ERIC Number: EJ1053968
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2014
Pages: 11
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-2332-3205
EISSN: N/A
Aspirations and Expectations: Comparing Scientist and Teacher Views as a Source of Ideas for Teaching Evolution
Weiss, Matthias; Dreesmann, Daniel C.
Universal Journal of Educational Research, v2 n5 p421-431 2014
Biological evolution still lacks representation in school, especially below high school level. In order to find new implications that could help achieve significant improvement in teaching evolution, twelve expert interviews with both renowned researchers and experienced science teachers were conducted. Results of the comparison between the mindsets of scientists and teachers yield the five recommendations that could significantly improve the teaching practices of biological evolution: (1) Evolution should be taught as early as possible and should be exposed as the central concept of biology. (2) Despite the large theoretical framing of biological evolution, many occasions occur for hands-on, creative, and even experimental class-room-activities. (3) Biological evolution allows discussing controversial scientific concepts, illustrating the scientific way to gain knowledge. Thereby, misconceptions held by students could be changed towards a scientific perspective. (4) Biological evolution topics are well suited to practice reflection and evaluation skills, equipping students with the keys to answer questions humans have. (5) Since effective teaching can only succeed with capable teachers, new teaching and training materials for biological evolution issues should be developed.
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Evolution, Science Instruction, Scientists, Teacher Attitudes, Comparative Analysis, Science Activities, Controversial Issues (Course Content), Instructional Materials, Science Teachers, Scientific Concepts, Secondary School Teachers, Secondary School Science, Misconceptions, Teacher Competencies, Teaching Methods, Elementary School Science, Experiments, Qualitative Research, Semi Structured Interviews
Horizon Research Publishing. 506 North Garfield Avenue #210, Alhambra, CA 91801. e-mail: editor@hrpub.org; Web site: http://www.hrpub.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Secondary Education; Elementary Education; Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Germany
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A