• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.96-108
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• 2006

The purpose of this study was to investigate how prospective elementary school teachers perceived teacher's inquiryoriented teaching practice, with an emphasis on students' scientific explanations based on scientific evidence. For this study, 94 prospective elementary school teachers were participated. 14 among 94 participants had chances to intensively experience this particular teaching methods for 15 weeks. All of the 94 participants observed the intended science teaching practice for 4th graders in two different elementary schools, which utilized the science talks emphasizing students' scientific explanation activity. For quantitative data analysis, they were asked to provide their reaction to the science teaching methods after their classroom observation. For qualitative data analysis, 5 among the participants, who had relatively long term experience with this teaching practice, were chosen to interview in order to understand their individual reasons of the ways they perceived about the inquiry-oriented teaching methods boosting students' scientific explanation. The results show that the prospective elementary teachers generally thought the emphasis of students' scientific explanation based on scientific evidence could enhance young elementary students' science content understanding, stimulate their curiosity/interests, and further develop their ability to engage actively in scientific discussions. However, some prospective teachers tended to think that the science teaching. methods would not be effective in terms of managing science classes, though. This study concludes that the prospective teachers tended to hold an endemic dilemma. On the one hand, they had their clear preference to the inquiry-oriented teaching practice as the most ideal teaching methods. On the other hand, they also had their persistent hesitance in using these methods due to their fear that elementary students might not adequately grasp the important science content when engaged in scientific discourse through an inquiry-oriented class.

• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
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• v.32 no.7
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• pp.1157-1168
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• 2012

This study examined the effect of simulated instruction activities based on a constructivist teaching approach on epistemological belief, science teaching efficacy belief, and teaching motivation. The RTOP (Reformed Teaching Observation Protocol) played a role to guide preservice biology teachers to obtain insights on current reformed teaching and to further practice teaching based on constructivism. The results indicated that preservice teachers changed their epistemological beliefs toward more sophisticated views, especially for 'simple knowledge'. They also improved their science teaching efficacy beliefs, both personal science teaching efficacy belief (PSTEB) and science teaching outcome expectancy (STOE). In addition, these perservice teachers decreased their scores of extrinsic teaching motivation. The Pearson correlation represented the negative relationship between personal science teaching efficacy belief (PSTEB) and extrinsic teaching motivation. After intervention, the preservice teachers mentioned inquiry, active participation and discussion as ideal science teaching methods and qualifications for science teachers.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.68-85
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• 2019

The purpose of this study was to understand science teaching experiences of elementary school teachers who taught the system thinking-based science inquiry class. The phenomenological methods were applied to analyze four elementary teachers' meaningful experiences. The four step methods of phenomenological experience research proposed by Giorgi (1985) and interview questions developed by Seidman (1998) and Schuman (1982) were used in order to collect qualitative data. The major findings of this study were as follows: First, teachers intentionally tried to ask divergent thinking questions which promoted the system thinking in classes. The teachers used divergent thinking questions to promote their students' thinking activities and to induce students' system thinking. In addition, the receptive mood created by teachers and interactive environments had a positive effect on promoting system thinking skills. Second, teachers remarked lack of teaching and learning materials and difficulties in selecting themes of their classes in order to teach the system thinking-based science inquiry class effectively. In addition, it was very difficult for teachers to evaluate the contents and processes of students' learning correctly because there were little evaluative tools and methods readily available. The findings indicated that there were some limitations in maximizing the effects of system thinking-based science inquiry instruction due to elementary students' inappropriate process skills of inquiry activities. Findings of this study revealed significant insights about elementary school teachers' experiences regarding the system thinking-based science class.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.40 no.5
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• pp.538-547
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• 2019

This study analyzes the conceptual understanding of in-service and pre-service earth science teachers about the H-R diagrams and evolution of stars using conceptual status analysis categories. The results show that (a) many teachers use unscientific language in the Intelligibility range, (b) teachers are categorized in Low scientific inquiry ability related to graph creation and unscientific analogy for scientific concept which is hightly corelated to the possibility of misunderstanding in the teaching process, and (c) pre-service teachers lack the understanding of the secondary science curriculum. It is necessary to develop pre-service curriculum that can be applied to the school site. In the category of Plausibility range, (d) both groups understood the cosmological meaning of stellar evolution. However, pre-service teachers do not specifically explain the mechanism of a star. In the category of Fruitfulness range, in-service teachers come up with educational problems reflecting the academic characteristics of earth science and apply their knowledge to actual problem solving. On the other hand, pre-service teachers show high nonresponse ratio, they do not see the H-R diagram and the evolution of stars as a practical concept. In the analysis process, both groups are found to have many unscientific conceptions about the H-R diagram and evolution of stars. Therefore, it is suggested that caution be used in developing a professional development program of earth science teachers.

• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.94-113
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• 2013

The purpose of this study was to examine the change in the classes of beginning science teachers through the collaborative mentoring program that induce reflective thinking practice. Participants in this study were three mentor-teachers, two teachers in doctor's or master's course, one university professor, and three mentee-teachers who have less than four years of teaching experience. We collected data such as video recordings of the mentee-teachers' classroom teaching and transcription, lesson plans, recording of one-on-one mentoring and transcription, mentor and mentee's journals, and RTOP classroom teaching observation reports. RTOP was used for the analysis of classroom teaching and mentee-teachers' recognition and changes in their classes were found out through journals and one-on-one mentoring interview materials. According to mentee-teachers' recognition and changes in their classes during the mentoring program, they themselves recognized their teacher-centered teaching style, misconception, and lack of content knowledge. Furthermore, there were changes in the mentee-teachers' classroom teaching through their reflective practice and improvement. As a result of this study, the interactions with mentor-teachers through collaborative mentoring program stimulated mentee-teacher's reflections on their teaching. Therefore, these reflections led to their reflective practice that showed progressive changes in their teaching behavioral activities. The extent of these changes varied according to the mentee-teachers' individual disposition toward reflection and the issue of whether mentee-teachers' reflective practice was in accordance with priorities in motivational ZDP or not. Also based on the results of this study, the teachers' reflection was not all accompanied by reflective practice even if the beginning science teachers made some partial changes in reflective practice through reflection. It means that it is hard to lead reflective practice for mentee-teachers through mentoring in a short period of time. Therefore, we consider that a systematic and long-term mentoring program is necessary for beginning science teachers.

• Journal of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.58 no.6
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• pp.630-637
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• 2014

In this study, we investigated the current situation of implementing cooperative learning (CL) in elementary science classes and teachers' perceptions toward CL in science instructions. Participants were 138 elementary school teachers and 96 of them had experiences of implementing CL in their science classes. We developed a questionnaire on the basis of previous studies. The results indicated that many teachers did not seem to comprehend CL and some of them did not seem to distinguish CL from the traditional small group learning. The teachers who had experiences of implementing CL tended to exhibit positive perceptions toward CL than their counterpart in the effects of CL category whereas they did not show any positive evidence in the processes of CL category. The influences of teaching career and the experience of participating inservice training about CL on teachers' perceptions toward CL were not clear. Educational implications are discussed.

• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.262-276
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• 2010

The purpose of this study was to investigate and analyze the elementary teachers' views and students' views about the difficulties in teaching and learning on open inquiry activities of elementary school science. Semi-structured interviews were conducted individually with three elementary teachers who have serviced more than three years, and with twenty four elementary students attending schools located in Cheongju City. And their anecdotes were collected and analyzed. The interview questions were developed through Seidman's steps to acquire the reliability in the interview data. From the interviews and anecdotes, we found that elementary teachers' views about the difficulties of teaching open inquiry activities: the difficulties of teaching in finding inquiry problem and planning inquiry, the difficulties of managing group activities, the difficulties of managing class hours for inquiry, the lack of the students' inquiry abilities, and problems on students' affective characteristics. And the students have the views about the difficulties in doing open inquiry activities: the difficulties of finding inquiry problem and planning inquiry, being unaccustomed to write reports, the troubles with investigating, problems on affective characteristics, the difficulties of joining in a group, and the lack of inquiry abilities. The teachers give suggestions for effective application of the open inquiry activities: first, the teachers must encourage students' emotion and will in doing open inquiry activities, second, there must be the steady inquiry teaching and learning in ordinary elementary science classes. Based on the results, this study suggested that elementary teachers should concern specially about students' being unaccustomed to write reports and the troubles in doing scientific investigation.

• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.493-499
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• 1997

Many science teachers can be able to miswrite the vocabularies for seven kinds of experimental tool names on blackboard of secondary school in Korean language. The diagnosis test for the miswriting possibility was carried out by science teachers in secondary school. We questioned "How can you write each of Korean vocabulary for seven experimental tools?" to each of one hundred and fourty science teachers in three class of physics, chemistry, and biology during inservice training course of Gyeongsang National University on August in 1997. First of all, for the investigation we showed the real things of seven tools to the teachers and they wrote each vocabulary for each tool name on blackboard in English. In addition we explained the general use of each tool name. And then the teachers answered the vocabularies of them on one written paper. The miswriting results for seven tools were as follows. There appeared various miswriting vocabularies for each tool name. For examples, meas cylinder was miswritten two kinds of Korean name and the miswriting ratio of 4%, Mortar & pestle was miswritten four kinds of name and the ratio of 12%, Beaker & desiccator were miswritten one kind of name and the ratio of 51% and 36%, separately. Separatory funnel & spuit were miswritten two kinds of name and the ratio of 54% and 58%, separately. Schale was miswritten four kinds of name and the ratio of 51%. We might conclude that the cause of miswriting vocabularies for the tool name could be due to the original miswriting in Korean-English or English-Korean dictionaries as well as the seience teachers by themselves.

• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
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• v.28 no.5
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• pp.383-394
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• 2008

We analyzed the description of diffusion phenomena in a 7th-grade textbook, and investigated teachers' understanding and teaching methods on diffusion concepts. The data were collected from textbook analysis and questionnaires from 46 science teachers and interviews with 5 teachers. Based on texts' analysis by definition, example, and representation of the diffusion, we found that most of the representations were macroscopically explained by observing the movement of ink in water and smelling the fragrance of perfume in the air. The analysis of questionnaire and interviews also revealed that the definition and the explanation of the diffusion were too abstract for teachers to understand and teach the concept without further information about the microscopic concept of collision of the matter with the medium. Such examples and models lead science teachers to form indistinctive concepts such as dissolution, effusion, and evaporation. Furthermore, the analytical data showed that teachers' understanding of the diffusion concept has been heavily dependent upon the textbook and the level of the understanding was very similar with that of textual description.

• Journal of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.63 no.3
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• pp.166-182
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• 2019

This study examined teachers' difficulties that they encountered free semester science assessment and their problem solutions. Fifteen science teachers who had experiences of free semester teaching and assessment were selected by convenience sampling in this study. The participant teachers mentioned difficulties of accurate scoring in student self/peer assessment and suggested solutions of providing studetns with detailed assessment criteria and opportunities to practice assessment. The participant teachers mentioned a lack of objective assessment criteria for affective domain and suggested solutions of providing criteria prior to assessment and developing assessment framework. The participant teachers mentioned a lack of assessment tools and references for perforamnce assesement. The participant teachers mentioned difficulties of a large teacherstudent ratio for providng feedbacks to students and suggested solutions of decreasing teacher-student ratio and teaching load. The participant teachers mentioned difficulties of identifying student characteristics for assessment reporting and suggested solutions of decreaing teacher work load. The participant teachers mentioned a lack of teacher understanding of process based assessment and inactive attitude to performance assessment and suggested solutions of professional learning community and improving teacher perceptions on performance assessment. The participant teachers mentioned difficulties of a large teacher-student ratio and a lack of time for implementing assessment methods that they learned from professional development programs. With both teacher self-efforts and systematic support, these problems would be solved and success of free semester assessment would be achieved.