Preparing Teachers for Place-Based Instruction at the Tsongas Industrial History Center

• In Event: Making Museums an Integral Part of Formal Teaching and Learning

Abstract

Summary
This presentation offers a rationale and a model for preparing teacher candidates to implement place-based instruction, drawing from the experiences of University of Massachusetts Lowell teacher candidates and faculty in using the Tsongas Industrial History Center, an education partnership of the UMass Lowell Graduate School of Education and the National Park Service (Lowell National Historical Park).
Despite a paucity of research into the influence of teacher preparation on future field-trip usage and effectiveness, professional associations such as the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) recommend the use of informal learning environments in K-12 education. Kisiel (2013), focusing on the use of museums and science centers in the preparation of elementary teachers, found that preservice elementary teachers developed favorable attitudes to using informal science education sites, not just for field trips, but for assistance with resources and ideas for their lesson preparation.
The impact of museum visits, or visits to other “informal education” sites, on student learning is dependent on the way in which the teacher links the field-site to curriculum (Griffin & Symington, 1997). Research during the 1990s indicated that teachers were not preparing students for field-trips or following up in ways that ensured that the experience was more than a day away from the classroom (Tuckey, 1992). Additionally, when at a site without a formal guide, teachers tried to use it in similar ways to the formal classroom and consequently underutilized the resources and opportunities for place-based learning (Griffin & Symington, 1997). Recent research by Tal and colleagues indicated that once teachers have led a trip to a site or have participated in a field-based experience, they are more likely to effectively connect field trips to the classroom curriculum (Tal, Yael & Orly, 2005).
Collaborations between museums and/or historic sites and schools of education offer teacher candidates opportunities to experience a museum-based activity themselves and enable the modeling of a planning process that results in strong curricular connections. Additionally, museums benefit from working with teacher preparation programs because this affords them the opportunity to hone their programming in order to ensure that it supports local curriculum frameworks and effective project-based learning.
Through our experiences with the undergraduate UTeach STEM teacher preparation program, we have observed that teacher candidates in the University of Massachusetts Lowell Graduate School of Education visiting the TIHC during their preparation program gain greater appreciation for the importance of place-based learning in the K-12 curriculum. For instance, the two classroom teachers engaged with UTeach preservice teachers in the current Project Based Instruction field experiences are both graduates of the GSE’s teacher preparation program. The GSE focuses on the pedagogy rather than the logistics of field work. Faculty believe that if teachers realize the benefits of extending learning at field sites, they will draw upon the experience of others in their schools to assist with logistics. The GSE’s experience suggests that by engaging in field work, new teachers will be motivated to return to the TIHC and/or visit other sites when established in their own classrooms.

Authors

• Sheila Kirschbaum, University of Massachusetts - Lowell

• Anita M. Greenwood, University of Massachusetts - Lowell