Changes in the Practice of First-Grade Science Teachers Related to Professional Development

• In Event: Equitable Science Instruction for Emergent Multilingual Students: Exploring Relationships Between Professional Learning and Teacher Practice

Abstract

This paper is a comparative case study and analyzes changes that occurred in three first-grade classrooms as teachers worked to integrate content and language in their science lessons over the course of a school year. Administration at this K-4, rural elementary school in northern Nevada was seeking a way to engage all learners more fully in the curriculum, with a special focus on meeting the needs of emergent multilingual learners (EMLs). To support the learning of all its students, the school engaged in a school-wide professional development program provided by the Making Science Multilingual (MSM) initiative. This initiative is a joint venture between WIDA (a national consortium of states that develops standards and assessment for EMLs) and the National Science Teaching Association (NSTA) that aims to support EMLs’ equitable participation in science learning.
The professional development that MSM provided drew on the WIDA Framework for Equitable Instruction and focused on incorporating opportunities for student interaction during 5E science instruction utilizing the FOSS curriculum. More specifically, the professional development supported teachers in integrating the interactive language practices from the WIDA framework and the accompanying discourse moves into the design of FOSS-based science lessons. The professional development consisted of two full-day sessions before school began followed by monthly hour-long professional learning community (PLC) sessions. The full-day sessions served as an introduction to the language practices and discourse moves, 5E science instruction, and the FOSS curriculum. The monthly follow-up sessions served to reinforce all aspects of the program and, as the year progressed, became increasingly focused on specific teacher needs.
Data consisted of multiple sources, including two focus group interviews, participant-observer journal reflections on informal and formal conversations with teachers during monthly PLCs, and classroom observations. Additionally, two lessons were recorded in each classroom: one in the fall and one in the spring.
The constant-comparative method was used for analyzing data from all sources to ensure validity. Results of the study reveal shifts in the teachers’ practice over time, particularly in the area of student discourse during science instruction. Early on, I observed demonstration-based science lessons during which students engaged in basic fact recall either in a choral fashion or with a partner. Later in the year, I documented a greater emphasis on inquiry-based science lessons that provided students with opportunities to explain their own thinking and begin to co-construct meaning while comparing their own ideas with those of their peers. Clear expectations were in place for student participation during small group, hands-on investigations, and whole class discussions. Teachers were at times modeling and/or explicitly teaching discourse moves to deepen student engagement in meaningful conversation and begin to engage students in the different language practices. This study contributes to the emerging knowledge base on how teachers learn to support EL students’ science learning in general and their engagement in discourse in particular. The findings show that with support, teachers can change their practices over time to better meet the needs of emergent multilingual students in both science and language learning.

Authors

• Lynn M. Jeka, University of Nevada - Reno

• David T. Crowther, University of Nevada - Reno