Developing Scientific Conclusions: An Action Research Study

• In Event: Roundtable Session 101
  In Roundtable Session: Action Research: Insights From the Classroom to International Settings

Abstract

Science notebooks have become an important component in elementary classrooms, as a tool for recording observations and wonderings about science. However, most notebooks lack science content and instead contain the story of what was done during science. This action research study explored strategies three teachers and a science mentor used to focus students’ entries on the science content through the composition of conclusions including a claim, evidence, and an explanation. Teachers taught specific strategies during the study, and posed focus questions for students to answer in the form of a conclusion. Students’ notebooks were collected and analyzed at three different points. The findings reveal that the explicit instruction impacted students’ conclusions, however, the impact of specific strategies was not clear.

Author

• Lori A Fulton, University of Hawaii at Manoa