Thesis advisor: Katherine L. McNeill / The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) represent a significant shift in the goals of U.S. science education. Instead of a focus solely on content acquisition, the NGSS aim to engage students in the practices of science. Teachers will require substantial support, in large part from science leaders at the district level, to change their instruction to accomplish this vision. However, little is known about how these leaders conceptualize the NGSS. Therefore, this dissertation utilizes a sensemaking theoretical framework to explore the beliefs and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) of district science leaders about one of the NGSS science practices, scientific argumentation. Greater understandings of these constructs can aid in designing appropriate supports for district leaders and meeting the challenges of implementing the NGSS. Fifty-three district leaders from states that have adopted the NGSS participated in a survey focused on their beliefs and PCK for argumentation. After the administration of the survey, 10 district leaders who represented a range of states and beliefs were selected for follow-up interviews. These interviews were semi-structured and focused on the same areas of belief as in the survey. The findings from the surveys and interviews indicate that most district science leaders are supporters of the NGSS and believe that scientific argumentation offers important benefits for students. Many leaders referenced one or more of the NGSS science practices in their descriptions of effective science education and asserted that they believe that the NGSS will require teachers in their districts to make substantial changes in their current instruction. However, some leaders also maintained their beliefs in the effectiveness of traditional instructional methods that are not compatible with the NGSS, and few leaders mentioned critique as an essential component of argumentation. In addition, many leaders demonstrated challenges in their PCK for argumentation, specifically related to evidence and reasoning in scientific arguments and the role of critique in dialogical interactions. Therefore, supporting leaders to develop more accurate conceptions and knowledge of the NGSS and argumentation should be a priority for districts nationwide. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2016. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Teacher Education, Special Education, Curriculum and Instruction.

Thesis advisor: Henry Braun / The Next Generation Science Standards propose a multidimensional model of science learning, comprised of Core Disciplinary Ideas, Science and Engineering Practices, and Crosscutting Concepts (NGSS Lead States, 2013). Accordingly, there is a need for student assessment aligned with the new standards. Creating assessments that validly and reliably measure multidimensional science ability is a challenge for the measurement community (Pellegrino, et al., 2014). Multidimensional assessment tasks may need to go beyond typical item designs of standalone multiple-choice and short-answer items. Furthermore, scoring and modeling of student performance should account for the multidimensionality of the construct. This research contributes to knowledge about best practices for multidimensional science assessment by exploring three areas of interest: 1) item design, 2) scoring rubrics, and 3) measurement models. This study investigated multidimensional scaffolding and response format by comparing alternative item designs on an elementary assessment of matter. Item variations had a different number of item prompts and/or response formats. Observations about student cognition and performance were collected during cognitive interviews and a pilot test. Items were scored using a holistic rubric and a multidimensional rubric, and interrater agreement was examined. Assessment data was scaled with multidimensional scores and holistic scores, using unidimensional and multidimensional Rasch models, and model-data fit was compared. Results showed that scaffolding is associated with more thorough responses, especially among low ability students. Students tended to utilize different cognitive processes to respond to selected-response items and constructed-response items, and were more likely to respond to selected-response arguments. Interrater agreement was highest when the structure of the item aligned with the structure of the scoring rubric. Holistic scores provided similar reliability and precision as multidimensional scores, but item and person fit was poorer. Multidimensional subscales had lower reliability, less precise student estimates than the unidimensional model, and interdimensional correlations were high. However, the multidimensional rubric and model provide nuanced information about student performance and better fit to the response data. Recommendations about optimal combinations of scaffolding, rubric, and measurement models are made for teachers, policymakers, and researchers. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2018. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Research, Measurement and Evaluation.

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We will share examples of hands-on investigations combining the 5Es and the CER Framework with supporting literacy activities to help upper elementary students demonstrate learning.

The purpose of this study was to identify essential features of Epistemic Orientation toward Teaching Science (EOTS) and to explore the relationships between EOTS and instructional practices. This study proposes a new concept, EOTS: defined as a teacher's set of interrelated beliefs that are developed and used when teaching science, and are shaped by the Nature of Knowing in General, the Nature of Knowing in Science, the Nature of Learning, and the Nature of Teaching. The essential elements of EOTS were identified through a comprehensive literature review and refined through a multiple-case study. The participants of the study were three exemplary fifth grade teachers who had been implementing an Argument-based Inquiry (ABI) approach, called Science Writing Heuristic (SWH), for more than three years and were highly devoted to encouraging their students to engage in science practices addressed in Next Generation Science Standard. Data were collected from multiple sources including semi-structured interviews, Video-Stimulated Recall interviews, classroom observations, researchers' field notes, and classroom artifacts. Data was systematically coded, and each belief and practice analyzed in-depth. The results identified eleven interconnected beliefs held in common by all three teachers. Among the eleven elements, How to Learn was the core belief that was most connected to the others and also aligned well with the Source of Knowing, How to Learn, Evidence-based Argument, and How to Teach; this idea established a strong structural foundation for the EOTS. In addition, some elements were explicitly presented when the teachers made instructional decisions, while others were only presented implicitly. In addition, prominent patterns of instructional practice were evident across the three cases. The teachers did not plan how to teach in advance, rather they made instructional decisions based on their epistemic orientations. In particular, they emphasized a conceptual understanding of the big ideas in science by making connections between students' ideas and the big ideas in science. Constant negotiation (construction and critique) was another pattern observed throughout the lessons. In creating effective learning conditions for conceptual understanding and constant negotiation, teachers used language practices and social, group-work as epistemic tools to help students construct and critique knowledge. Moreover, physical resources, such as physical materials and time, were used in a way that encouraged students to engage in science practice. More importantly, the way in which classroom practices and dialogue were managed relied heavily on the essential elements of ETOS. Specifically, How to Learn and Control of Learning influenced the student-centeredness of their instructional practices. This study provides several implications for teacher education and research. Teacher-education programs should focus energy on shaping teacher ideas about learning, and address the epistemic foundations of science practices. Further investigation into the essential elements of EOTS, and the relationship between these elements and instructional practices must be pursued with diverse subjects, contexts, and methodologies, to develop a fuller understanding of how these elements work as a whole.

Wade into the topic of sound and waves with progressive STEM activities that integrate math, reading, and science.

As zoos and aquariums have become increasingly focused on conservation education, their menageries of unique and diverse learning opportunities have been underutilized. Through a new postsecondary-level animal behavior laboratory experience at an aquarium (“ZooU”), this study demonstrates that active learning pedagogy aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) could facilitate expansion of education at zoos and aquariums beyond their conservation education niche. Generally, students indicated that ZooU provided new opportunities for them to explore their own interests, demonstrate their learning, and augment their previous laboratory and aquarium experiences. Following both self- and researcher assessments of the students’ work, integrated analyses revealed that students who engaged in more active learning activities at the aquarium demonstrated a greater increase in skills aligned with the NGSS. Additionally, a novel intra-individual analysis was utilized to embrace the variation between learners that typically confounds the results of education studies with repeated measures design. Common challenges for education at zoos and aquariums are discussed through the context of ZooU as a foundation for future investigations. A practical NGSS-aligned guide to field trips at zoos and aquariums—written specifically for science teachers—is also included to support broader utilization of zoos and aquariums as educational resources.

We will combine hands-on science investigations with supporting literacy activities to help students conduct original research on animal behaviors and communicate their findings.

We will combine hands-on science investigations with supporting literacy activities to help students build conceptual models of photosynthesis.

We will combine hands-on science investigations with supporting literacy activities to help students tell the “whole story” of force and motion.