Search for: All records

As computer science (CS) is integrated in elementary science curricula, it is important to consider teachers’ perceptions in how they access CS and support students to engage in CS skills and standards through NGSS-aligned activities. This single case study utilizes the Interconnected Model of Professional Growth (IMPG) to examine teacher change and explore the perspectives of a teacher, through semi-structured interviews, as he implements an NGSS-aligned, project-based CS unit over the course of four years. Findings indicate that the teacher perceived that changes in his practice helped inform changes in student outcomes and the curriculum and, in turn, these changes in outcomes further informed his teaching practice in the next iteration of the unit. Results highlight the importance of reflection and feedback as a way to impact the teaching practice of integrating CS in elementary science education. 

As computer science (CS) is integrated in elementary science curricula, it is important to consider teachers’ perceptions in how they access CS and support students to engage in CS skills and standards through NGSS-aligned activities. This single case study utilizes the Interconnected Model of Professional Growth (IMPG) to examine teacher change and explore the perspectives of a teacher, through semi-structured interviews, as he implements an NGSS-aligned, project-based CS unit over the course of four years. Findings indicate that the teacher perceived that changes in his practice helped inform changes in student outcomes and the curriculum and, in turn, these changes in outcomes further informed his teaching practice in the next iteration of the unit. Results highlight the importance of reflection and feedback as a way to impact the teaching practice of integrating CS in elementary science education. 

This poster paper explores how teachers and researchers in a research-practitioner partnership utilize a rubric to evaluate lesson plans in terms of the integration of culturally relevant computer science. Results include that teachers felt able to include opportunities for cultural competence but indicate that additional support is necessary to include opportunities for cultural critique and conceptions of knowledge. The poster presented at this conference will highlight additional supports that teachers may need to develop culturally relevant computer science lesson plans. 

Elementary science education, particularly in the 4th and 5th grades, is essential for setting the foundation for lifelong science learning, fostering critical thinking, and preparing students for success in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. This stage is especially critical for students with disabilities, as achievement gaps between them and their peers emerge during elementary school. Despite this importance, little is known about how science is taught in elementary classrooms during these critical years, particularly for students with disabilities. To address this gap, we surveyed teachers from a nationally representative sample of U.S. schools to examine elementary science education, including instructional practices, allocation of time, and the inclusion and support of students with disabilities. Our findings reveal that limited instructional time is allocated to science, with significant variability across classrooms. The amount of time dedicated to science instruction was significantly influenced by external factors, such as whether science was a tested subject. Students with disabilities often face additional barriers, including being pulled out of science instruction for special education services, resulting in missed opportunities to engage in science. These findings highlight the need to address opportunity gaps in science instruction to ensure all students have meaningful access to quality science education. 

While national frameworks call for the integration of science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and computer science (STEM+CS) in K-12 contexts, few studies consider elementary teachers’ perceptions of implementing STEM+CS projects in science classrooms. This single case study explores elementary science teachers’ perceptions of enacting STEM+CS curricular materials. Survey and interview data were collected over the four-week project and qualitatively coded. Findings demonstrate teachers’ reported struggles to implement unfamiliar disciplines and leverage students’ prior knowledge in familiar disciplines as well as unanticipated consequences of instructional decisions based on perceived student engagement and pacing. Results underscore the value of teacher voice for curricular and professional development and highlight the need for further investigation of how teachers’ perceptions may influence enactment of STEM+CS curricular materials. 

Recent science education reforms, as described in the Framework for K-12 Science Education (NRC, 2012), call for three-dimensional learning that engages students in scientific practices and the use of scientific lenses to learn science content. However, relatively little research at any grade level has focused on how students develop this kind of three-dimensional knowledge that includes crosscutting concepts. This paper aims to contribute to a growing knowledge base that describes how to engage students in three-dimensional learning by exploring to what extent elementary students represent the crosscutting concept systems and system models when engaged in the practice developing and using models as part of an NGSS-aligned curriculum unit. This paper answers the questions: How do students represent elements of crosscutting concepts in conceptual models of water systems? How do students’ representations of crosscutting concepts change related to different task-based scaffolds? To analyze students’ models, we developed and applied a descriptive coding scheme to describe how the students illustrated the flow of water. The results show important differences in how students represented system elements across models. Findings provide insight for the kinds of support that students might need in order to move towards the development of three-dimensional understandings of science content.