September, 2017
Dear Field Teacher,
Thank you for agreeing to work with and mentor our students during this semester. We appreciate your partnering with us and our students. Our students are taking the SCE 4310 Content and Methods of Elementary Science class at Florida International University, a three-credit hour course requiring 15 field hours.
There are two consecutive science education courses for Elementary Education majors. This course, SCE 4310 is the foundational course focusing on developing scientific thinking, the nature of science, using constructivism via the learning cycle, inquiry investigation and habits of mind. Further application of the learnings from SCE 4310 will be the focus of the following sequential course SCE 4311. Together these courses provide the development of knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary to prepare students to assume the role of teachers of science in elementary school.
Students have two required field assignments with several major components or parts.. We are asking for your input and supervision.
The two major field assignments (FA) are:
FA#1 -Investigating concept development K-5. Pre-service teachers will be investigating the students’ concept of “What is alive? They will be using a series of five pictures and asking the student if the picture shown portrays something that is alive or not alive and reasons for their answer. Pre-service teachers will be trying to identify the student’s criteria for judging something to be alive (or not). We will work this field assignment in two parts. Pre-service teachers will bring their interview notes from their grade level to class and exchange your findings with their classmates who had different grade levels, so that grades K-5 are represented. Pre-service teachers will be analyzing all the data (K-5) in order to derive some conclusions regarding the concept development from kindergarten to fifth grade.
FA#2 –There are threemajor parts to this field assignment. PART A:Pre-assessment(diagnostic student interviews) In Part 1 pre-service students will interview five elementary students on a selected concept and analyze the students’ knowledge (pre-assessment). PART B: Teaching a 5E Inquiry Lesson: The preservice teachers will create a 5E inquiry lesson based on the standards and students’ current state of knowledgeand teach it to a small group of students. PART C:Post Assessment andReflection: After the lesson is taught, the pre-service teachers will again interview the students to gauge what they learned from the lesson and analyze the data. Included will be a reflection and analysis of the pre-service teacher’s lesson and teaching experience.
We have asked our students to discuss these assignments with you as they come to meet you and to find out about your class, your classroom, the curriculum, the materials available, outdoor spaces, and the students. Once again, thank you for partnering with us in helping our students develop confidence in teaching science.
Drs. George O’Brien and Kathy Sparrow
SCE 4310 Professors