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TEACHING EARTH SCIENCES ● Volume 26 ● Number 3, 2001 will use throughout the curriculum. They begin to wrestle with the problems of sustainability as they investigate the growth in human population and resource usage. The second component of the curriculum centers on the issue of how a community will meet the increasing demand for electricity. The third portion of the curriculum focuses on organism interaction, plant adoption strategies, and impacts on the ecosystem due to resource allocation in the Mojave Desert and Great Central Valley in California. A fourth component of the curriculum allows students to apply what they have learned to their own local area. The activities that make up this unit are interwoven with the other three units over the entire year. Earth science Pedagogical Practices The structure of knowledge, the epistemic goals and data-gathering processes within the Earth sciences afford certain opportunities for learning science, learning about science, and learning to do science. The challenge is one that resides in the dual agenda of science education – learning what we know vs learning how we come to know and why we believe it. The challenge represents the balance that is sought in the curriculum between learning, on the one hand, the canonical knowledge of scientific disciplines (what we know) and, on the other hand, the epistemic structures and social and economic application issues that arise during engagement in science-in-the-making activities and inquiries. The new Earth system database and technological resources coupled with the new Earth science systems framework, make possible project-based science and extend inquiry-based opportunities not otherwise as easily attainable in other disciplines. Furthermore, the global, national, regional and local environmental perspectives associated with Earth system science have the potential to situate the subject matter in meaningful and relevant contexts of study. The implication is that inquiry instructional methods employing model-based learning and reasoning activities establish the grounds for best practices in the teaching and learning of the Earth sciences. The recent focus on science enquiry in the National Curriculum (Scheme 1) suggests previous efforts to infuse inquiry teaching approaches into science programs have not made inroads on science education practices. New research results have begun to shift the perspective away from final form science to a perspective of ‘science-in-the-making’. Driven by a consideration of the revisionary nature of the growth of scientific knowledge and coupled with analyses of the cognitive and social practices of scientists, it is not surprising that the focus has been on engaging learners in the conversations and languages of science. During science-inthe-making episodes, debates and arguments about representations, models, evidence, theories, methods, aims, are played out. The Earth system science frameworks outlined above can provide rich contexts for inquiry learning. Earth system science is well suited to promote inquiry conversations. Working with Earth system science frameworks Edelson et al (1999), have developed a set of curriculum design strategies for planning and delivering inquirybased instruction and learning. The strategies include (1) using meaningful problems to establish motivating contexts for inquiry, (2) using staging activities to introduce learners to background knowledge and investigative techniques, (3) using bridging activities to bridge the gap between the practices of students and scientists, (4) using scaffolds that embed tacit knowledge of experts in supportive user-interfaces; (5) providing a library of resources as an embedded information source; and (6) providing record-keeping tools which allow students to record procedures and store products generated. In my own work, (Duschl and Gitomer, 1997) on formative assessment learning environments we have developed a whole class instructional strategy called ‘assessment conversations’. Here teachers select examples of student work that reflect the diversity of thinking or diversity of strategies. Then, the work is shared and discussed to expose what the students were thinking and what strategies were used to complete the task. In this process of formative assessment, students learn from seeing others’ ideas. The role of the teacher is to choose the work that leads to attaining the goals of the lessons. The five key features of our approach to inquiry are (1) situating the curriculum unit in a meaningful problem solving context, (2) encouraging students to use multiple ways of showing understanding (e.g., drawings, labeled diagrams, writing, etc.), (3) engaging learners in the public consideration of ideas (e.g., assessment conversations), (4) employing formative assessment practices in three domains – conceptual learning, representational learning, and epistemic learning; (5) using scientific criteria and curriculum goals as organizing principles to evaluate knowledge claims. Implications for Instruction The Earth system science framework and the inquiry models proposed by Mayer, Edelson, and myself challenge ideas about the content of Earth science courses. One shift is moving from the construction of scientific knowledge claims to the construction and evaluation of scientific knowledge claims. Another shift is from independent activities that verify conceptual relationships to sequences of activities/lessons that build and test conceptual models and inform decisions about subsequent inquiries and designs of investigations. The availability of global databases and investigative and communication tools coupled with the relevance of environmental issues and the problems of sustainable development enable the K-12 Earth science curriculum to occupy a privileged position in science education. www.esta-uk.org 92
Journal of EARTH SCIENCE TEACHERS ASSOCIATION Volume 26 ● Number 3, 2001 ● ISSN 0957-8005 rth Science ach Iron Ore Formation: A Laboratory Model Developing Observational Ski ls for Geoscience Fieldwork: Stage 3 Pupils Further Thoughts – Where Next for ESTA? New ESTA Members Websearch Book Reviews Diary Cash for Research TEACHING EARTH SCIENCES ● Volume 26 ● Number 3, 2001 The Earth system science approach is well suited to support the kind of inquiry-based, model-based and metacognitive-based approaches that underpin knowing science, knowing about science, and knowing how to do science. Richard Duschl is Professor of Science Education at King’s College London. His first degree, and teacher certification, is in Earth Science Education followed by a Masters degree in geology and a PhD. in science education. Richard taught secondary school Earth science and college level introductory geology courses. Richard A. Duschl Franklin-Wilkins Bldg Waterloo Bridge Wing King’s College London Waterloo Rd. London SE1 9NN References Duschl, R. and Gitomer, D. (1997) Strategies and challenes to changing the focus of assessment and instruction in science classrooms. Educational Assessment, 4(1): 337-73. Duschl, R.A. & Smith, M.J. (2001) Earth Science. In Jere Brophy (ed), Subject-Specific Instructional Methods and Activities, Advances in Research on Teaching. Volume 8 pages 269-290. Amsterdam: Elsevier Science. Edelson, D., Gordin, D. & Pea, R. (1999) Addressing the challenges of inquiry-based learning through technology and curriculum design. The Journal of the Learning Sciences, 8(3&4), 391-450. Fortner, R. (ed.) (1991) Earth systems education (Special Issue) Science Activities, 28, 1. King, M.D. & Herring, D.D. (2000) Monitoring Earth’s Vital Signs. Scientific American, 282(4), 92-97. Kuhn, T. (1962/1970) The structure of scientific revolutions, 2nd Ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Mayer, V., and Fortner, R.W. (Eds.). (1995) Science as a study of Earth: A resource guide for science curriculum restructure. The Ohio State University. 246 p. Mayer, V. (1995) Using the Earth system for integrating the science curriculum. Science Education, 79(4), 375-391. Mayer, V. (1991) Earth-system science - a planetary prespective. The Science Teacher, 58, 31-36. Mayer, V. & Armstrong, R. (1990) What every 17-year old should know about planet Earth: The report of a conference of educators and geoscientists. Science Education, 74(2), 155-165. McPhee, J. (1986 ) Rising from the plains. New York: Fraux, Giroux & Strauss Rock, B., Blackwell, T., Miller, D. & Hardison, A. (1997) The GLOBE program: A model for international environmental education. In K.C. Cohen (Ed.), Internet links for science education: Students-scientist partnerships. New York: Plenum. New Posting? Retiring? Stay in touch with Teaching Earth Sciences News and Activities Subscribe to Teaching Earth Sciences Subscription rates Full membership Student and retired membership £25.00 to UK addresses £12.50 to UK addresses Subscriber Details teaching EARTH SCIENCES TITLE NAME Earth System Science: A Be ter Way to Teach Science Enquiry Geology and the Human Environment – The Nuclear Waste Problem ADDRESS a Web-based Teaching Exercise Earth Science Activities and Demonstrations: Sedimentary Rocks An Earth Science Fieldtrip for Key www.esta-uk.org TOWN/CITY COUNTRY E-MAIL ADDRESS POST CODE/ZIP Membership Secretary: Owain Thomas PO Box 10, Narberth Pembrokeshire SA67 7YE Teaching Earth Sciences - serving the Earth Science Education Community 93 www.esta-uk.org
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