The DESTIN: Preservice Teachers' Drawings of the Ideal Elementary Science Teacher

The aim of this study is to report findings from the Drawing‐Elementary‐Science‐Teacher‐Ideal‐Not, or the DESTIN procedure. The study utilizes a simple drawing procedure accompanied by a narrative and discussion for understanding preservice teachers' images of science, science teaching, and the science teacher. Ninety drawings from two sections of an elementary science methods course were analyzed. Looking at the pre‐drawings from the beginning of the semester and post‐drawings done at the end of the semester, the findings relate the value of using drawings in teacher education and the usefulness of this procedure to promote discussions about science teaching, the construction of new images and practices for teaching elementary science, and teacher identity. The DESTIN procedure has potential as a productive activity for teacher education and long‐term professional development by making more explicit teachers' views of science teaching and learning and their past experiences as science learners.     

Next Generation Science Standards: A National Mixed‐Methods Study on Teacher Readiness

Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) science and engineering practices are ways of eliciting the reasoning and applying foundational ideas in science. As research has revealed barriers to states and schools adopting the NGSS, this mixed‐methods study attempts to identify characteristics of professional development (PD) that will support NGSS adoption and to improve teacher readiness. In‐service science teachers from across the nation were targeted for the survey and responses represented 38 states. Research questions included: How motivated and prepared are in‐service 7–12 teachers to use NGSS science and engineering practices? What is the profile of 7–12 in‐service teachers who are motivated and feel prepared to use NGSS science and engineering practices? The study revealed that teachers identified engineering most frequently as a PD need to improve their NGSS readiness. High school teachers rated themselves as more prepared than middle school and all teachers who use Modeling Instruction expressed higher NGSS readiness. These findings and their specificity contribute to current knowledge, and can be utilized by districts in selecting PD to support teachers in preparing to implement the NGSS successfully.     

Beyond the professional development academy: Teachers' retention of discipline‐specific science content knowledge throughout a 3‐year mathematics and science partnership

The Teacher Academy in the Natural Sciences (TANS) provided middle school (U.S. Grades 6–8) teachers (N = 81) with intensive professional development (PD) in chemistry, geosciences, and physics, with teachers enrolled in one scientific discipline per year. Because some teachers were retained and rotated into different disciplines, the TANS program investigated retention of science content 1–2 years beyond an instructional year. All teacher participants exhibited significant gains (p < .001), in chemistry, geosciences, or physics content, between their incoming knowledge and the 10‐day summer academy's conclusion. Chemistry and geosciences content were retained until the end of the PD year. Physics participants reported a significant loss (p < .001), although gains from teachers' incoming knowledge were still significant. When retention was measured beyond the instructional year, only the geosciences content was retained. Chemistry and physics gains were not retained, with no significant differences between incoming teachers' knowledge and content 1–2 years post instruction. Our research indicates that science content support is needed after PD programs, and importantly, that the support differs between scientific disciplines.     

Turkish Preservice Primary School Teachers' Science Teaching Efficacy Beliefs and Attitudes Toward Science: The Effect of a Primary Teacher Education Program

The main purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a primary teacher education program in improving science teaching efficacy beliefs (personal science teaching efficacy beliefs and outcome expectancy beliefs) of preservice primary school teachers. The study also investigated whether the program has an effect on student teachers' attitudes toward science. Data were collected by administering the “Science Teaching Efficacy Beliefs Instrument” and “Attitudes toward Science Scale” to 282 preservice primary teachers (147 freshmen, 135 seniors). Statistical techniques such as means and t‐test were used to analyze the data. Results of the study showed that the primary teacher education program has a medium positive effect on science teaching efficacy beliefs of the primary preservice teachers (t = 4.791, p = .000) and that there were no gender differences in terms of efficacy beliefs. Results also indicated that preservice primary teachers' attitudes toward science were moderately positive and differ by class level. Fourth‐year preservice teachers' attitudes toward science were found to be significantly more positive than the first years (t = 5.494, p = .000). There were no gender differences in attitudes toward science.     

Finding Alignment: The Perceptions and Integration of the Next Generation Science Standards Practices by Elementary Teachers

Preparing elementary‐level teachers to teach in alignment with the eight Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) practices could prove to be a daunting endeavor. However, the process may be catalyzed by leveraging elements of teacher science instruction that inherently attend to the practice standards. In this study, we investigated the science instruction of three grade 3–5 elementary‐level teachers. We used observation, interviews, and surveys to determine the level to which the teachers perceived they taught and engaged in teaching science aligned with the eight NGSS practices. We found that the teachers were partially, and intrinsically implementing several of these practices in their instruction, and at the same time could not articulate the eight NGSS practices. Our results suggest there may be ample opportunity to build on the current science instruction of elementary‐level teachers to bring their instruction into alignment with the NGSS. We found that teachers’ perceive professional development, school culture, and access to additional instructional resources to be essential to their adoption of the NGSS practices.     

Examining the Types,Features, and Use of Instructional Materials in Afterschool Science

Afterschool programs have garnered much attention as promising environments for learning where children can engage in rich science activities. Yet, little is known about the kinds of instructional materials used in typical, large‐scale afterschool programs that implement science with diverse populations of children. In this study, we investigated the types, features, and use of science instructional materials at more than 150 public afterschool program sites across California. Using afterschool site survey data, we categorized the types and the range of materials used at the sites. We then collected a subsample of the instructional materials for in‐depth analysis of their support features for enabling staff and children to enact science. We also interviewed afterschool site staff to better understand how they selected and used materials. Results from our analysis of survey and interview data show that afterschool staff primarily used stand‐alone lessons and activities found on the Internet or in activity books as resources for planning and enacting science. Our analysis of the subsample of instructional materials indicate that curricular materials, while used less frequently by afterschool staff, have on average more of the support features that would help them implement high‐quality science experiences with children.     

Models are a “metaphor in your brain”: How potential and preservice teachers understand the science and engineering practice of modeling

We investigated beginning secondary science teachers’ understandings of the science and engineering practice of developing and using models. Our study was situated in a scholarship program that served two groups: undergraduate STEM majors interested in teaching, or potential teachers, and graduate students enrolled in a teacher education program to earn their credentials, or preservice teachers. The two groups completed intensive practicum experiences in STEM‐focused academies within two public high schools. We conducted a series of interviews with each participant and used grade‐level competencies outlined in the Next Generation Science Standards to analyze their understanding of the practice of developing and using models. We found that potential and preservice teachers understood this practice in ways that both aligned and did not align with the NGSS and that their understandings varied across the two groups and the two practicum contexts. In our implications, we recommend that teacher educators recognize and build from the various ways potential and preservice teachers understand this complex practice to improve its implementation in science classrooms. Further, we recommend that a variety of practicum contexts may help beginning teachers develop a greater breadth of understanding about the practice of developing and using models.     

Beliefs,Practical Knowledge,and Context: A Longitudinal Study of a Beginning Biology Teacher's 5E Unit

The purpose of this three‐year case study was to understand how a beginning biology teacher (Alice) designed and taught a 5E unit on natural selection, how the unit changed when she took a position in a different school district, and why the changes occurred. We examined Alice's developing beliefs about science teaching and learning, practical knowledge, and perceptions of school context in relation to the 5E unit. Data sources consisted of interviews, classroom observations, and lesson materials. We found that Alice placed more emphasis on the explore phase, less emphasis on the engage and explain phases, and removed the elaborate phase over time. Alice's beliefs about science teaching and learning acted as a filter for making sense of practical knowledge and perceptions of context. Although her beliefs were student centered, they aligned with discovery learning in which little intervention from the teacher is required. We discuss how her beliefs, practical knowledge, and perceptions of context explained the changes in her practice. This study sheds insight into the nature of beliefs and how they relate to the 5E lesson phases, as well as the different lenses for viewing the 5E instructional model. Implications for science teacher preparation and induction programs are discussed.     

Guiding Teachers in the Use of a Standards‐Based Mathematics Curriculum: Teacher Perceptions and Subsequent Instructional Practices After an Intensive Professional Development Program

Reforms in mathematics education call for K‐12 teachers to employ standards‐based pedagogies, which embody the National Council for Teachers of Mathematics' principles and standards. In order to effectively support teachers' implementation of standards‐based curricula, professional development must be provided that meets teachers' needs. The professional development program in this study focused on the implementation of a standards‐based mathematics curriculum entitled Investigations in Number, Data, and Space (Investigations). This study uses Guskey's framework as a guide to examining teachers' perceptions of the impact of the professional development that they received; their perceptions of mathematics teaching and learning; and how elements of the professional development translated into practice. Twenty‐two participants were randomly selected from the 53 professional development participants to be interviewed and observed during their mathematics teaching. Using a constant comparison method, the data sources in this study highlighted themes surrounding teachers' experiences with professional development and the implementation of the curricula. The analysis of the data sources in this study highlighted themes surrounding teachers' experiences with professional development: teachers as learners, teachers as self‐evaluators, shifting paradigms, enactment of professional development content into practice, and the influence of the state standardized mathematics test. The results of this study have several implications for future professional development and also highlight some of the more general issues that teachers face when attempting to enact new knowledge and skills into their practice.     

农村老人劳动参与意愿及影响因素研究

利用CHARLS调查数据,运用Logit二元选择模型探讨了我国农村老人劳动参与意愿及其影响因素.结果发现:农村有配偶老人的劳动参与意愿比单身老人更强烈;养老保险对农村老人劳动参与的作用效应不明显;家庭未成年小孩数量对农村老人的劳动参与有显著的正向影响;家庭收入越高,农村老人会降低其劳动参与意愿;在经济越发达的地区,农村...     

Preservice Teachers of High School Mathematics: Success,Failure, and Persistence in the Face of Mathematical Challenges

The goal of this study was to identify variables related to success and resilience in an undergraduate, high school mathematics teacher education program. Over a five‐year period, we tracked the academic performance and achievement motivation goals of multiple cohorts of students. Students who successfully completed their degrees had higher grade point average (GPAs) upon entering the program, earned higher grades in their first college mathematics course, and failed fewer courses than students who left the program or university. Learning and performance motivational goals did not predict success in the program. Performance goals decreased over time. Nearly half the successful students repeated one or more mathematics courses. Ten students completed their degrees, obtained a teaching license, and are teaching despite the need for multiple repetitions of the same mathematics courses. These persistent students did not differ from their peers in motivational goals. Our results suggest that although students with higher GPAs and initial mathematics grades were more likely to complete the program, students who experienced challenges in mathematics courses were able to succeed. We discuss the implications of these results for recruiting, advising, and retention of students in mathematics education programs.     

福建农村剩余劳动力的影响因素及转移趋势——基于超越对数生产函数模型

在新形势下,农村剩余劳动力转移对经济发展和社会稳定具有重要的影响.对福建省的13个农村剩余劳动力转移的影响因素进行数据分析,首先用相关分析确定5个重要因素,再基于逐步回归分析建立超越对数生产函数模型,确定影响农村剩余劳动力转移的2个关键因素:第二产业就业比重和第三产业就业比重,并结合灰色预测的结果,预测2011-2013年农村剩余劳动力转移趋势.最后,结合实际情况,提出针对性的建议.     

A Comparison of Calculator Use in Eighth‐Grade Mathematics Classrooms in the United States,Japan, and Portugal: Results From the Third International Mathematics and Science Study

The study used data from the Third International Mathematics and Science Study to determine trends in calculator use among Population 2 (13‐year‐olds) students in Japan, the United States, and Portugal. While relatively high levels of calculator use were observed for the US and Portugal, virtually no calculator use was found for the Japanese sample. Hierarchical Linear Model analysis determined a statistically significant negative relationship between students' frequency of calculator use and student performance in Japan; no statistically significant relationship was detected for the US and Portuguese samples. US student achievement was positively associated with each of the five reported ways in which calculators are used; however, a statistically significant negative relationship was found between student performance and Japanese students' use of calculators on tests. Plausible explanations are explored.     

A multidimensional approach to training mathematics students at a university: improving the efficiency through the unity of social,psychological and pedagogical aspects

The article deals with social, psychological and pedagogical aspects of teaching mathematics students at universities. The sociological portrait and the factors influencing a career choice of a mathematician have been investigated through the survey results of 198 first-year students of applied mathematics major at 27 state universities (Russia). Then, psychological characteristics of mathematics students have been examined based on scientific publications. The obtained results have allowed us to reveal pedagogical conditions and specific ways of training mathematics students in the process of their education at university. The article also contains the analysis of approaches to the development of mathematics education both in Russia and in other countries. The results may be useful for teaching students whose training requires in-depth knowledge of mathematics.     

基于便利收益视角的投机与大宗商品价格波动分析——以天然橡胶为例

从便利收益视角来分析投机与大宗商品价格波动的关系,首先导出了基于IGARCH模型的动态便利收益近似计算式,并据此来判断投机行为是否引起价格与供需基本面的脱离;然后构建了包含动态便利收益的投机套利模型来度量投机行为对价格的影响强度.最后对天然橡胶市场的投机情况进行了实证分析.结果表明,总体上看,短期价格对投机者的预期反应敏感,使市场产生"自我实现的预言"效应;投机行为引起天然橡胶价格与供需基本面脱离,起到了推涨助跌的作用,加剧天然橡胶价格波动.