Science practical work: what types of knowledge do secondary science teachers use?

Simple item page
dc.contributor.advisorHattinghen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorKay, Gillianen_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2015-07-03T08:33:49Z
dc.date.available2015-07-03T08:33:49Z
dc.date.issued2014en_ZA
dc.descriptionIncludes bibliographical references.en_ZA
dc.description.abstractThe prominence of practical work in science curricula today infers that these activities offer unique learning experiences for achieving specific goals. Yet, but for a few exceptions, practical work in school science is often neglected and has not been effective in achieving the goals normally associated with it. The rationale behind this study was that an understanding of the bases for decisions made as teachers plan, enact and assess practical work in Grade 8 and 9 natural sciences, may reveal the nature of the knowledge base required for effective practical work. It was thought that such insight might also shed light on some of the reasons for the apparent lack of effective practical work in South African schools. Furthermore it could inform the design of those aspects of pre - service and in - service teacher professional learning programmes aimed at developing the knowledge and skills required for effective practical work. There is a paucity of research on the knowledge base required for science practical work and no instruments designed to measure, capture or describe such a knowledge base, were found. The aim of this study was firstly to develop a valid and reliable instrument to facilitate the analysis of what teacher s say and do with respect to practical work, and secondly to get a feel for using this instrument for the purpose it was intended. Informed by literature, and using Shulman’s notion of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) as the theoretical lens, the analytical instrument, called the practical work PCK table (PPCK T able), consisting of different categories and sub - categories of knowledge, was developed. A number of strategies were used to improve the validity and reliability of the instrument. These strategies included: i) using the instrument to analyse interviews and lessons of three natural sciences teachers working in three different educational settings, ii) soliciting the input from experts in the field of PCK, and iii) determining the inter - rater agreement in the interpretation of the categories or sub - categories among four raters by calculating the percentage agreement and the Fleiss’ kappa statistic. Addressing the shortcomings revealed by these measures culminated in the final version of the instrument, the practical work knowledge table (PracK Table) and its accompanying codebook. The second aim was addressed by conducting a pilot case study to explore the usefulness of the PracK Table as a heuristic device. A series of eight Grade 9 lessons taught by one teacher were observed. Data sources included lesson observations, teacher and learner interviews, worksheets and samples of learners’ work. The PracK Table was used to identify and describe the knowledge the teacher drew on when he engaged his learners in practical work. This study has shown the construct, ‘PCK for practical work’, to be invalid. It also revealed that a useful, valid and reliable instrument could be developed, if it is informed by authoritative literature, and if its validity and reliability are empirically tested in real contexts. In the case study the strengths and weaknesses in a teacher’s knowledge and practice could readily be identified using PracK Table as the analytical tool. The findings of the case study indicate that a broad knowledge base and access to laboratory resources, although necessary, does not always translate into effective practical work. Furthermore, it suggests that for well - qualified, experienced natural sciences teachers, teaching in fairly well - resourced schools, it is their theories about teaching and learning in general that is the main factor that determines the effectiveness of the practical work they engage in. These findings could have significant implications for the development of teacher professional learning programmes.en_ZA
dc.identifier.apacitationKay, G. (2014). <i>Science practical work: what types of knowledge do secondary science teachers use?</i>. (Thesis). University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,School of Education. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/13355en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationKay, Gillian. <i>"Science practical work: what types of knowledge do secondary science teachers use?."</i> Thesis., University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,School of Education, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/13355en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationKay, G. 2014. Science practical work: what types of knowledge do secondary science teachers use?. University of Cape Town.en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Thesis / Dissertation AU - Kay, Gillian AB - The prominence of practical work in science curricula today infers that these activities offer unique learning experiences for achieving specific goals. Yet, but for a few exceptions, practical work in school science is often neglected and has not been effective in achieving the goals normally associated with it. The rationale behind this study was that an understanding of the bases for decisions made as teachers plan, enact and assess practical work in Grade 8 and 9 natural sciences, may reveal the nature of the knowledge base required for effective practical work. It was thought that such insight might also shed light on some of the reasons for the apparent lack of effective practical work in South African schools. Furthermore it could inform the design of those aspects of pre - service and in - service teacher professional learning programmes aimed at developing the knowledge and skills required for effective practical work. There is a paucity of research on the knowledge base required for science practical work and no instruments designed to measure, capture or describe such a knowledge base, were found. The aim of this study was firstly to develop a valid and reliable instrument to facilitate the analysis of what teacher s say and do with respect to practical work, and secondly to get a feel for using this instrument for the purpose it was intended. Informed by literature, and using Shulman’s notion of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) as the theoretical lens, the analytical instrument, called the practical work PCK table (PPCK T able), consisting of different categories and sub - categories of knowledge, was developed. A number of strategies were used to improve the validity and reliability of the instrument. These strategies included: i) using the instrument to analyse interviews and lessons of three natural sciences teachers working in three different educational settings, ii) soliciting the input from experts in the field of PCK, and iii) determining the inter - rater agreement in the interpretation of the categories or sub - categories among four raters by calculating the percentage agreement and the Fleiss’ kappa statistic. Addressing the shortcomings revealed by these measures culminated in the final version of the instrument, the practical work knowledge table (PracK Table) and its accompanying codebook. The second aim was addressed by conducting a pilot case study to explore the usefulness of the PracK Table as a heuristic device. A series of eight Grade 9 lessons taught by one teacher were observed. Data sources included lesson observations, teacher and learner interviews, worksheets and samples of learners’ work. The PracK Table was used to identify and describe the knowledge the teacher drew on when he engaged his learners in practical work. This study has shown the construct, ‘PCK for practical work’, to be invalid. It also revealed that a useful, valid and reliable instrument could be developed, if it is informed by authoritative literature, and if its validity and reliability are empirically tested in real contexts. In the case study the strengths and weaknesses in a teacher’s knowledge and practice could readily be identified using PracK Table as the analytical tool. The findings of the case study indicate that a broad knowledge base and access to laboratory resources, although necessary, does not always translate into effective practical work. Furthermore, it suggests that for well - qualified, experienced natural sciences teachers, teaching in fairly well - resourced schools, it is their theories about teaching and learning in general that is the main factor that determines the effectiveness of the practical work they engage in. These findings could have significant implications for the development of teacher professional learning programmes. DA - 2014 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2014 T1 - Science practical work: what types of knowledge do secondary science teachers use? TI - Science practical work: what types of knowledge do secondary science teachers use? UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/13355 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/13355
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationKay G. Science practical work: what types of knowledge do secondary science teachers use?. [Thesis]. University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,School of Education, 2014 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/13355en_ZA
dc.language.isoengen_ZA
dc.publisher.departmentSchool of Educationen_ZA
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Humanitiesen_ZA
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.subject.otherEducationen_ZA
dc.titleScience practical work: what types of knowledge do secondary science teachers use?en_ZA
dc.typeMaster Thesis
dc.type.qualificationlevelMasters
dc.type.qualificationnameMEden_ZA
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
uct.type.publicationResearchen_ZA
uct.type.resourceThesisen_ZA
Files
Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Thumbnail Image
Name:
thesis_hum_2014_kay_g.pdf
Size:
12.84 MB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
Download
Collections
Masters