Implementing Reform: Teachers’ Beliefs about Students and the Curriculum Tara Bartiromo and Eugenia Etkina GSE Rutgers University NSF DRL TeacherTeaching Experience Grade Level and Subject Teacher TrainingExperience with Curriculum KP2.5 years9 th grade physics Certified through alt. route program. PhD in physics. Didn’t help develop PUM, no experience with ISLE. HD4 years9 th grade physics Certified in physics through physics education program at large university. Strong physics background + methods courses. Didn’t help develop PUM, grad classes with ISLE. AR5 years8 th grade MS science Certified in MS science through K-8 program at liberal arts college. Physics background through methods courses. Helped develop PUM, grad classes with ISLE. CK3 yearsHS conceptual physics Certified in physics through physics education program at large university. Avg. physics background + methods courses. Helped develop PUM, grad classes with ISLE. DJ6 yearsHS college prep physics Certified in HS physics through program at liberal arts college. Avg. physics background + methods courses. Helped develop PUM, grad classes with ISLE. Set-Up and Data Collection Thirty teachers implemented the PUM curriculum. We collected field notes and RTOP scores while observing teachers implement PUM. Data Analysis We wrote Summaries of interviews for each teacher. We wrote Narratives for each teacher based on RTOP scores and field notes. Lesson Goals Classroom Culture Curriculum Implementation and Beliefs We developed Reformed-Not- Reformed continua for each behavior and belief. Placed teachers along continuum based on interview summaries. Placed teachers along continuum based on narratives and RTOPs. TeacherKPHDARCKDJ # of Lessons Observed Mean RTOP Score Standard Deviation Interview Data Continuum Table Lesson Goals Understanding and application of concepts. AR CK DJKPHD Covering content/material. Classroom Culture Teacher supports students’ investigations. AR CK DJ HDKP Teacher leads students through lessons. Students engaged in discussing their ideas. AR CK DJHD Discussions are run by teacher. Students need space to struggle and learn on their own. AR CK DJ HD KP Students need teacher’s guidance. Curriculum Implementation and Beliefs Discusses strengths of the curriculum. AR CK DJ KP HD Discusses flaws in the curriculum. Teach non-PUM units using ISLE framework. AR CK DJ KPHD Teach non-PUM units differently than PUM. Curriculum materials challenge all learners. (DJ and CK – N/A) ARKPHD Materials don’t match all ability levels. This study investigates the implementation of scientific inquiry practices in the classroom in the context of the new Physics Union Mathematics (PUM) curriculum. Extensive field notes and RTOP scores from classroom observations and interviews provided us with multiple perspectives on the goals of instruction, the teacher’s roles, and the students’ roles in the classroom. We show how teachers’ perceptions of the goals of instruction, their roles, and students’ roles in the classroom compare with their actual behaviors and affect what happens in the classroom. Narrative Data Continuum Table Lesson Goals Understanding and process skills. AR CK DJ KP HD Facts, equations, and “right answers”. Students construct and apply knowledge. AR CK DJ KPHD Teacher covers each lesson or activity. Classroom Culture Teacher supports student investigations. AR CK DJKPHD Teacher leads students through investigations. Shared control of goals and interactions. AR CK DJ KP HD Teacher controls the class and interactions. Students valued for ideas and as help resource. AR CK DJ KP HD Only teacher valued for ideas and as help resource. Students respectful toward others. AR CK DJ KPHD Students disrespectful toward others. Curriculum Implementation and Beliefs ISLE framework governs instruction. AR CK DJKPHD Traditional teaching philosophy governs instruction. Materials are implemented completely. CKDJ AR HD KP Materials are partially implemented. Five teachers volunteered to participate in the study. Teachers participated in min. interviews. Data Processing Participating Teachers’ Information: Teaching Experience and Experience with Curriculum We identified three main themes in teacher beliefs and behaviors from interview summaries and narratives. Results RTOP Data by Category and Teacher References * D. Sawada, M. D. Piburn, E. Judson, J. Turley, K. Falconer, R. Benford, & I. Bloom, School Science and Mathematics, 102, , * D. MacIsaac & K. Falconer,, The Physics Teacher, 40, 16-22, * E. Etkina & A. Van Heuvelen, in Research-Based Reform of University Physics, Vol. 1, * C. Henderson & M. H. Dancy, Phys. Rev. Special Topics, 3, * P. C. Taylor, B. J. Fraser, & D. L. Fisher, International Journal of Educational Research, 27, * K. D. Squire, J. G. Makinster, M. Barnett, A. L. Luehmann, & S. L. Barab, Science Education, 87, * A. Lieblich, R. Tuval-Mashiach, & T. Zilber, Narrative Research: Reading, analysis and interpretation, Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, Conclusions * Teachers’ beliefs are consistent with their behaviors in the classroom. * Teachers with higher RTOPs have higher opinions of the reformed curriculum. * Teachers who participated in the development of the curriculum materials and who had minimal/average physics backgrounds implemented materials faithfully. They also followed ISLE framework during most lessons. * Propositional Knowledge is not correlated with reformed teaching practices. RTOP Observation Data The tables show that teachers are consistent with their behaviors and beliefs. AR, CK, and DJ are consistently more reformed, KP is in transition, and HD is only partially reformed in teaching practices and beliefs. AR, CK, and DJ run significantly reformed classes (RTOP > 75). KP and HD run partially reformed classes (RTOP > 50). Prop. knowledge is not correlated with reformed teaching practices. Three of the five teachers (AR, CK, DJ) specifically described the ISLE cycle when talking about inquiry and the PUM curriculum. All three teachers participated in the development of the curriculum materials. yes no My observations (data) Revision Explanations, mechanisms or relations between physical quantities Assumptions More + Applications Testing experiments: Does outcome match prediction based on explanation/relation? check different