How new, reform-oriented elementary teachers teach science in schools that are situated in extant cultures is of great interest to the science education research community as well as to the community at large concerned with continuous teacher education. This paper delimits and summarizes research directions from the cultural perspective. A sample of research that uses a cultural perspective to investigate what happens in a school to a new, reform-oriented elementary science and mathematics specialist teacher in the first two years of full time classroom teaching is presented. By calling for increased use of the school culture, a theoretical perspective in science education research is concluded. (Author/KHR)