Increasing Interest in Science to Improve Content Mastery

Increasing Interest in Science1

Increasing Interest in Science to Improve Content Mastery

Master's Project for a Master's of Arts Degree in Teaching

Melody Williams

University of Memphis

Table Of Contents

Research Question……………………………………….…..page 4

Context and Rationale…………………………………….…page 4

Who I am as a professional……………………….…...page 4

Context and setting of my work…………………….....page 9

How research question relates to work context…….…page 14

Why topic is worthwhile……………………………...page 16

Professional Knowledge…………………………………..…page 17

Professional points of view………………………..….page 17

Standards for learning…………………………….….page 20

Standards for teaching...……………………………...page 21

Relevant theories………………………………….….page 24

Professional consensus on best practices…………….page 25

Summary……………………………………………..page 26

Action Plan…………………………………………………..page 26

Goal of action plan………..…………………………..page 26

Week 1………………………………………………..page 27

Week 2………………………………………………..page 28

Week 3………………………………………………..page 29

Week 4………………………………………………..page 31

Week 5………………………………………………..page 31

Week 6………………………………………………..page 32

Data collection……………………………………………....page 33

Analysis and findings……………………………………….page 36

Conclusions……………………………………………….... page 44

Next Steps…………………………………………………....page 46

Appendix ……………………………………………………page 48

References.………………………………………………...... page 49

Abstract

The purpose of my action research was to increase student science content mastery through increasing student interest in science content through generating engaging instruction and diversifying assignments targeting student personalities. Students consistently struggle with scientific comprehension involving scientific passages and problems. Students exhibit a lack of understanding of how to connect the different concepts of biology. I wanted to work towards engaging my students more in the content, show the relevance of science to their lives, and generate a positive interest in classroom content and activities.

Individual personalities and interests are factors in regards to intellectual development (Ackerman 1996). Lubinski (2000) discusses the importance of interest and personality in assessing individual differences. Individuals are driven by their personalities, their interests, and their learning processes. Satisfaction and ability play a role in intellectual development (Lubinski 200). Implementing dynamic activities targeting each attribute, instituting a rewards system, and enhancing satisfaction in the tasks should increase the likelihood of students mastering content.

Research was conducted within my classroom. The students were engaged in lecture, activities, labs, multi media, and a reading/writing assignment with each chapter that was discussed that were modeled after Lubinski's 4 personality types. A pre and post test were given to determine content mastery. I used a needs assessment to record the students’ level of interest in the topic prior to the research period and after the research period. I also collected daily verbal feedback from students to determine interest in classroom activities.

After analyzing my data, I found that students who are predicted to test advanced have a high level of interest in science. Students who are predicted to fail the end of course exam had little to no interest in science. After the research period, I found that students who had a higher increase of interest in classroom content had a 5-6% increase in scores than those who had little increase in classroom content (3%). Overall the majority of students had positive comments about being able to pick their own assignments and expressed how they liked the activities as well as instruction.

The knowledge achieved from my research study will be shared with my University of Memphis colleagues as well as the science teachers at my current teaching location. I will also distribute my findings to my school board and principal. Hopefully my findings will be beneficial in assisting other science teachers in developing effective classroom activities that enhance the development of scientific reasoning skills. I will continue to apply this form of assignment diversification and instruction through the next semester.

Research Question

How can I increase scientific reasoning skills utilize by students in 10th grade Biology?

Context and Rationale

Who I am as a professional.

I am a secondary school Biology teacher in a southern rural county School system. My undergraduate degree is a Bachelor's of Science in Biology with a Minor in Chemistry from the University of Memphis. While at the university I reached the maximum number of hours allowed in Biology for an undergraduate degree. I required additional upper division science courses to fulfill the requirement which led to my Minor in Chemistry. I performed Genetics research with Dr. Lessman involving zebrafish. We monitored the transmission of a particular gene and studied the ovulation cycles of the female zebrafish. I also performed genetics research with Dr. McKenna in regards to a species of ladybug and mapping their genome. We implemented cutting edge technology in sequencing DNA. I learned the complexity involved in genetic research and the technology required. In the Chemistry department, I performed cancer research with Dr. Huang in the use of gold Nano rods and cancer drug administration. We utilized lasers in the drug administration and tested the heat limits of the Nano rods. My background in Biology and research is strong. By performing research in such a diverse group of settings, I was able to apply content in a laboratory setting. This research experience gave me practical applications of my course content. The diversity involved in these various research projects gave me invaluable experience I regularly reflect to my students. My large amount of knowledge of content is reflected in my experiences in my undergraduate work and research.

I chose to pursue a career in education due to my love of science and research. I had been a “stay at home” mother for many years. Once my daughter returned to school, I completed my degree in science and sought to teach Biology. Research and education are not different in regards to their importance to the society. Research asks questions, looks for answers, and educates others in the findings. The ability to express your findings in an effective manner to the general population is essential in research. Science education presents evidence and requires students to formulate their own opinions as well as come to their own conclusions in regards to facts, data, and evidence. Like research, presenting all of the material in an effective way to meet the needs of the class population is essential in ensuring students achieve the ability to link concepts and come to their own conclusions.

For a few years before I returned to school to finish my degree, I taught at Evergreen Preschool in Memphis, Tennessee. My duties primarily focused on the development and growth of children aged 1-2 years old. I compiled lesson plans that strengthened basic motor skills, daily self care activities, as well as academic instruction involving identifying numbers, letters, colors, animals, plants, etc. I introduced abstract concepts involving constellations, spatial reasoning between shapes, and early arithmetic. I took it upon myself to reach the children individually and challenge them. I set goals and worked to have each student reach their potential. Parents would question why we were discussing such complex concepts. I explained to them that exposing them to various concepts at an early age, even if only a few concepts were retained, would encourage plasticity and possibly spark interest into further discovery learning. By the time my students (at the age of 2 years) left my class, they knew their shapes, could count to 10, could engage in self-care activities, and could recite their alphabet.

I currently hold an Apprentice teacher license I acquired this past Summer. The past 2 years I have been teaching on a Transitional License while taking graduate courses and worked towards an Apprentice teaching license. I taught Biology at Brighton High School my first year. Through hard work, this school tested highest in the county for Biology scores. I moved to Munford High School last year. In that year, I managed to move 30% of my students above their predicted scores on the “End of Course” Biology exam. Munford High School is currently my teaching assignment. The majority of my students are 10th grade. I teach 3 College preparatory Biology classes where the expectations of the students are much higher than the other 3 standard Biology classes. I am charged to instill interest in my students in the topic and raise the annual Biology scores for Munford High School.

The first year at Brighton High School was very difficult for me. I was starting out in my profession as a public schools educator who had very little background in education. I had previously worked at a church based home school where I tutored 7th-12th graders in Math, Science, and English. I did not do full classroom instruction and lecturing. The students worked out of workbooks. I did not give assignments, nor did lesson plans. I tutored students one on one as they reached material they did not understand. Through that experience, I learned how to diversify my instruction in order to meet the individual needs of my students. Because of my lack of classroom instruction, classroom management was an issue for me. Fortunately, the school sent me to a workshop given at the Tipton County Board involving classroom management. This 3 day workshop gave me skills I could apply to the second semester. I revamped my approach to content delivery providing “guided lecture notes” for students to copy. We discussed the content and I provided activities that reinforced the content.

One of my biggest challenges at Brighton High School was keeping students interested and engaged in the discussions. The other involved personal reservations involving classroom content including natural selection and evolution. A large portion of students were disinterested in science and had religious convictions involving evolution. I had to work to engage my students and aid them in learning content involving evolution without being offensive to their individual faiths. I struggled with a few students who would separate themselves from the discussion because of personal convictions and faith. I worked to answer their science based questions and found t if I was proactive in addressing their concerns, there was less resistance in learning the evolution and natural content.

Munford High School presented its own challenges my second year in public education. I was a new teacher there and many students tested my boundaries. I was able to apply what I had learned from my graduate courses in addition to the training I had received the previous year in classroom management. I had learned there were religious issues involving evolution and natural selection content. Munford students had similar convictions involving the instruction of evolution and natural selection. To avoid any offense or issues involving the evolution content, I started the year with the statement saying I would never tell a student what to think, but I wanted to teach them how to think. This allowed respect for the students and their individual belief systems without negating the importance of the content regarding evolution. The other issue, similar to Brighton High School, involved a lack of interest amongst students in science. I implemented new instructional strategies involving various forms of multimedia in addition to my “guided lecture notes”. I wanted to engage my students and spark their interest in the content we covered. I researched to find articles and videos that sparked their interest. I also wanted to meet the individual differences in learning styles through the use of videos to help reinforce the classroom content. I worked extensively with veteran teachers sharing what I found to be effective and utilizing what they found to be effective in their classrooms. My teacher effectiveness increased that year given I managed to move a large portion of my class above their state predicted scores. Nearly half of my students (approximately 120) were predicted by the state (due to their TCAP performances) to fail the End of Course exam at the end of the year. Only 7 tested at the “below basic” level which is considered a failing grade. I successfully managed to limit failure and increase my teacher effectiveness.

I am currently enrolled at the University of Memphis Graduate school in the Education Department. I am seeking a Master's of Arts in Teaching in Secondary Education through the Instructional, Curriculum and Leadership department. This is my last semester of Graduate school. A large portion of my coursework has reflected the implementation of technology in the classroom, understanding the individual differences and needs of students, as well as diversity in delivery of content. I have been fortunate I have been working throughout my graduate education so I have been able to apply what I have learned in each course in my own classroom and seen firsthand the benefits of my newly acquired knowledge. The greatest skills I have learned have contributed to the increase in my effectiveness involved understanding the diversity amongst my students, varying my assignments to meet the needs of my students, as well as modifying my delivery of content by utilizing a more dynamic and varied approach.

Context and setting of my work.

Munford High School is a rural secondary school and my current teaching assignment. The majority of my students are 10th grade with a few from the 9th grade. The community consists of mostly agriculture workers. It is considered a low income school. Many of my students come from low income homes and large portions have low predicted scores for the End of Course Biology Exam through their previous performances on the TCAP tests. I have the charge of challenging these students to gain an interest in science and move to above their expected End of Course Exam Biology score. The school is set in a “block schedule” where I see my students every other day for 1.5 hours. I have 3 college preparatory Biology classes and 3 standard Biology classes. My expectations for my college preparatory classes are set considerably higher than my standard classes. I modify instruction for the college preparatory classes to ensure an effective and challenging environment that aids them in achieving higher academic growth and a solid understanding of what to expect from a college science course. The standard classes receive the same content but the instruction involves more diversification and scaffolding in order to meet the varying academic needs of the individual.

I strive to ensure t my students have a clear outlook of my expectations of them. They come into class, put their belongings on provided shelving, gather their classroom materials, and have a seat at the lab benches. On my screen, I have a digital projection of review questions, challenge questions that piece together multiple concepts, and new content questions they must use their book to research the answers. The students are expected to complete the questions on a separate sheet of paper called “Questions of the Day”. I provide hard copies of questions to students who struggle to see the screen. As the students complete their questions, I take roll, hand out worksheets for the day, and give whatever announcements are necessary. After approximately 10 minutes, I pull names from my “equity cards”. These are cards that have the individual names of my students on each card. I pull names randomly and give students an opportunity to answer a question for a 5 point ticket. These 5 point tickets can be used on any assignment, test, quiz, or project to help boost their score. The children are told they do not expire and they can stack up to 4 tickets on any given one assignment. I keep up with which students have received a ticket as to allow each student in each class an opportunity to earn one. If a student struggles with an answer to a question, I ask guiding questions to aid them in reaching the correct response. Once they have given me the correct response, I reward them with a ticket.

After the initial questions are answered, I proceed with my introduction to the lecture discussing how it relates to previous material covered in class. The students are then instructed to copy down a portion of my “guided lecture notes” that I project onto the screen. I provide hard copies to students with accommodations as well as students who can not see the screen clearly. I give the students some time to write in their binders and draw any pictures I have to reinforce the content. I then discuss the content and engage some students to read the notes out loud as we cover each point. Approximately 15 minutes into my lecture, I play a video related to our new content for that day. The video usually consists of animations and illustrations that show the processes we have discussed. Some videos show practical applications of the content, while others can be news stories that directly relate to past and current classroom topics. At this point I quiz the students using my equity cards by asking questions related to the content we have covered thus far. I allow students an opportunity to “phone a friend” allowing them to ask a classmate for help in answering the question. After this question and answer session is completed, I proceed with the rest of the lecture. I allow students time to finish writing the “guided lecture notes”. Often times I finish the lecture with another relevant video pertaining to the content at hand.

During my lecture, I apply the daily classroom concepts to current scientific findings. I pause throughout my lecture to display relevant articles to aid in sparking the interest of my students in the content. I display these articles on the screen and pause to discuss the topic with the students and charge them to enter a discussion of how it is relevant to our content. The students seem to enjoy these articles and the discussion involved. It opens the class to look for and find purpose in what they are learning and how it can be applied in their daily lives. Some discuss a sense of pride in being able to understand the articles and appreciate that what they are learning has practical applications. These discussions have become an important part of the daily instruction. Students have brought discoveries to my attention they have found through personal internet research. I have searched for these articles to verify their validity and utilized them in class discussions. The college preparatory classes involve a heavier discussion of content and debates amongst students are encouraged.