posted by:
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Tom Archer
on August 16, 1999
at 3:43PM
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subject:
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Middle School Science
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If your project is currently implementing curriculum how has it been going? Our district adopted Glencoe Science Interactions three years ago. We are in the process of moving from a junior high system (Grades 7-9), to a middle school configuration (Grades 6-8).
What are the strengths and weaknesses of the curriculum from your perspective or from the perspective of your teachers? The strength of the program is that it is interdisciplinary and has hands on activities for students. Weakness, teachers express concerns related to the depth of content covered.
What do you think teachers and administrators want/need in instructional materials to provide high-quality science education to their students? I think that teachers and administrators both want instructional materials that are relevant and engage the middle school student in hands on minds on activities. In addition, they want updates and renewals on a continuing basis. Science is not a static discipline, so our materials and professional development should not be static either.
- Should new curriculum materials for middle school be in earth, life, and physical science, or multidisciplinary, or interdisciplinary? Should they be all modular or year long? Should they be integrated across subject domains? Should they have texts that go along with the activities, as the high school programs have? Would you recommend a social/societal context, a historical context, or a traditional one? I believe middle school students have broad interests and need a broad scope in curriculum, such as a multidisciplinary or interdisciplinary approach. They also need to see the relevancy of what they are learning, so if the multidisciplinary format is a vehicle that brings the science content into their lives and adds meaning then that is the vehicle we should use. However, I think we need to be careful of always using the multidisciplinary approach in all of our teaching to accommodate teams. The teachers also express that they want the text. I feel that this adds to their comfort level as well.
- What are the primary barriers to implementing such a curriculum (teacher certification/training, facilities, materials)? To me this is a real, "Which came first the chicken or the egg?", question. To accomplish a great middle school science program for the students, all of these need to be in place. The teacher needs to feel comfortable about the content that they are teaching and this involves teacher training, either pre-service or in-service. The teacher and the student need adequate facilities and space to accommodate hands on minds on science instruction. Teachers need quality materials and adequate supplies to deliver the quality instruction. They only have so many hours in a day, and if they are spending time on a daily basis, begging or borrowing materials, that takes away time from their instructional planning time. I have seen all of these become major barriers to quality instruction. I think the challenge before us, is to remove or at least reduce as many of these barriers as possible.
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