Preparing Middle Level Preservice Teachers to Integrate Mathematics and Science: Problems and Possibilities

Many members of the mathematics and science education community believe that the integration of mathematics and science enhances students' understanding of both subjects. Despite this belief, attempts to integrate these subjects have frequently been unsuccessful. This study examines the development and implementation of a team‐taught integrated middle level mathematics and science methods course. The data presented in this study were collected from three groups of preservice teachers who were enrolled in a grades 5–8 middle level teacher certification program in Connecticut from 1998–2000. The data analysis indicates that preservice teachers appreciated the emphasis on integration used in the course, but at the same time when concepts did not integrate easily they were frustrated. Despite this frustration, the preservice teachers' understanding of integration was enhanced as a result of the course.     

A Longitudinal Look at Attitudes and Perceptions Related to the Integration of Mathematics,Science, and Technology Education

The purpose of this study is to provide an in‐depth analysis of attitudes and perceptions related to the integration of mathematics, science, and technology education of preservice teachers preparing to teach STEM disciplines. Longitudinal data by individual cohort and across 7 years of the Integrated Mathematics, Science, and Technology (MSAT) Program are reported, analyzed, and interpreted to help design and improve preservice teacher education programs and improve teaching and learning in STEM classrooms. Results of quantitative analyses indicate that there was generally no change in preservice teacher attitudes and perceptions related to the value of the integration of mathematics, science, and technology education—they clearly valued integration at the onset and at the completion of the program. However, there was a significant change in preservice teacher attitudes and perceptions related to integration feasibility in terms of inefficiency and difficulty. Implications for teacher education programs include: (a) more exposure to concepts, processes, and skills in STEM that are similar, analogous, complementary, or synergistic; (b) familiarity with instructional strategies and access to resources; (c) deeper understanding of content across STEM; and (d) strategies for collaboration and team work to make integrated instruction time more efficient and less difficult to manage.     

Development and Implementation of an Integrated Mathematics/Science Preservice Elementary Methods Course

If integration of mathematics and science is to occur, teacher preparation programs at colleges and universities must provide leadership in developing and modeling methods of teaching integrated content. This paper describes the development and implementation of an integrated mathematics/science preservice elementary methods course at the University of Connecticut. In planning the course several questions were addressed: (a) What does integration of mathematics and science mean? (b) What content should be taught in an integrated mathematics/science (IM/S) elementary methods course? and (c) How should an IM/S elementary methods course be taught? An important element of the course involved enlisting an exemplary elementary teacher who was released from her classroom one day per week to co-teach the methods class. Establishing a definition of integration proved to be one of the most challenging aspects of course development. The authors determined that most difficulties in integration of disciplines result from attempts to “force” the integration. As the team struggled with the philosophical, theoretical and logistical problems in the development of the course, it became apparent why integration has not been more widely implemented. It is believed this model can be adapted to allow for integration of all content areas. Plans are currently underway to incorporate social studies into the methods class for Fall of 1993.     

Mathematics and Science Integration: Models and Characterizations

The squeeze on instructional time and other factors increasingly leads educators to consider mathematics and science integration in an effort to be more efficient and effective. Unfortunately, the need for common understandings for what it means to integrate these disciplines, as well as the need for improving disciplinary knowledge, appears to continue to be significant obstacles to an integrated approach to instruction. In this study we report the results of a survey containing six instructional scenarios administered to thirty-three middle grades science and math teachers. Analysis of teacher responses revealed that while teachers applied similar criteria in their reasoning, they did not possess common characterizations for integration. Furthermore, analysis suggested that content knowledge serves as a barrier to recognizing integrated examples. Implications for professional development planners include the need to develop and provide teachers with constructs and parameters for what constitutes mathematics and science integration. Continued emphasis on improving teacher content knowledge in both mathematics and science is also a prerequisite to enabling teachers to integrate content.     

Observation of Reform Teaching in Undergraduate Level Mathematics and Science Courses

This paper reports on initial results from an ongoing evaluation study of a National Science Foundation project to implement reform‐oriented teaching practices in college science and mathematics courses. The purpose of this study was to determine what elements of reform teaching are being utilized by college faculty members teaching undergraduate science and mathematics courses, including a qualitative estimate of the frequency with which they are used. Participating instructors attended summer institutes that modeled reform‐based practices and fostered reflection on current issues in science, mathematics, and technological literacy for K‐16 teaching, with an explicit emphasis on the importance of creating the best possible learning experience for prospective K‐12 science and mathematics teachers. Utilizing a unique classroom observation protocol (the Oregon‐Teacher Observation Protocol) and interviews, the authors (a) conclude that some reform‐oriented teaching strategies are evident in undergraduate mathematics and science instruction and (b) suggest areas in which additional support and feedback are needed in order for higher education faculty members to adopt reform‐based instructional methodology.     

Science and Mathematics Instruction in a Reform‐based Teacher Preparation Program

This study examined the science and mathematics instruction of teachers who were initially prepared by the Collaboratives for Excellence in Teacher Preparation program (CETP). The focus of this study was on examining the extent to which science and mathematics teachers used more reform‐oriented instructional practices in their classes when they entered the teaching profession. Data were gathered from twelve different CETP projects across the United States. A quasi‐experimental design was used where science and mathematics teachers who were initially prepared by the CETP program were followed into the field and compared to teachers who were not prepared by the CETP program. The results indicate that the teachers prepared by the CETP program used slightly more reform‐oriented instructional practices than teachers who were not prepared by the CETP program, although both mathematics and science teachers reported low levels of reform‐oriented instruction. Implications of results for large‐scale reform of science and mathematics teacher preparation are discussed.     

Mathematics teacher education advanced methods: an example in dynamic geometry

We present a research work about an innovative national teacher training program in France: the Pairform@nce program, designed to sustain ICT integration. We study here training for secondary school teachers, whose objective is to foster the development of an inquiry-based approach in the teaching of mathematics, using investigative potentialities of dynamic geometry environments. We adopt the theoretical background of the documentational approach to didactics. We focus on the interactions between teachers and resources: teachers’ professional knowledge influences these interactions, which at the same time yield knowledge evolutions, a twofold process that we conceptualise as a documentational genesis. We followed in particular the work of a team of trainees; drawing on the data collected, we analyse their professional development, related with the training. We observe intertwined evolutions and stabilities, consistent with ongoing geneses.     

Integrated Science and Mathematics Professional Development Programs

Over the past 5 years, integrated science and mathematics professional development programs for grades 4‐10 science and mathematics teachers have been designed and implemented at Wright State University. The primary goals of the programs were to enhance the science and mathematics content understanding and pedagogical knowledge of the participant teachers in order to increase teacher confidence and promote the implementation of standards‐based teaching practices in precollege classrooms. In this article, the general program structure developed and implemented over the years is discussed. Focusing on the 1999 program, evidence is presented of enhanced participant content understanding and pedagogical preparation, and specific examples of modified teacher practices are discussed.     

Integrating Science and Mathematics Education: Historical Analysis

A number of national science and mathematics education professional associations, and recently technology education associations, are united in their support for the integration of science and mathematics teaching and learning. The purpose of this historical analysis is two‐fold: (a) to survey the nature and number of documents related to integrated science and mathematics education published from 1901 through 2001 and (b) to compare the nature and number of integrated science and mathematics documents published from 1990 through 2001 to the previous 89 years (1901–1989). Based upon this historical analysis, three conclusions have emerged. First, national and state standards in science and mathematics education have resulted in greater attention to integrated science and mathematics education, particularly in the area of teacher education, as evidenced by the proliferation of documents on this topic published from 1901–2001. Second, the historical comparison between the time periods of 1901–1989 versus 1990–2001 reveals a grade‐level shift in integrated instructional documents. Middle school science continues to be highlighted in integrated instructional documents, but surprisingly, a greater emphasis upon secondary mathematics and science education is apparent in the integration literature published from 1990–2001. Third, although several theoretical integration models have been posited in the literature published from 1990–2001, more empirical research grounded in these theoretical models is clearly needed in the 21st century.     

Representing context in video records of practice for urban mathematics teacher education

Mathematics education research has not sufficiently theorized about mathematics teacher knowledge and practice, teacher learning, and teacher education in ways that are reflective of the specificities of the sociopolitical contexts of schooling. In the USA, this is particularly important for urban mathematics education. This paper examines the affordances and challenges of representing context in video records of practice, particularly in the urban context, for use in the preparation of mathematics teachers for urban settings. The discussion, grounded in current research and theory relevant to representations of teaching, urban education, and mathematics teacher education, takes up three key issues: how is a focus on the urban context relevant to the design of video records of practice for mathematics teacher education? How can video records support prospective teachers’ understandings of the sociopolitical contexts of mathematics teaching? How does a focus on the urban context impact the meaning teachers make of video records?     

Connecting Mathematics and Science in Undergraduate Teacher Education Programs: Faculty Voices from the Maryland Collaborative for Teacher Preparation

The study reported in this paper investigated perceptions concerning connections between mathematics and science held by university/college instructors who participated in the Maryland Collaborative for Teacher Preparation (MCTP), an NSF-funded program aimed at developing special middle-level mathematics and science teachers. Specifically, we asked (a) “What are the perceptions of MCTP instructors about the ‘other’ discipline?” (b) “What are the perceptions of MCTP instructors about the connections between mathematics and science?” and (c) “What are some barriers perceived by MCTP instructors in implementing mathematics and science courses that emphasize connections?” The findings suggest that the benefits of emphasizing mathematics and science connections perceived by MCTP instructors were similar to the benefits reported by school teachers. The barriers reported were also similar. The participation in the project appeared to have encouraged MCTP instructors to grapple with some fundamental questions, like “What should be the nature of mathematics and science connections?” and “What is the nature of mathematics/science in relationship to the other discipline?”     

Beginning Mathematics Teachers' Beliefs of Subject Matter and Instructional Actions Documented Over Time

In this study we report the results of survey research that collected responses of an identical sample (31 beginning mathematics and science teachers, elementary and middle school level) that graduated from a reform‐based mathematics and science teacher preparation program, the Maryland Collaborative for Teacher Preparation (MCTP). Our aim was to compare responses of the same beginning teachers over the two administrations of the survey. We administered the identical survey instrument in two separate batches spreading over nearly a four‐year period (1st batch fall 1999 through fall 2001; 2nd batch summer 2002). The first administration (pre‐test) was conducted soon after the beginning teachers graduated from the teacher preparation program and had not started full teaching. The second administration (post‐test) was conducted after the new teachers had taught full time for a minimum of a full year, with the majority having taught for two years. The instrument was crafted to measure the constructs of interest, MCTP Teacher's Beliefs and Actions of Mathematics and Science. Results for teachers who taught for at least two years indicated that in all areas the MCTP teachers maintained their reform‐based beliefs and actions after their induction years. These findings provide evidence for the sustainability of positive impact in the workplace resulting from a reform‐based undergraduate teacher preparation program.     

Increasing Student Access to Qualified Science and Mathematics Teachers Through an Urban School‐University Partnership

Urban schools across the United States face a pervasive problem in their science and mathematics programs — a disproportionate number of the teachers in these classrooms are not certified, thus making them underqualified to teach these subject areas. Furthermore, urban schools deal with teacher shortages and attrition in these critical areas. The situation was found to be particularly severe in the Detroit Public School District. In response, Wayne State University and Detroit Public Schools embarked on a school‐university partnership program to prepare teachers in science and mathematics through an alternative pathway to teacher certification program. This partnership program has proven to be successful in recruiting, preparing, and retaining a significant number of qualified minority science and mathematics teachers to serve the students in Detroit schools.     

Rural teacher leadership in science and mathematics

This study adds to our understanding of science and mathematics teacher leadership in rural schools. Through In Vivo and Concept coding of teacher interviews, we investigated 20 secondary science and mathematics teachers' perceptions of rural teacher leadership during their participation in a three-year professional development program. As the teachers developed as teacher leaders, they broadened their focus from improving their own students' learning to sharing new knowledge learned through the program with other teachers both informally and formally. We compared our program components to the Teacher Leader Model Standards and added an emphasis on the importance of disciplinary content knowledge. We also identified patterns in science and mathematics teacher leadership that are contextually connected to teachers' instruction in rural high poverty schools. Rural teacher leadership included the importance of building strong teacher–student relationships, providing new academic opportunities for students, encouraging students' success, and building community connections.     

Developing a reform mathematics curriculum program in Sweden: relating international research and the local context

This paper reports on a research-based mathematics curriculum program development project in Sweden, whose educational context is currently characterized by multiple reform initiatives. Current reforms include a repositioning of the teacher as central for students’ learning, but also a trend toward initiatives and teacher resources that are more directive than has been the case in the past 30 years. Collecting data from multiple sources, such as teacher log books, lesson observations and feedback meetings, we build on input from 11 elementary school teachers trying out our materials, including student texts and a teachers’ guide, during four trial rounds. We analyze how international research about curriculum programs and teachers’ use of these programs are interpreted and operationalized within the Swedish context. In particular, the two research questions guiding the study are: (1) “How do Swedish teachers interact with and reason about the reform-based classroom practices promoted by the curriculum program?” and (2) “How do Swedish teachers interact with and reason about their use of a teachers’ guide?” From our experiences in the Swedish educational context, we suggest the following contextual aspects to take into account when designing a curriculum program whose design is grounded in international research literature: characteristics of current classroom practices, teachers’ role in classrooms, the level of explicit/implicit support teachers are used to receiving, and teachers’ experiences using a teachers’ guide.     

Mix It Up: Teachers' Beliefs on Mixing Mathematics and Science

This paper defines correlation, describes the Mix It Up program, discusses the teachers' beliefs about the value of correlating mathematics and science prior to program participation, and identifies problems teachers associated with correlation before and during the program. Teachers' beliefs about the value of correlation and about the problems associated with correlation are based on results from both quantitative and qualitative methods used to evaluate the program. Results indicate that teachers believe correlating mathematics and science strengthens students' content knowledge in mathematics and science, bridges the gap between mathematics and science, enhances motivation, and increases students' flexibility in problem solving. Additionally, the areas identified by teachers to be most problematic were time, planning for instruction as a team, and exposure to correlation in the past. The most important finding from the program evaluation indicates that although teachers did not identify content knowledge weaknesses before participating in the program, they did recognize gaps in their own content knowledge during program participation, and more importantly they made connections among these gaps, classroom instruction, and their own students' performance in mathematics and science.     

Mathematics and science teacher training program improves inquiry practices for teachers

With the call for increasing the level of inquiry-based instruction in mathematics and science classrooms, it is imperative for teacher education programs to prepare teachers with these skills. This study draws from classroom observation data to determine the influence a unique teacher certification program has on key aspects of teacher practice using a series of Kruskal-Wallis and Wilcoxon Rank Sum tests. Findings indicate that teachers participating in the program have a statistically significant level of growth in their use of inquiry practices related to Classroom Culture. In addition, by the fourth semester of their involvement in the program, participating teachers employ higher levels of inquiry instruction than a comparison group of teachers for almost every factor assessed.     

Making mathematics and science integration happen: key aspects of practice

The integration of mathematics and science teaching and learning facilitates student learning, engagement, motivation, problem-solving, criticality and real-life application. However, the actual implementation of an integrative approach to the teaching and learning of both subjects at classroom level, with in-service teachers working collaboratively, at second-level education, is under-researched due to the complexities of school-based research. This study reports on a year-long case study on the implementation of an integrated unit of learning on distance, speed and time, within three second-level schools in Ireland. This study employed a qualitative approach and examined the key aspects of practice that impact on the integration of mathematics and science teaching and learning. We argue that teacher perspective, teacher knowledge of the ‘other subject’ and of technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK), and teacher collaboration and support all impact on the implementation of an integrative approach to mathematics and science education.     

The impact of integrated STEM modeling on elementary preservice teachers’ self‐efficacy for integrated STEM instruction: A co‐teaching approach

The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the impact of co‐taught integrated STEM methods instruction on preservice elementary teachers’ self‐efficacy for teaching science and mathematics within an integrated STEM framework. Two instructional methods courses (Elementary Mathematics Methods and Elementary Science Methods) were redesigned to include STEM integration components, including STEM model lessons co‐taught by a mathematics and science educator, as well as a special education colleague. Quantitative data were gathered at three time points in the semester (beginning, middle, and end) from 55 preservice teachers examining teacher self‐efficacy for integrated STEM teaching. Qualitative data were gathered from a purposeful sample of seven preservice teachers to further understand preservice teachers’ perceptions on delivering integrated STEM instruction in an elementary setting. Quantitative results showed a significant increase in teacher self‐efficacy across all three time points. Item‐level analysis revealed that self‐efficacy for tasks involving engineering and assessment (both formative and summative) were low across time points, while self‐efficacy for tasks involving technology and flexibility were consistently high. Qualitative results revealed that the preservice teachers did not feel adequately prepared by university‐level science and mathematics courses, in terms of content knowledge and integration of science and mathematics for elementary students.