participate in the study (Fischer-Mueller & Zeidler, 2002). To obtain the purposeful sample the researchers had the nine science teachers complete the Contemporary Goals of Science Education Survey.
The participants in the study were observed in the classroom. Teachers were the focus of the study and h...

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...l Analysis. The researchers coded the data looking for patterns to define categories which is a qualitative in design. The interviews which are also qualitative, were audiotaped and used by the researchers to clarify the teachers’ beliefs, refine classroom observation data, and used to establish a hypothesis and research question used by Fischer-Mueller & Zeidler (2002). The role of the researchers during the interviews is to actively engage the teachers but not illicit a desired response. The interviewer is to question the teachers in order to clarify questions which arose from the observations and further probe the teachers in their beliefs and classroom practices.

Works Cited

Fischer-Mueller, J., & Zeidler, D. L. (Spring 2002). A case study of teacher beliefs in contemporary science education goals and classroom practices. Science Educator, v11, n1, p46-57.