Teachers’ Understanding and Operationalisation of ‘Science Capital’

Abstract

Across the globe, governments, industry and educationalists are in agreement that more needs to be done to increase and broaden participation in post-16 science. Schools, and teachers, are seen as key in this effort. Previous research has found that engagement with science, inclination to study science, and understanding of the value of science strongly relates to a student's science capital. This paper reports on findings from the pilot year of a one-year professional development (PD) programme designed to work with secondary school teachers to build students' science capital. The PD programme introduced teachers to the nature and importance of science capital and thereafter supported them to develop ways of implementing science capital-building pedagogy in their practice.The data comprises interviews with the participating teachers (n=10), observations of classroom practices, and analyses of the teachers' accounts of their practice. Our findings suggest that teachers found the concept of science capital to be compelling and to resonate with their own intuitive understandings and experiences. However, the ways in which the concept was operationalised in terms of the implementation of pedagogical practices varied. The difficulties inherent in the operationalisation are examined and recommendations for future work with teachers around the concept of science capital are developed.

Killing curiosity? An analysis of celebrated identity performances among teachers and students in nine London secondary science classrooms

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“…While Enterprising Science researchers insist they are principally concerned with promoting 'social justice,' this concern is largely subsumed within economic, labor market relationships, focused on addressing inequality of access of women, working class and some ethnic minority groups to post-secondary science and science careers. 'In terms of social justice,' write King et al (2015), for example, 'science qualifications can 'open doors' to a range of careers' and 'science graduates are likely to earn more in their lifetimes than non-science graduates' (2988). 'Our position is … informed by the strategic value of science qualifications in educational and labour markets,' write DeWitt, Archer and Mau (2016), and 'the wage premiums often commanded by science qualifications' (2432).…”

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