Teaching Science and Inquiry From a Dewey and Vygotsky Perspective

• In Event: Trends in Constructivist Pedagogy

Abstract

Building Baseline Objectives for Children’s Knowledge and Skills in Science (BLOCKS) was a four-year project funded by the National Science Foundation to study what children know about science by the time they enter kindergarten. The project followed a path established by Dewey and Vygotsky as it connected inquiry-based learning across three levels of participants-- university mentors, prekindergarten teachers-as-researchers and students. As a result of the collaboration, the project evolved into inquiry-based co-constructed learning by the teachers, mentors, and finally the students. This paper describes the processes of collaboration of this group of educators and documents the transformation of both the teacher-researchers and their mentors as they constructed a common language and understanding of science.

Authors

• Mary Elizabeth Hobbs, The University of Texas

• Celeste Alexander, The University of Texas - Austin

• James P. Barufaldi, The University of Texas - Austin