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Getting a holistic view: Documenting change in undergraduate science teaching
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  • Anne Egger,
  • Devarati Bhattacharya,
  • Leighanna Hinojosa,
  • Ellen Iverson,
  • Anthony Carpi
Anne Egger
Central Washington University

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Devarati Bhattacharya
Central Washington University
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Leighanna Hinojosa
Central Washington University
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Ellen Iverson
Carleton College
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Anthony Carpi
John Jay College, CUNY
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Abstract

There is a lot going on in introductory undergraduate science classrooms. Students bring their culture, background, and previous science experiences; instructors bring their knowledge, attitudes, and experience in science and in teaching. Students are there for a variety of reasons, and a substantial proportion will become K-12 teachers: that introductory course may be their primary science experience as an adult learner. How future teachers learn science is of critical importance to how they teach science, but few college science classes reflect the vision of the 2012 Framework for K-12 Science Education, in which “students actively engage in scientific and engineering practices in order to deepen their understanding of crosscutting concepts and disciplinary core ideas” (p. 217). The vision of the Teaching with Investigation and Design in Science (TIDeS) project is that future teachers will learn science as undergraduates the way they are expected to teach science in the K–12 classroom: engaging all students in science investigation and engineering design in a discourse-filled, context-rich, inclusive learning process. TIDeS seeks to catalyze transformation of introductory science courses by supporting faculty in the development and implementation of high-quality, rigorously tested, inclusive curricular materials that focus investigation and design. The project has two broad research questions: (1) How do the beliefs and practices of instructors change with developing and/or implementing new curricular materials? (2) What is the impact of the use of these new materials on diverse students? To address these questions, the TIDeS team developed a suite of research probes aligned with the project’s guiding principles and with each other (see figure). The probes include a semi-structured, pre-/post- faculty interview, a quantitative and qualitative classroom observation protocol, a pre-/post- student survey, a syllabus rubric, and rubrics for the curricular materials and student readings. Our preliminary data suggest that, in combination, the probes will provide a holistic picture of what teaching with investigation and design in introductory college-level science courses looks like, how it differs from an active learning classroom, and how it can support the preparation of future teachers.