• 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.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 Association For Science Education
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.54-67
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• 2009

This study dealt with two case studies of the development of beginning science teachers' pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). This study was grounded on the idea that teacher thinking and classroom behavior are related to each other in a reciprocal way. Teachers' PCK influences teaching practices, while in a reverse way teaching activities influence teachers' practical knowledge. Two beginning science teachers participated in this study. Data collection consisted of classroom observation, interviews, reflective journals and lesson plans. For data analysis, we conceptualize pedagogical content knowledge for science teaching as consisting of four components: (a) knowledge about science matter, (b) knowledge about students' understanding of science topics, (c) knowledge about instructional strategies for teaching science, (d) knowledge about assessment in science. The outcomes of this study revealed that there was a large gap between beginning science teachers' intentions for teaching science and their practice. To give beginning teachers more opportunities to incorporate their knowledge base for teaching, we propose that they need to be involved in a real teaching situation at schools rather than in the university.

• Education of Primary School Mathematics
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.61-78
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• 2016

The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions and perspectives on meanings and use of manipulatives in mathematics lessons. For the investigation, the researcher reviewed related literature and analyzed the perceptions of preservice teachers on the meanings and use of manipulatives in mathematics lessons. The participants were 75 preservice elementary school teachers who took a teaching practice course at the 1st or the 2nd semester in 2015. These preservice teachers observed mathematics lessons for two weeks during the student teaching periods. They were requested to observed the use of manipulatives in mathematics lessons and wrote about their ideas on the meanings and use of manipulatives. Result of the research was that the perceptions on the meanings and use of manipulatives from the preservice teachers' perspectives are as follows. Manipulatives in mathematics lessons were self-made or pre-made manufactures. The using time of manipulatives during lessons varies, and the teachers provide the manipulatives with contexts. Providing in-depth observation during a teaching practice course is allowed opportunities for preservice teachers to reflect their mathematics teaching and learning methods in the classroom.

• Journal of Educational Research in Mathematics
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.139-155
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• 2015

This study aimed to investigate teacher learning in the context of a community. For the purpose of this study, two research questions about the kinds of teacher noticing in a community and the role of partnership were addressed. To build a learning community, a professional development project, PRIME, established partnerships with 11 high schools and one of the cluster meetings were investigated in this study. Three mentor teachers, three preservice teachers, and one university supervisor participated in the cluster meeting. For this study, the multiple data such as audio tapes of cluster meetings, observation notes, and interviews were analyzed using the analysis of narratives. The results showed that the participants engaged in different kinds of noticing of their own beliefs about teaching and learning, teacher practices, and teacher identities including noticing of students' understanding in classroom situations. The partnership played the crucial role of reinforcing relationships among teachers, assigning tasks, and creating various communities.

• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.27-38
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• 2006

The purpose of this study was to develop a test of a creative problem solving (CPS) for the selection of gifted science students in elementary school. For this, the methods and procedures of the selection of gifted science students was investigated through the internet homepages 23 gifted science education centers of universities and 16 city. province offices of education. The results of this study were as follows: Most of the gifted science students were selected through a multi-step examination process. They were selected on the basis of their records by recommendation of a principal or a classroom teacher in their school, by operation of standardized tests (ex. intelligence quotient score, achievements in science and mathematics, interest and attitude/aptitude for science as well as through other means), as well as through intensive observation of those gifted science students who are selected by interview and oral tests. The selection of gifted students was not evaluated through creativity testing; giftedness in city. province office of education. Testing of CPS was found to be especially lacking in these organizations. For the development of the test items of CPS in science, the five elements were extracted through the framework for the content analysis of the CPS: problem exploration, problem statement, solution thinking, experiment design, and assesment. In addition, suggestions were made regarding an appropriate scoring system for the test of the CPS. As the result of the developed test was applied to the 4th grade of the gifted and general student, we found that gifted students were superior to general students. In conclusion, it was that the CPS test developed in this study should be used to evaluate the CPS for the selection of gifted students.

• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.437-451
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• 2010

The purpose of this study was to analyse beginning science teachers' PCK. For the purpose of this study, two beginning science teachers were chosen in public middle school. Qualitative data were collected through classroom observation recording, semi-structured interviews, and other document data. Data were analysed using the constant comparative method. The results indicated that the two beginning science teachers' PCK had little differences; both have insufficient knowledge of science curriculum and assessment, and their PCK had quite differences in the instructional strategies and the orientations toward teaching science. Though they were aware of students' various levels, their common teaching method focused on delivery of science text knowledge for poor understanding about student. In conclusion, the two beginning teachers' PCK were still similar with preservice teachers. To develop beginning teachers' PCK, it needs to change the paradigm of pre-service teachers education program and to expand in-service teachers training and supporting program.

• School Mathematics
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.273-287
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• 2015

The purpose of this study was to obtain a deeper understanding of didactic processing in the class that unified with engineering by analyzing on the types of the teacher's instumental orchestration and schematizing it as an activity system. In order to do so, a qualitative study of a 5th grade class for math-gifted students in Y elementary school with ethnography was conducted. Interviews with the students were held and various document data were collected during the participational observation of the class. The collected qualitative data were gone through the analytical induction while the instrumental orchestration of Drijvers, Boon, Doorman, Reed, & Gravemeijer as well as the secondgeneration activity theory of Engestrom were using as the frame of conceptional reference. According to the result of this study, there exist 4 types, such as 'technical demo' 'link screen board', 'detection-exploring small group' and 'explain the screen and technical demo'.

• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
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• v.28 no.6
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• pp.641-648
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• 2008

The purpose of this study is to analyze pre-service science teachers' pedagogical content knowledge. For this study, two senior education students were selected. The data of this study were collected through interviews, CoRe questionnaire, and classroom observation recordings during the period of student-teacher practice. Data were analyzed using the constant comparative method. The results indicated that the two pre-service science teachers had low level pedagogical content knowledge. Two pre-service science teachers' knowledges of science curriculum were different from each other. Orientations toward teaching science shifted to undesirable direction after the experience of a student-teacher's practice-teaching. Their subject matter knowledges were imperfect. They also had low levels of knowledge of students' understanding.

• Journal of the Korean Geographical Society
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• v.39 no.4
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• pp.620-632
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• 2004

This paper tries to examine differences between geography classes taught by majored and non-majored teacher and to find problems in the latter case, tv observing four middle school geography classes in Seoul, from April to May 2003. The observation was fecund on (1) organization of a class (2) dialogue between teacher and students (3) strategy of explanation. In addition, the author conducted personal interviews with social studies teachers in the schools where the observations were made. The analyses of the observed classes were made by micro-ethnographic research method. Major findings of the observation and analysis are as follows. First, the transition from one topic to another topic was not smooth in the case of non-majored teacher class. Second, the questions that the non-majored teacher posed in the classroom played less significant role in keeping up the class in an organized fashion than those that the majored teacher posed. Third, the non-majored teacher focused on the concepts, terms and contents appeared in the textbook and simply tried to explain them, whereas the majored teacher demonstrated teaching methods such as comparing and contrasting cases to provide students with a more dynamic and comprehensive understanding on the topic they teamed. Fourth, the non-majored teacher used maps less frequently and less actively than the majored teacher. In addition, although the non-majored teachers are well aware of their problems in the class as a non-majored teacher, they think that the problems are inevitable in a given curriculum structure of social studies in Korea.