Insightful Use of Science Notebooks: What Does It Look Like?

• In Event: Assessment in Science Education

Abstract

Writing in science is an important component of reform-based science instruction; promoting learning of the science content and an understanding of the scientific practices. Science notebooks encourage this type of learning but are rarely used in such a manner, focusing on activity documentation rather than learning. This case study examined three second-grade teachers’ practices to understand how they scaffold notebook use, specifically looking for insightful practices. We identified specific strategies teachers used to encourage use of the notebook as a learning tool and focus student entries on the content rather then the activity. When such strategies were used, students had a higher incidence of the components of an explanation within their notebooks and post-test results were positively impacted.

Authors

• Lori A Fulton, University of Hawaii - Manoa

• Jian Wang, Texas Tech University