Fostering Impactful Research Experiences for Teachers (RETs)

Margaret R. Blanchard; Victor D. Sampson

doi:10.12973/ejmste/80352

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Margaret R. Blanchard ¹ ^* , Victor D. Sampson ²

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¹ North Carolina State University, Department of STEM Education, Raleigh, North Carolina, U.S.A.² University of Texas at Austin, Department of Curriculum and Instruction, Austin, Texas, U.S.A.^* Corresponding Author

Abstract

The National Science Foundation (NSF) in the United States funds Research Experiences for Teachers (RETs) for K-12 science teachers. The RET program seeks to provide science teachers with research experiences so they can provide enhanced science or engineering inquiry experiences for their students. One form of RET that focuses on science pedagogy has resulted in some promising changes in teachers’ thinking and lesson design. This case study examines how a cohort of ten secondary science teachers’ inquiry conceptions and lesson design changed after participating in a science pedagogy RET, and analyzes the relationship between the components of the program and changes seen in teachers’ inquiry conceptions and lessons. Significant changes in teachers’ inquiry conceptions and particularly their lessons were a result of teacher adoption of the inquiry-based instructional modeled during the science pedagogy RET. A theory of action is proposed for RET design that would better promote and support teacher learning and foster changes in classroom instruction.

Keywords

RET
science inquiry
secondary science teachers
teacher professional development
apprenticeship model

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This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Article Type: Research Article

EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed, Volume 14, Issue 1, January 2018, 447-465

https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/80352

Publication date: 15 Nov 2017

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Article Downloads: 1660

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How to cite this article

APA

Blanchard, M. R., & Sampson, V. D. (2018). Fostering Impactful Research Experiences for Teachers (RETs). Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 14(1), 447-465. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/80352

Vancouver

Blanchard MR, Sampson VD. Fostering Impactful Research Experiences for Teachers (RETs). EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed. 2018;14(1):447-65. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/80352

AMA

Blanchard MR, Sampson VD. Fostering Impactful Research Experiences for Teachers (RETs). EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed. 2018;14(1), 447-465. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/80352

Chicago

Blanchard, Margaret R., and Victor D. Sampson. "Fostering Impactful Research Experiences for Teachers (RETs)". Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education 2018 14 no. 1 (2018): 447-465. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/80352

Harvard

Blanchard, M. R., and Sampson, V. D. (2018). Fostering Impactful Research Experiences for Teachers (RETs). Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 14(1), pp. 447-465. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/80352

MLA

Blanchard, Margaret R. et al. "Fostering Impactful Research Experiences for Teachers (RETs)". Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, vol. 14, no. 1, 2018, pp. 447-465. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/80352