KLEIN's
GUIDE TO
SCIENCE EDUCATION
PHOTO CREDIT: Nadene Klein at Tuolumne Meadows Yosemite National Park
Kids can't learn if they don't feel safe. That is the second level according to Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. Even as a student teacher, one learns strategies for fostering a safe learning environment. This includes things such as a zero tolerance for bullying, access to the nurse or counselor, developing a caring community, limiting access to dangerous materials/items. We are expected to practice fire drills and tornado drills. These are things we've all experienced and consider normal.
As science teachers, we all begin the school year with our safety lessons. We whip out those Flinn Scientific Safety Contracts. We demonstrate how to properly wear goggles and make sure everyone knows where the eye wash station and other safety equipment is located. Today, helping kids feel safe isn't what was normal. I literally found myself teaching my students how to use a fire extinguisher as a weapon should an attacker enter our classroom. While we still practice fire drills, lock down drills are more frequent and more serious. We need to have time away from lessons to debrief tragedies that happen in our nation's schools. These are the new normal tasks to help our students feel safe today so that they can learn. Instead of emphasizing safety from ourselves in terms of not paying attention during labs, we are emphasizing safety from criminal acts of violence. Sadly, this is the new normal of "Safety First!" Scientifically yours, Nadene
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Science can be looked at through two different lenses. First is the "wide angle" lens. This includes big concepts and general connections. A lot of students can see the big picture and that's super important. Second is the "microscopic" lens. This includes all of the nit picky details and subtle nuances of observations. In my experience, fewer students focus on the details which are equally important.
So, how do we get them from the big picture to the fine tuning? Here are some helpful options, but know that you'll need a lot of patience and positive reinforcement too. •Give students a check list for what to look for. •Model for students how to depict and describe the details. •Use exemplars, particularly student created ones. •Give specific feedback and allow students to try again using the feedback as a guide. •Empathize with students. Acknowledge that finding and describing details is difficult and then encourage them to persevere. •Remind students to slow down and pay attention to the details. The biggest culprit of the oversight of details is the rush job. Students are in a hurry to complete a task. In that rush, details get overlooked. Other issues that a teacher may need to overcome include students with ADD/ADHD, personality/style, cognitive development, self-confidence, and lack of experience. In my classes, I see the the struggle to record details in lab reports. I developed a checklist that includes 32 details that need to be included in every lab report. I encourage students to use the checklist to guide their writing. The class acts a teachers grading a former student's lab report using the checklist and discuss what is right and what is amiss. We use the same list the whole school year. I give feedback on the checklist and allow students the opportunity to make corrections. Then I regrade the lab report. I praise growth and improvement. You will see growth and improvement. Just be patient; it'll show in the details. Scientifically yours, Nadene |
AuthorNadene Klein, M.Ed. has been an educator for over 25 years. She brings a passion and love for science to the classroom and through this blog to you. Archives
March 2024
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