This report aimed to measure the impact of a unique professional development program entitled Project ASTER III (Active Science Teaching Encourages Reform) on teachers' self-efficacy and perceptions about inquiry-based science teaching. Project ASTER III enabled teachers to explore inquiry-based science teaching through exhibit-based hands-on/ minds-on investigations at a science museum and to develop a science curriculum aligned with museum exhibits and state and national science education standards. Quantitative data indicated that teacher beliefs were positively and significantly impacted by the professional development program and confirmed that programs like ASTER III are effective but need to be provided on a continuous basis to reinforce these beliefs in the teachers. Finally, three themes emerged from the analysis of the qualitative data from the participant journals: (1) impact on teacher understanding of inquiry, (2) increased confidence about science teaching, and (3) benefits of collaboration.
This article focuses on the impact a collaborative project between university graduate fellows and K‐12 classroom teachers had on improved pedagogy in the classroom and in the future at the university. Nine teams participated in a yearlong professional development project to improve pedagogy and communication skills of the participants. This study shows that the participants, the fellows and the K‐12 teacher partners, made changes in planning, implementation, and even motivation for using inquiry‐based methods in their classroom.
External observations of the teams further support the individuals' claims of improved pedagogy using inquiry and impact on student conceptual understanding. The Horizon Classroom Observation instrument was used for these observations. The teams showed an overall increase in scores, as well as overall effective and exemplarily implementation of their planning. The program design, the implementation, and the results of this three‐year study will be elaborated in this article.
This article describes Project ASTER III (Active Science Teaching Encourages Reform), a science professional development program for early elementary teachers, which is based on the premise that people learn best by doing. Very few professional development programs focus on early childhood teacher development and how best to integrate informal science centers into teaching. In ASTER III, development teams-consisting of university scientists, science educators, K-3 teachers, and educators from a hands-on science museum-developed 5E lesson plans aligned with the Ohio Academic Content Standards and the National Science Education Standards in conjunction with the museum's exhibits. This study explores the impact of the ASTER III model on teacher perceptions about the role and effect informal science museum visits have on subsequent teaching and student learning.
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