How to reform science education from the bottom

by Bernice Hauser Primary Education Correspondent

Recently I had the opportunity to be the guest teacher in a graduate STS course at Hofstra University. I found it interesting to hear what the 15 elementary teachers pursuing their advanced degrees were saying -- that they are locked into a dogmatic rigid schedule, that the science texts they use are outdated and watered down, that they often have no time for inclusions of technological components unless it is really "spelled out" for them in the text, that they get no support for developing connections and cross references to their science topics. These very same teachers complained about the lack of models, about reforms that fail to provide "explicit teaching technique, curriculum materials and instructional tools," especially in reference to the new standards imposed on them.

I wondered if these teachers have access to the new science standards. I asked myself, "Are their concerns not addressed to these very issues?" We must find ways to shore up our teachers' efforts, I thought. So I charged these very teachers during class time to assist one another right then and there: "What topic or explorations are going on at this very moment in your personal classrooms?" I asked.

One teacher responded, "We are working on a unit about plants. We did all the vocabulary and the usual experiments of placing one in the dark. I need help making connections to other disciplines. I need help with the technological component of the unit."

So we brainstormed and came up with a long list of suggestions (see box). The enthusiasm was high, and the teachers were enthralled. But this outpouring really masks a basic conundrum -- not really having the infrastructure in place while you add the different layers. These teachers do want to "do science," but they get stuck and need real people who can show them how to initiate and use these new curricular models. The real problem is not what goes on in the classroom but what comes down from the top.

Thirty-nine ways to teach about plants

  1. minigreenhouse in the classroom
  2. floral stationery
  3. miniature replicas of plants in containers
  4. minimuseums of indigenous plants in the classroom
  5. international shipment of flowers
  6. rate of growth graphed versus amount of watering
  7. symmetry in plants
  8. study of one fruit in depth
  9. measurement of plant growth in different types of soil
  10. drama, paintings, and drawings
  11. museum visit
  12. Johnny Appleseed, George Washington Carver, Barbara McClintock
  13. Shel Silverstein's The Growing Tree
  14. visits to florists, nurseries, gardens, orchards
  15. making flower presses
  16. drying flowers, making wreaths
  17. making flower jewelry from papier m‰chŽ
  18. impact of flowers, trees, grasses on the environment
  19. comparison of fruit trees with flowering plants
  20. terraria in the classroom
  21. egg shell gardening
  22. roasting seeds
  23. esoteric plants
  24. plants producing food for human vs. animal consumption
  25. garden catalogs -- cut up for classification games
  26. writings and reflections about plants
  27. comparison of plants from bulbs, tubers, and seeds
  28. classification and labeling of seeds
  29. parts of plants eaten, cooked, used for medicine, juice, wine, herbs, perfume
  30. relationship between insects and plants
  31. "A weed in New York is a flower in California"
  32. school garden -- with parent and community involvement
  33. state flower
  34. rubbings of plants and bark
  35. gourd maracas
  36. names of garden tools
  37. packaging and shipping of fragile fruits
  38. making bread
  39. hydroponic plants


Home          Fall 97          Full Screen

The TEACHERS CLEARINGHOUSE FOR SCIENCE AND SOCIETY EDUCATION