Using self‐generated analogies in teaching of thermodynamics

Using self‐generated analogies has been proposed as a method in a constructivist tradition for students to learn about a new subject, by use of what they previously know. We report on a group exercise on using self‐generated analogies to make sense of two thermodynamic processes, reversible adiabatic expansion and free adiabatic expansion of an ideal gas. The participants (N = 8) were physics preservice teacher students at the fourth year of the teacher education program. A main finding was that work with self‐generated analogies tended to be accompanied by the students assuming ownership for their learning, manifested in terms of actions of choice and control and the use of exploratory talk. Consequently, several self‐generated analogies were elaborated and developed to a high‐order relational structure. However, we also found that with the use of self‐generated analogies in science teaching follows the risks of developing idiosyncratic explanations of the encountered phenomena or getting stuck in overly complex comparisons. Sammanfattning: Självgenererade analogier har förts fram som en metod i en konstruktivistisk tradition för att elever och studenter ska kunna lära sig något nytt genom att relatera till vad de redan vet. Vi redogör här för en gruppövning där självgenererade analogier användes för att förstå två termodynamiska processer: reversibel adiabatisk expansion, respektive fri adiabatisk expansion av en ideal gas. Åtta (N = 8) lärarstudenter på fjärde året av utbildningen med inriktning mot fysik på gymnasiet deltog i studien. Ett viktigt resultat var att vid arbete med självgenererade analogier tenderade studenterna att ta ägandeskap för sitt lärande, vilket tog sig uttryck i handlingar såsom aktiva val, kontroll över processen och explorativ dialog. Som en följd utvecklades flera av de självgenererade analogierna till ett stort strukturellt djup. Samtidigt såg vi att vid skapande av egna analogier löper studenter risken att utveckla egna förklaringar av de studerade fenomenen som inte svarar mot dem inom vetenskapen eller snärja in sig i alltför komplexa jämförelser. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 49: 898–921, 2012     

Collaborative and self-generated analogies in science education

It has long been recognised that analogies may be a useful tool in science education. At the same time, it has been found that there are challenges to using analogies in teaching. For example, students might not identify a suitable analogy, might not recognise how the taught target domain is similar to the source domain to which it is compared, or may fail to realise where the analogy breaks down. The present study offers a review of two trends which reflect the ambition to come to terms with such challenges: self-generated analogies, making use of students’ own analogies in teaching, and analogy generation in collaborative settings, such as in small-group work. Empirical studies show predominately positive results with regard to students’ enjoyment and learning gains, and point to opportunities for formative assessment. The specificities of language in conjunction with analogy and the role of analogies in authentic science classroom discourse are suggested as areas of study that deserve more attention going forward.     

一般理想气体卡诺循环效率的讨论

概述了热容量为常量的理想气体的卡诺循环效率 .从一般理想气体的绝热方程出发 ,推导出热容量不是常量的理想气体卡诺循环的效率 ,并进一步从熵的角度说明卡诺定理 ,得出一切卡诺循环的效率必然都等于工作物质为理想气体时的效率 .     

绝热自由膨胀实验的理论探讨

应用改进的绝热自由膨胀实验装置,分析了焦耳系数描述的有效性,按照热力学理论分别计算了几种气体的焦耳系数.理论上预言了各种气体经绝热自由膨胀后温度的变化,并从气体内能和分子力的角度给出了其微观解释.     

Self-generated analogies as a tool for constructing and evaluating explanations of scientific phenomena

How can students be taught to develop explanations for scientific phenomena on their own when their background knowledge is incomplete or poorly organized? Evidence from historical accounts of scientific discovery suggest that self-generated analogies—analogies produced by the learners themselves—are a tool by which individuals can generate, evaluate, and modify their own explanations. The central research questions for this study were: Can students use a series of self-generated analogies to bring about change in their understanding of a given scientific phenomenon, and what is the nature of the change in understanding? Participants were asked to create, apply, and modify their own analogies—as opposed to applying a specific analogy provided by an outsider—as a heuristic for constructing, evaluating, and modifying their own explanations for a given scientific phenomena. Nontrivial changes in explanation facilitated by the use of generative analogies were observed. Changes in understanding ranged from the emergence of new explanations to the raising of important questions about the nature of the phenomenon.     

The use of analogies in language teaching: Representing the content of teachers' practical knowledge

This study sought to determine how experienced language teachers use analogies to help students comprehend a text on the course of their regular teaching routines. It is assumed that analogies constitute one important component of the content of teachers' practical knowledge in the context of reading-comprehension instruction. The framework of the study drew from Shulman's notion of 'pedagogical content knowledge'; the perspective was the analogy-provider (e.g. teacher or textbook author). Eight lessons taught by eight different teachers were observed and analysed for the presence of analogies. The frequent use of analogies, continuously under discussion in the literature about science education, seems at least open to question. The research suggests that teacher education programmes for language teaching should include information about developing and evaluating instructional analogies.     

Collaborative Partnership: Developing Pre-service Teachers as Inclusive Practitioners to Support Students with Disabilities

Since the introduction of anti-discrimination legislation including Australian Disability Discrimination Act, 1992 and the Disability Standards of Education, 2005, there is an increasing demand on all schools to cater effectively for more students with disabilities within an inclusive school community context. This investigation explored a proactive partnership model designed to equip pre-service teachers with deeper role understandings in teaching students with disabilities. This collaborative model involved sustained professional experiences in schools on four mornings each week over 38 weeks, offered in conjunction with their final-year teacher education studies in Diversity and Inclusive Education. A unique emphasis of this qualitative study was a focus on identifying conducive real-life experiences and ideal teacher qualities for undertaking challenging inclusive practitioner roles. Findings highlighted the perspectives of school leaders, special education mentors and pre-service teachers in improving inclusive learning outcomes for all students while developing an effective collaborative partnership model for teacher education.     

Editors’ Note

The notion that students come to science courses with misconceptions has become quite widely accepted by those who follow or participate in education research. DiSessa and his colleagues (diSessa, 1988, 1993; Smith, diSessa, &; Roschelle, 1993/1994) have challenged the theoretical and empirical validity of this perspective and offered an alternative account of cognitive structure in phenomenological primitives or p-prims. The purpose of this article is to further clarify and contrast the two accounts: in particular, to consider their utility and generativity as conceptual tools for teachers. How may each perspective influence instructional perceptions and intentions? The article recounts a discussion about forces and motion from a high-school physics class, analyzes how a teacher may perceive students' participation in that discussion from either perspective, and considers what, based on those perceptions, the teacher may see as tasks for instruction.     

From science teacher to ‘teacher scientist’: exploring the experiences of research-active science teachers in the UK

We explore the professional identities of UK-based secondary science teachers who actively participated in science research for at least six months. The study uses thematic analysis to analyse semi-structured interviews with 17 participants across England and Scotland, from a variety of educational/socio-economic contexts. We found that through participation in research projects, teachers develop a multi-faceted sense of professional identity that includes the roles of teacher, scientist/researcher, mentor and coach. Teachers who are research-active develop complex professional networks that have a positive impact upon their sense of professional worth and self-belief. Through participation in research, teachers identified as both science teachers and scientists and this has been encapsulated in this research as a transition in professional identity to ‘teacher scientist’. The key enabling factor in identification as a ‘teacher scientist’ is a teacher’s positive interaction with scientists/researchers. Teachers are motivated to participate in research projects in response to the enthusiasm of their students and a desire for students to contribute to research that could provide solutions to real-world challenges. This understanding of the capacity of science teachers to become ‘teacher scientists’, and recognising teachers' altruistic motivations, could contribute to teacher retention and recruitment strategies that are less focused on financial incentives.     

TESOL professional standards in the “Asian century”: dilemmas facing Australian TESOL teacher education

Australian teacher education programmes that prepare teachers of English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) are confronting the nexus of two facets of globalization: transformations in the Asian region, captured in the notion of the “Asian century”, and shifting conceptions of professionalism in TESOL in non-compulsory education. In booming Asian economies, English language learning is integral to the demand for high-quality education. This has produced increases in TESOL Teacher Education Programme (TTEP) enrolments of both domestic Australian students and international students from Asia. Growth in demand for TTEPs has necessitated that they cater to student diversity, and the intended contexts of practice. This demand has coincided with a concurrent movement towards professional standards for TESOL that, we argue, confronts complexities around quality, accountability, and professional identity and achieving conceptual and contextual coherence. Drawing on discourses of managerialism and performativity, this paper explores tensions between increased student demands for TTEPs, professional standards discourses which are part of the global policy discourses on teacher quality, and the achievement of programmatic conceptual and contextual coherence from the perspective of Australian TTEPs.     

Creating a Science E-book with Fifth Grade Students

This article explains how one teacher used iBooks Author, a free digital textbook creation tool that makes iBooks for iPads, in an upper elementary classroom to improve students’ expository writing skills and understanding of science content. The classroom teacher taught students pre-requisite writing and technology skills for two weeks, and then helped these students design, develop, and publish their own iBook. Students planned and developed content using Thinking Maps, storyboards, Google Docs, iMovie and other technology tools to create their iBook. A comparison of students’ work in the iBook to previous written work revealed an improvement in expository writing in multiple ways: better organization and connection of ideas; increased use of academic vocabulary; and an increased use of clarifying details and analogies. Students also gained a deeper understanding of science concepts as reported through their comments after the project was finished. Students became more proficient users of the technology, and also reported an increased sense of self-efficacy and confidence because they published a book in the iBookstore     

An interpretive examination of high school chemistry teachers' analogical explanations

This article reports an interpretive examination of four teachers' use of analogies to teach chemistry. The study describes why the teachers chose to use analogies, how the characteristics of the analogies employed varied from teacher to teacher, and from where the teachers derived their analogies. These teachers used analogies spontaneously, as well as on a planned basis, to explain abstract chemistry concepts both on a whole-class basis and for individual students who indicated a lack of understanding. The teachers appeared able to ascertain that the students required an alternative representation without overtly seeking evidence to this effect. The presented analogies, especially those that were of the simple-comparison type, appeared to have a motivational impact on the students. Several analogies were extended to map selected attributes, and these were believed by the teachers to be powerful explanatory devices. Pictorial analogies were frequently used to enhance analog familiarity, and further analog explanation was not uncommon, although the frequency with which the teachers stated the presence of analogical limitations was low. The article concludes by suggesting how science teacher education can be informed by case studies of teaching in context, in this instance of analogy-inclusive teaching by four experienced chemistry teachers.     

Nontraditional Students and Institutions of Higher Education: A Conceptual Framework

This article provides a conceptual base for pedagogy that embraces and incorporates the assets of nontraditional students in higher education and advocates for practice that honors and builds on students' cultural and social capital. It describes the challenges and opportunities faced by nontraditional students within institutions of higher education, focusing specifically on early childhood teacher preparation programs. The article proposes the use of narrative/storytelling practice as a way to generate inclusive and transformative learning that expands upon the wisdom of students' lived experiences. A set of recommendations is offered for incorporating this type of pedagogy in order to provide nontraditional students with meaningful learning and an environment that supports the social networks they require to be successful.     

For philosophy of education in teacher education

The time has come to re-assess the role that Philosophy has to play in the education of teachers, both at the beginning of and during their careers. The currently fashionable craft conception of teaching is inadequate as a preparation for a career in teaching. Philosophy of Education has an important role to play in preparing for a career in teaching. First, it enables teachers to acquire a grasp of the conceptual field of education and an ability to find their way around the often contested views within that field, which in turn impinge upon the normative structure of particular education systems. Second, it enables them to understand better the conceptual debates that involve the subjects that they are teaching. Third it enables teachers to understand the scope and limits of empirical research in education and the relationships between that research and conceptual issues in education. These claims are discussed with examples, and recent government statements about standards and competences in teaching are looked at through the perspective of a conceptually informed, career-oriented profession of teaching. Reasons for the past decline of philosophy of education in teacher education and how they might be avoided in the future are also reviewed.     

Changing Patterns of Scaffolding and Autonomy During Individual Music Lessons: A Mixed Methods Approach

Learning implies change. Inside and outside schools, we aim for students to change into people with more skills and knowledge as well as with a growing sense of agency and responsibility. Furthermore, education itself is subject to constant change. In this article, we examine change in 3 case studies in the context of individual music lessons from a complex dynamic systems approach. Three beginning string instrument students and their teacher were followed for 18 months (28 lessons per dyad) by means of video observations. We combine cluster analyses on longitudinal data with qualitative illustrations of moment-to-moment teacher–student transactions to gain insight into how and why change in teaching and learning occurs. The 3 cases show distinct profiles of change: the development of strong suboptimal attractor states, the emergence of optimal attractor states, and a profile that is characterized by falling back into suboptimal attractor states. We discuss how optimal and suboptimal learning and teaching trajectories can unfold over time and how a mixed methods approach can provide valuable new insights for both practice and future research.     

Can cooperating teachers help student teachers develop a vision of education?

Abstract

Research in teacher education is increasingly concerned with teachers' visions of education and their sense of calling, mission, and professional identity. Interviews with outstanding cooperating teachers focused on exploring their beliefs on teacher vision, and what makes a good teacher. The teachers were also asked to discuss their beliefs on whether vision—and the independence of spirit that a strong vision is thought to foster—is relevant in their work with student teachers. The teachers revealed a strong sense of why they teach and shared goals around several themes. They also maintained that reflection is key to developing a vision of education. Teacher education programs can support these teachers' views of quality education by developing conceptual frameworks that foster reflection and the development of a vision for education, particularly in the student teaching experience.     

Pathways to educational change revisited– controversies and advances in the German teacher education system

This article contributes to the discourse of innovation and transfer strategies in German teacher education by (1) providing a conceptual analysis of prevalent approaches and (2) introducing a transdisciplinary perspective. The conceptual analysis indicates that top-down and bottom-up approaches lack either transformative momentum or scientific rigor. Collaborative approaches aim to mitigate this dilemma, but remain biased towards unidirectional innovation and transfer processes. In contrast, transdisciplinary approaches advocate for integrative and systemic pathways for educational change, which interlinks research and practice in teaching and teacher education. Illustrating examples from a boundary-crossing research and development project support this perspective.     

Social interaction and the use of analogy: An analysis of preservice teachers' talk during physics inquiry lessons

Analogies have been argued to be central in the process of establishing conceptual growth, making overt connections and carryover into an intended cognitive domain, and providing a generative venue for developing conceptual understanding inherent in constructivist learning. However, students' specific uses of analogies for constructing arguments are not well understood. Specifically, the results of preservice teachers' knowledge gains are not widely studied. Although we would hope that engaging preservice science teachers in exemplary lessons would assist them in using and generating analogies more expertly, it is not clear whether or how such curricula would affect their learning or teaching. This study presents an existence proof of how preservice science teachers used analogies embedded in their course materials Physics by Inquiry. This fine‐grained analysis of small group discourse revealed three distinct roles of analogies including the development of: (a) cognitive process skills, (b) scientific conceptual understanding, and (c) social contexts for problem solving. Results suggest that preservice teachers tend to overgeneralize the analogies inserted by curriculum materials, map irrelevant features of analogies into collaborative problem solving, and generate personal analogies, which counter scientific concept development. Although the authors agree with the importance of collaborative problem solving and the insertion of analogies for preservice teachers' conceptual development, we believe much more needs to be understood before teachers can be expected to construct and sustain effective learning environments that rely on using analogies expertly. Implications for teacher preparation are also discussed. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 40: 443–463, 2003