It is well established that many teachers are resistant to take up the messages of reform if these messages require them to substantially shift their teaching practices. What accounts for this resistance? One well established explanation is that teachers lacks the selfefficacy required to attempt something new in their teaching-they simply do not feel capable of effectively enacting the messages. However, there are a host of studies describing teachers with high self-efficacy who remain resistant to messages of change. The purpose of this article is to address the gap in the application of self-efficacy to understand the change or lack of change of science teachers' practice through the introduction of a related construct, pedagogical discontentment. This construct reflects a state of cognitive conflict that exists when an individual recognizes a mismatch between her/his science teaching pedagogical goals and classroom practices. One potential result of this mismatch is that a teacher problematizes her teaching practices, prompting an increased receptivity to reform messages. Building on existing literature, we present vignettes of four hypothetical teachers who exemplify variations of pedagogical discontentment. When combined with self-efficacy, pedagogical discontentment provides a useful lens to understand teachers' consideration and adoption of messages of reform.

This research focused on the interactionist conceptual ecologies of inservice teachers and how these ecologies influenced these teachers' conceptual frameworks for the nature of science (NOS). The participants in the study were five teachers enrolled in a graduate course focused on NOS. Data included participants' responses to open-ended and Likert scale surveys, interviews, writing prompts, and participant observations of classroom sessions. We propose a model of the interaction of the prominent components of teachers' conceptual ecologies for NOS, one in which learning dispositions, understandings of the broad enterprise of science, and orientation to learning and learners are understood to shape teachers' conceptual frameworks for NOS. The complex ties between NOS conceptions and goals, affect, dispositions, and beliefs speak to the inclusion of the bounded nature of science as a central aspect of NOS for practicing teachers. Teachers' dispositions toward learning this construct are linked to their conceptions of the boundaries of science as well as their understanding of the role of NOS in their own teaching. We argue that a recognition of the bounded nature of science foregrounds actions of a teacher's learning disposition, thus potentially minimizing the influence of their religious beliefs.

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The assessment head for the state Department of Education (DOE) travels across town to present a lecture to the university's science education faculty. His talk is on the state's science assessment and what the inclusion of this assessment in determination of AYP (adequate yearly progress) will mean for the state's teachers. The room feels a bit uncomfortable because DOE staff and professors seldom speak, formally or informally. There is much handshaking and elaborate introductions as the faculty work to make the DOE representative comfortable and as he networks for possible resources. His PowerPoint begins with, "All of us here share an overriding goal . . ." The faculty nod, content that the DOE staff person is working to create a sense of community. He continues, " . . . and that goal is to increase the performance of students in our state . . ." A hand shoots up. The DOE staff person tries to continue but the shaking hand will not go down. "Yes?" he asks. The owner of the hand quickly responds, "I hate to disagree with you so quickly but increasing performance is NOT our goal. Our job is to help teachers develop the knowledge and skills needed to better help their students learn science. If performance on some measure goes up, well so much the better." He retorts, "But isn't learning and increased performance the same thing?"