I~~~~~~~~ l I

PHREE Background Paper Series

Document No. PHREE/92/68

The Education of Secondary ScienceTeachers in Developing Countries

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by

Sylvia A. Ware(Consultant)

Education and Employment DivisionPopulation and Human Resources Department

The World Bank

December 1992

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Abstract

Mmis report reviews the status of presemnice and insemvice secondary science teacherpreparation in developing countries. The actual balance of course content for both lowerand upper secondary school teachers is examined, as well as the type of program that wouldbe most useful to future science teachers. There are four case studies of preserviceeducation from: China, Egypt, Germany, and Indonesia. There are three case studies ofinservice education from: the Philippines, Sri lanka, and Tanzama. Recommendations aregiven with regard to upgrading the educational background of the teacher trainers, revisingthe syllabus for teacher Waini and introducing teaching "sandwich' courses.

Contents

Pag

Executive Sunmmary ............. . *......... 1

1. The New Sigifcanceof Science Education ............................ 5

2. The Importance of the Science Teacher ................................ 6

3. The Preparation of Science Teacher . .................................. 93.1 General Policy Parameters ... ................................... 93.2 The Balance of Course Content ................................. 123.3 Teacher Backgrounds According to the SISS ............... ...... 18

4. What Should a Well-educated Science Teacher Know? ............... .... 234.1 The Areas of ExpertL ..................................... 234.2 Science Knowledge . . ....................................... 244.3 Pedagogical Knowledge ... .................................. 284.4 General EducationalBackground .............................. 31

5. Who Becomes a Science Teacher? ................................... 31

6. The Trainers of Teachers ......................................... 33

7. Country Case Studies: Preservice Education ............................ 347.1 China: An Eiphasis on Science Content .................... .... 347.2 Egypt: The University of Alexandria ........ .................... 367.3 Germany: Preparing to Teach Chemistry in a "Gymnasium" ........ ... 387.4 Indonesia: A Rapid Expansion of Secondary Education ........... ... 38

8. Inservice Education .............................................. 41

9. Country Case Studies: Iervice Education .... ............. ............ 479.1 The Philippines: Upgrading Unqualfied Teachers. ................. 4792 Sri Lanka Distance Teaching for Science Teachers ................ 499.3 Tanzania - The Zanzibar Science Camps ........................ 53

10. Discussion ....................................... . ... ...... 5610.1 Toward an "Agle" Pedagogy ................................. . 5610.2 Steps to Reform Preservice Education ......................... 58103 Steps to Reform: Inservice Education .......................... 59

Blbliography ................................................. 63

Tables

Page

Table 1: Characterizatien of the Relationship Between Science andEducation Courses in the Training of Secondary Science Teachers ..... 13

Table 2: Time Spent on Science/Education/General Education Courses ....... 14

Table 3: Recomnmended Program of Study (UNESCO, 1985) ................ 17

Table 4: Educational Background of Lower Secondaiy School ScienceTeachers Participating in the Second IEA Science Study .... ........ 19

Table 5: Educational Background of Upper Secondary School ScienceParticipating in the Second ERA Science Study ................. ... 21

Table 6: Teacher Training Curriculum at Beijing Normal University .......... 35

Table 7: Planned Intake into Science Teacher Education Programs .... ....... 39

Table 8: Academic Staff in Major Science Subjects, 1988/1989 ...... ......... 41

Table 9: Relative Importance of Inservice Program Characteristics ............ 46

Table 10: Untrained, Non-graduate Teachers in the Teaching Force, 1987 ....... 50

Table 11: Untrained Science Teacher Appointments Since the 1987 Census ...... 50

Table 12: Course Structure .......................................... 51

Table 13: Enrollment in Distance Education Courses in Science/Math ........ . 52

Executive Summary

Across the world, science is increasingly being viewed as a subject of life-long utility to WIstudents, whether or sot they enter science-related careers. A more science literatepopulace is perceived as being better equipped to contribute to sustainable economicdevelopment and to the social welfare. Therefore, factors which contribute to highachievement in science are of concern to decision-makers in all countries.

There are many factors to consider when attempting to improve student achievement inscience. These include: the appropriateness and currency of the curriculum; the availabilityand quality of textbooks; the appropriateness of the assessment system; the availability oflaboratories and scientific equipment; the school environment in which learning takes place;and the quality of the science teacher.

Of all these factors, the one which is perhaps most frequently overlooked is the quality ofthe science teacher. This report attempts to address a gap in the data for developingcountries, since successful systemic reform requires an understanding of all the variables thatshape the system. It should never be forgotten that teachers are the front-line agents ofeducational innovation.

The educational qualifications of secondary science teachers, their ways of presentingscience to their students, and their attitudes toward science have all been shown in variousstudies to have a significant impact on the achievement of their students. Thus, there is agreat deal of interest in ensuring that the preservice and inservice education of secondaryscience teachers is as effective as possible. While there ar good teacher educationprograms, there still remains the need to evaluate the appropriateness and currency of eventhe very best programs, given the new expectation that modern science will be madeaccessible to all students. There have also been advances in cognitive research on howstudents learn science that have still to shape the curriculum in many teacher traininginstitutions.

There is a consensus building on the so-called "policy parameterse associated with thepreservice education of secondary science teachers. The new entry-level preservice

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programs are increasingly four years in length, and at a bachelors degree-leveL Theyinclude instruction in science, pedagogy, and general education, with an emphasis on thescience content. Programs for upper secondary science teachers contain a greaterpercentage of science courses than programs for lower secondary science teachers Therange of time typically spent on the science component of the syllabus falls within therelatively narrow margin of 60% to 70%.

The length of the program seems to be a matter of expediency or custom rather than provenvalue. It is argued that a shorter program will not allow sufficient time to cover both theformal coursework considered essential for a well-prepared science teacher, and the periodof classroom practice which is also considered necessary. However, a longer program addsto the costs for both program sponsors and the trainees, with no definitive research datasupporting the contention that a longer program is really required. The six-year preparationto teach science at a Genman "gymnasium" is a luxur few countries can afford. It isunrealistic to expect teachers to spend more than four years in a preservice program,especially in countries where teaching is a low-status occupation. For the student teacher,the financial rewards may never be sufficient to justify the greater effort, and the defermentof eamings for one or two mori- years.

The content of many science teacher preparation programs needs to be reevaluated toeliminate intellectually superficial courses from the curriculum. Expanded definitions ofscience content at the secondary leveL and a greater understanding of how students actuallylearn science, has implications related to the relevance of much that is currently includedin the science teacher preservice program. The science component needs to cover a broaderview of science than can be gained from the in-depth study of only one science. The studentteacher needs to learn more than just the fa.ts and concepts of science. The student teacherneeds to learn that: there are connections between disciplines; some scientific ideas aremore important than others; science is one way of understanding reality; there are scientificmodes of inquiry and habits of mind. Student teachers also need to be exposed topedagogical content knowledge relevant to the disciplines they will teach.

Many teacher educators, whether teaching at a university or a teacher training college, donot have the educational background necessary to teach the existing teacher trainingcurriculum effectively. They need to be upgraded in terms of both their science and

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pedagogical kmowledge, at least to a master's degree level in science education. They alsoneed help in developing the new curriolum as described above.

lncreased collaboration between the faculties of science and education is absolutely essentalif teacher trainiDg programs are to improve signifitly. This cooperation is more likelyto take place if there is some kind of insttutional support system in place to encourage andreward instructors who work together in cross-disciplinary partnerships.

Teacher training institutions need to begin to take teacher preparation seriously enough toput more thought and imagintion into program design and flexible course scheduling.Some students might be encouraged to interrupt their formal education to teach for one ortwo semesters, and then return to finish their degree. Sandwich" courses, industrialinternships, and cooperative education experiences are fairly common for engineeringstudents - why not for future science teachers?

As secondary education enrolLments expanded, many countries allowed large numbers ofunqualified students to enter teaching without any form of training. These countries arecurrently seeking the most cost-effective ways to provide inservice education to as manyteachers as possible to bring them up to the current entry-level standards.

A variety of opportunities are available to accomplish this, including residential and distanceeducation programs (including correspondence and electronic media-based courses).Distance education is partidularly cost-effective, but needs to include sufficient hands-onscience and teacher/tutor interactions to impact on the teacher's comfort-level in thelaboratory.

Inservice education is also used to introduce new curricula, examinations, and textbooks toteachers. Where major reforms are being introduced into the secondary science program,the cooperation of classroom teachers should be enlisted as participants in designing,conducting, and evaluating the range of inservice programs to be offered.

The "cascade" model of dissemination, using teachers to train teachers, can be an effectiveway both to use "mastere teachers, and to reach a large number of other teachers withinservice education. However, efforts must be made to ensure the quality of the message

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down the cascade, perhaps through the development of well-designed instructional manuals,and suporing flm loops, videos, etc.

Where inservice education is designed to bring all teachers up to some minimally acceptablelevel of education, or to provide a supportive introduction to a new textbook or curriculum,it is usually mandatory. All mandatory inservice science education should include a stipendfor particpating teachers if the activity takes place on the teachers' time.

Finaly, there remains the need to ensure that even the best prepared and functioningteachers maintain currency in their discipline(s) and in ways of presenting their subject(s)to students. Reading science and science education journals; joining science teacherorganitions; attending workshops at their own expense; participating in science olympiadswith their students; and organizing science fairs, are some of the activities which contnrbuteto the professional development of the teacher.

Given the conditions under which some of these ,eachers work their relzavely low pay, andprobably limited prospects for career advancement, it is a tribute to science teachers indeveloping countries that many already participate in these linds of continuing educationopportunities with enthusiasm, dedication, and creativity. Efforts must be made to ensurethat more teachers have; these opportunities to develop as professionals.

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1. The New Significance of Science Education

In many nations, science and technology education are becoming increasingly identified asthe background for economic stability add growth. In the past, in developed and developingcountries, only the "brighter" students have been encouraged to pursue science knowledge.Science has been viewed (and still is by many) as knowledge accessible to only the elite few.Now, however, many countries are subscribing to the goal of "science for all." Science isincreasingly being viewed as a subject of life-long utility to all students, whether or not theyenter science-related careers. In the developing world, a more science literate populace isperceived as being better equipped to contribute to economic and societal developmentthrough informed decision-making in such areas as: agricultural production, nutrition andhealth, land and resource management, population control and industrial growth

The "science for all" movement is driving curricular change at varying speeds in differentcountnes and the process of school science curricula redefnition la in motion worldwide.This redefinition is being accompanied by a reexamination of the classroom role of theteacher - supported by findings from cognitive psychology on how students actually learnscience - from "sage on the stage, to guide on the side."

In many countries, science teachers, particularly at the lower secondary level (grades 7/8-10/11), are unprepared to teach the existing science courses in a teacher-centered classroom(Ware, 1992). How can they be expected to teach unfamiliar science, organized acrossdisciplines, using unpracticed tecbniques and skllls, to "different" kinds of students?

It is not just the "science for all" movement that is driving curricular change. The olddisciplinary boundanes are fading in the dynamic world of science research. Biology isbecoming chemistry which is becomning biology, touching on physics which shades intochemistry. It is in the bridging sciences of biochemistry, biophysics, and materials sciencewhere much of the vitality of modern e ience is best displayed.

Yet, on a worldwide basis, both the university courses of study and the upper secondary(11/12-12/13) science stream courses tend to remain obstinately defined as chemistry,physics, and biology as they were delineated 30 years ago. This is a 'turf' problem that ispresently being solved at the university leveL Eventually, it will be recognized that the shiftto interdisciplinary science research has implications at the precollege leveL If the curricula

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for the science stream are to be modernized, secondary science teachers will have to developa broader knowledge of the sciences than most have at present, including a betterunderstanding of the relationships betweeu disciplines.

Thus, whether science is to be taught to future scientists, or to future citizens, there is apressing need to ensure that the secondary science teacher, whose role is so crucial (seebelow), has the educational background necessary to rise to both challenges. The issue isnot that there are no well-prepared secondary science teachers. The issue is that thepurposes of science education are changing, the content and its delivery are evolving, andthe expectations for student achievement are rising. This is true for both developing anddeveloped countries (Ware, 1992).

The last ten years have seen a re-evaluation of the teacing/ learning interaction for AUschool subjects. Ten years ago, it was still generalBy accepted that 'teaching was telling,learning was listening, and knowledge was facts" (Lanier, 1992). This view of theteaching/learning exchange is being replaced by a more "agile" pedagogy, which recognizesthe students' own active role in the learnfng process, and views the teacher as a facilitatorof this process.

Today's students will be tomorrow's citizens. They will enter a workforce that needs thetalents of better educated students, capable of life-long self-directed learning and ofcontnbuting to sound decision-making for their community and their country. If morestudents are to be taught to function at higher levels of cogntion, they will need to betaught by teachers who can themselves operate as life-long, self-directed learners.

Thus, because of relatively recent changes in our views of both science aBd teaching, eventhe very best of teacher training facilities needs to reexamine and reevaluate the currencyof its mission and its curriculum. Tis report attempts to give direction to such a self-evaluation, especially for countries in the developing world.

2. The Importance of the Science Teacher

The educational background of the secondary science teacher is obviously only one of thevariables contributing to student achievement in science. When money is scarce, countries

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must make the decision where money can be most effectively spent - on teacher education,higher quality textbooks, more equipment, better working conditions for teachers, higherteacher salaries, etc. The research data do = make it clear exactly which interventions aregenerally most cost-effective. Given the many different and interactng variables thatcontribute to student success in different school systems, it is not possible with current datato state unequivocally that any o point of intervention can be identified as most cost-effective. There is a need for a more systemic approach to educational reform; many pointsof intervention need to be addressed simultaneously.

That being said, this report focusses on one variable - how best to train secondary scienceteachers - for two reasons. First, the teacher variable tends to be overlooked whenimplerncrting educational reform. It seems to be easier to discount the teacher's role thanto address issucz of teacher education. This happens at least partly because teacher tainin general has a reputation for being ineffective.

The second reason is that there is evidence that the education of secondary science teachersm linked to their students' achievement in a much clearer fashion than, for example, theeducational backgw ound of elementary teachers is linked to their students. It would appearlogical that the lmowledge of the science teacher, the ways in which the teacher deliversinstruction (especially in the laboratory), and the teacher's attitudes toward science have animpact on student achievement. All of these factors are related to the teacher's owneducation - both as a teacher, and as a former school pupiL

There is evidence that the formal qualifications and experience of both lower and uppersecondary science teachers is positively correlated with the achievement of their students,epeciala in developing countries (Haddad, 1985; Husen ta aL, 1978.) This has been shownfor teachers in Malaysia, India, the Philippines, and several Latin Anerican countnes. Ithas also been shown that, for the United States, science teachers of identified "exemplaiyprogramse had a much stronger educational background than a national sample of aU highschool science teachers, with the "exemplary" group having completed more science coursesthan required for most U.S. undergraduate science degrees (Bonstetter, B id., 1983). Thisgroup was also more likely to be involved in professional activities such as reading sciencejournals, belonging to a professional society, and interacdng with other teachers.

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The first nternational Science Assessment showed that, after verbal ability, the mostimportant determinants of student achievement for 14-year old students from India andChile were the qualifications and methods of their teachers (Noonan, 1977).The Second International Science Study (SISS) showed that for 14-year olds in Australia,Hungary, and the Netherlands, science teacher characteristics had "recognizable directeffects" on science achievement (Keeves, 1991). For Australia, Hungary, the Netherlands,and Thailand, the degree of science specalization of the teacher was one measurecontributing positively to student achievement. Other contributing variables for Australiawere the length of teacher experience in the classroom, and whether or not the teacher readscientific journals. In the Netherlands, the better teachers had more post-secondaryeducation, and belonged to a science teachers association. In both the United States andThailand, the more effective teachers were science specialists, with more post-secondaryeducation than the less effective teachers, and they were more likely to belong to a scienceteachers association.

For students in the science specialist streams in the final year of secondary schooling (grades12/13), the SISS reported that the attitudes and values of the students toward sciencecontributed positively toward science achievement in most countries. Keeves andSoydhurum (1991) concluded:

"Not only do [teachers'] own attitudes influence those of their students, but the waysin which they teach science also have important effects ........Failure on the part ofscience teachers to establish among their students an awareness of the relevance ofscience and an enthusiasm and excitement for science and technology throughstimulating personal experiences and practical work can have disastrous consequencesin so far as their students turn away from further study of science."

Thus, the research data indicate that i) the secondary science teacher is a significant school-based variable related to student science achievement (student aptitude and homebackground are more significant where examined); and, ii) an "effective" science teacher (asmeasured by student achievement on standardized tests, and student attitudes toward furtherstudy in science) has a strong science background and a keen sense of professional identity.

When the role of the science teacher is so important, how should developing countriesprepare secondary science teachers, both through pre- and inservice education, to ensure the

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production of well-informed and enthusiastic teachers, comfortable with both the subjectmatter and its active delivery in the classroom? And, how can developing countries, withvery limited financial resources, and the present stock of untrained science teachers alreadyin the schools, begin to prepare more effective science teachers?

This report will not only examine the ways in which secondary science teachers are preparedand provided with insemvice training in the developing world, but will also discus theimplications of new research on the 'teacher as a learner' which are adding to ourunderstanding of the complexity of developing effective science teachers

3. The Preparation of Science Teachers

31 Geml Poly Pawneter

Secondary school teachers may be educated through a variety of programs. In mostdeveloping countries, qualified and certified secondary science teachers are generallyprepared either through:

(1) a three or four-year program leading to an undergraduate degree in sciencefollowed hy a year of post-graduate teacher preparation for professionalcerfification; or

(2) a four-year program that combines science and education courses, leading toan undergraduate degree in science education (a BSEd or BEd), with thegreater percentage of the courses in science; or

(3) a three or four-year program that combines science and education courses,leading to an education degree, with the greater percentage of the courses ineducation; or

(4) a one- or two-=ar program leading to a teaching diploma or certificate thatmay include little more science cuntent beyond that delivered to the studentteachers while they were themselves in secondary schooL

This categorization of teacher preparation programs is made on the basis of the relationshipbetween the science and education course content of teacher preparation prgrams rather

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than on specifc instituional arrangements. Degree programs may be offered by: specialteacher traing colleges; theuniversities, through the faculty of science (e.g., some Indonesian universites), an educationstream withii the faculty of science (e.g., Korea), the faculty of education (e.g., Chile, Egypt,Morocco, Thailand), or a cooperative relationship between the two faculties (e.g., Brazil).Non-degree teaching diplomas and certificates may be offered by teacher colleges (e.g.,Argentina, Chile, Jordan, Morocco, PNO, Thailand), or pedagogical centers (e.g., BurkinaFaso, Morocco, Senegal) (Caillods and Gottelmann-Duret, 1991). Most countries offerseveral of these options, with the expectation that teachers at the upper secondary level willtake a more science-intensive program, while teachers at the lower secondary level will takea greater percentage of education courses.

The first option (1), the science degree plus a year of post-graduate pedagogical traning,is designed to ensure that teachers are familiar with their subject matter, especially thoseteaching at the upper secondary leveL Secondary teachers with a science degree pluspostgraduate training in education are particularly found in many countries with a Britishor French colonial past. These countries include: Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mali, Nigeria,SenegaL Uganda, Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Jamaica, India, Malaysia, Pakistan, andSngapore (Ware, 1992).

While this option initially divorces the science content from the pedagogy, a well-designedpostgraduate program can integrate the two through methods courses in the professionalyear. One perceived advantzge of this type of program is that the initial preparation of ascience teacher is the same as the undergraduate education of a future scientist, with all theacademic rigor which this implies.

One diadvantage of this first option is that it is usually only possible to major in onespecfic science discipline, with a much lesser effort going into study of a science minor.There is rarely an opportunity to take a double or interdisciplinary science major withoutextending the length of the undergraduate program further. There certainly is no time tobroaden the content to imclude other sciences, even those bridging the major and minor.This Idnd of program may be too narrow for even those teaching specialist science coursesat the upper secondary levet producing overspecialized teachers who are eitherunderutilized or are assigned to teach out-of-field.

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For the lower secondary school teachers who may enter teaching through this route, thisdegree of one-science specaltion is not ideal, particularly when they have to teachintegrated science (Integrated science courses are becoming much more common at thelower secondary level, e.g., in Nigeria, Botswana, Kenya, Egypt, Korea, Malaysia, Thailand,Chile, Mexico, etc. See Ware, 1992.) Hence, teachers at the lower secondary level aremore likely to be prepared through options 2 and 3.

The second option (2) is a newer option for teachers at both the upper and lower secondarylevels. The final degree is in science education rather than in science, so this type ofprogram is perceived in some countries as of lower status than the first. The studentteachers are typically enrolled in either the education stream of the faculty of science, orconsecutively enrolled in the science and education faculties. In many developing countries,the four-year, science education degree is becoming the preferred route for entry into theprofession. These countries include Korea, Thafland, Brazil, and Chile.

Courses of study may be organized in a number of ways, e.g., as three years of sciencemstruction followed by one-year of pedagogy; as two years of science instruction followedby two years of science and pedagogr, or, the science and the pedagogy may be integratedthroughout the four years. However, combining science and pedagogy in one program doesnot ensure that the necessary connections are made between specific science knowledge andways of conveying this kmowledge to the student. Too often the education component of thecourse is taught by the faculty of education, and the science component is taught by thescience faculty. The need for the joint presentation of subject-specific pedagogy is rarelyrecognized. Even if recognized, there may be institutional barriers preventing this from everhappening. In practice, the schism between the science faculty and the education faculty isa problem whatever the preparation route of the secondary science teacher - and a problemin developed as well as developing nations (see section 6).

The third option also leads to an undergrduate degree in education for teachers at thelower secondary leveL However, this option, with its greater emphasis on the pedagogicalcourses rather than the science, is unlikely to provide the teacher with sufficient scienceknowledge to teach effectively at even the lower secondary leveL In making this statementit is not implied that just by adding more science content the teachers will become goodteachers - although they wil become better teachers. Knowledge of the subject matter is

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but one of the competencies needed for effective science teaching (See discussion beginningsection 4.)

Many countries now have policies in place to ensure that all secondary science teachers,especially those at the upper secondary level, enter the profession with a bachelor's degreeof some kind. In other countries, there has been a need to produce as large a number of"trained" science teachers as quickly and as economically as possible, in order to handle therapid expansion of secondary schooling. This need has been met by offering a one- or two-year (more rarely three-year) program at a teachers' training college, pedagogical center,or institute, leading to a teaching diploma or certificate. These shorter programs are found,for example, in Burkina Faso, Ecuador, Indonesia, Nepal, Mali Mexico, Morocco, PNG, thePhilippines, Thailand, Venezuela, Zambia (Ware, 1992; Caillods and Gottelmann-Duret,1991). Some of these programs have very little, or even no, science content.

It is also possible to find lower secondary school teachers who have taken an abbreviatedpedagogical program of six months or less after leaving school at the 12th- or even 10th-grade level, having only a secondary science background. This has tended to occur whenthere has been a sudden expansion of secondary education, accompanied by the urgent needto staff classrooms (e.g., in Idonesia, Sri Lanka, Togo, Uganda, Zimbabwe).

These young, underprepared teachers are likely to remain in teaching for the rest of theirworking lives since, although the pay may be low relative to the private sector, teaching isoften a secure occupation in the developing world. These teachers are urgently in need ofupgrading and, given their large numbers relative to new entrants into teaching annually,may be the most important segment of teachers to reach with inservice training.

32 The Baanc of Cowe Conten

Table 1 characterizes the type of degree program offered in a number of developed anddeveloping countries in terms of the relationship between the science and educationcomponents of the currently preferred entry qualifications in each of these countries. Wheretwo types of programs are identified for one country, the upper secondary science teacherswfll be taking the more scientifically rigorous of the two options.

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Table 1: Characteriation of the Relationship Between Science andEducaton Courses in the Training of Seconda,y Science Teachers

(Somerset 1992; El-Ne,nr, 1992; Rosier and Keeves, 1991)

COUNTRY YRS US/PE S/E E + S

Aunsta 45 * _

Canada 4/5a imt 4Egpt 4 _

EnJ d 3/4 . * _

Hong KonM . _

HJungary 4/ aIndonesiaIsrael 4*Jaa 4 * _

Korea 4Nieeria S * *

PNG 2/5

Pbilippines 4 *

Poland_ 4/5 *

Sin&awor 4/5Swede4 4* _

Thaflad 4 _

KEY: US+PE - Undergraduate science plus postgraduateeducation; S + E - Science and education combined; E +S - Education with some science.

Whatever route a teacher takes to subject matter knowledge and professional competence,the actual content of the teacher's tertr education is split between course work in sciencecontent, pedagogical instruction including supervised teacbgn and general educationcourses. The balance of these three components varies considerably from country tocountry, and even sometimes from institution to institution of the same type within a country(see Table 2).

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The data in Table 2 require further explanation. The entry for China refers to the sciencecontent (chemistry, physics, biology offered through the discipline departments) of a four-year program offered at a normal college or university for upper secondary scbool teachers.These teachers spend about 5% of their time on science teaching methods. Teachers at thelower secondary level take a two- or three-year course at a higher teacher training school.Again the training is in chemistry, physics, or biology for about 70% of the program content,with teaching methods accounting for 2% of the course load (see the case study on China,section 7.1 for more information).

Table 2: Time Spent on Science/Education,/Genesl Educaion Courses(El-Nemr, 1992; Somerse4 1992; Rosier and Keves, 1991;

de Bascones 1988; UNESCO, 1985)

Country Sciences % Education % General ed. %

China 70 l

Egypt 80 20 l

Hungary (LS) 50-55 15-20 30

Indonesia (D3) 64 25 11(SI) 66 23 11

Nigeria (US) 47 40 13

Philippines (LS) 12-25 19-21 60-64(US) 30 22 48

Thailand (US) 52 27 21

Venezuela (LS) 35(US) 60

USA 40 21 39

UNESCO Model 50 35 15

The data for Egypt refer to the course load of a four-year program for both lower and uppersecondary school science teachers in the Faculty of Education at the UniversitY ofAlexandria. Newly graduated teachers begin teaching at the lower secondary level and moveon to the upper secondary level after a few years of classroom experience (see the casestudy on Egypt, section 7.2 for more information).

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on to the upper secondary level after a few years of classroom experience (see the casestud-y on Egypt, section 7.2 for more information).

The Indonesian data shown apply to two levels of program. The D3 instructional programoffers a three-year diploma for upper and lower secondary science teachers at either auniversity Faculty of Teacher Education (FKIP) or a teray Institute of Teacher Education(IKIP). There is also a D3 program offered through the better science faculties at theuniversities (see the case study on Indonesia, section 7.4 for more information). The SIprogram lasts four years and leads to the award of an undergraduate degree in educationfrom either a FKIP or IKP.

The data given for Nigeria refer to a four-year program leading to a bachelor of educationdegree from the University of Nigeria at Nsukka. The allocation of time will differ for BEdprograms at other Nigerian universities, but all will include professional training and sciencesubjects (Rosier and Keeves, 1991).

Lower secondary school teachers are prepared for the Nigerian Cerdficate of Education atcolleges of education, advanced teachers colleges, and some universities. This is a three-year course of study that gives teachers a choice of two sciences selected from chemistry,physics, biology, and integrated science.

An upper secondary science teacher in Thailand will take four years to obtain a B.Ed inscience (Soydhurum, 1990). This program is offered at universities and teacher colleges.On graduation, teachers are expected to be competent in science knowledge; to be familiarwith curriculum materials developed by the Institute for the Promotion of Teaching Scienceand Technology, a semi-autonomous agency attached to the Ministry of Education; havegood ethics and human relations skills; and, be ready to -serve and develop [their] society"(Rosier and Keeves, 1991).

The Venezuelan lower secondary science teacher takes a four-year program where 35% ofthe course work is in general science, 35% in educational technology (methods and modemleaming theory), 15% in psychology, 10% in sociology, and 5% in epistemology. A physicsteacher at the upper secondary level would complete a program of 60%o physics, and 10%each of educational technology, psychology, sociology, and epistemology (de Bascones, 1988).

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Depending on the actual course content, these courses may be education specific, or partof an attempt to broaden the teacher's general educational background.

In the United States, there is a large variation in the types of courses offered and therelative emphases placed on science components, education courses, and general education.The figures presented in Table 2 are a construct for a four-year education degree, based onprofessional society recommendations concerning the science background of high schoolscience teachers, and the number of education courses taken by education majors atsouthern universities (ACS, 1989; Galambos, 1985; NSTA, 1984). A very wide range ofcourses is possible, some with a greater emphasis on science instruction, some with less.

In recent years, there has been a great deal of dissatisfaction in the United States about theways in which a teachers are prepared. One suggested way to reform U.S. teacherpreparation is to require an undergraduate degree in the content area to be taught, to befollowed by graduate trauinig in educadaon leading to a 'Master in Teachingu degree(Carnegie Forum on Education and the Economy, 1986). The Holmes Group (40 educationdeans and professors) is also recommending that teachers be required to have anundergraduate degree in the content area, but does not insist that professional developmentbe delayed until graduate studies (Holmes Group, 1990; 1986).

The UNESCO figures are taken from a model developed during a 1984 meeting ofeducators from Bangladesh, China, India, Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, andKorea. An elaboration of the proposed content of this four-year program is shown in Table3. It is not clear how many years of prmary and secondary education it is based on, norwhether it applies to both lower and upper secondary education. Compared to otherprograms, the percentage of science content is low.

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Table 3: Recommended Progrin of Study(UNESCO, 1985)

AREAS TIME COMMENTS

SCIENCE CONTENT 50%

History & philosophy of science; Science taught as a humanScience, technology & society; Science activity; includes environmentalconcepts & principles; Laboratory topics; selection depends onwork major

PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION 35%

Psychology of learning science; Science 25% To include recent developments;content & teaching methods; for skdlls & rational thinkdng;Laboratory techniques; includes computer instructionEducational technologr,Evaluation in science education;Curriculum and instruction; Scienceeducation research; Scienceteaching/internship

Foundations/other education courses 10% Made relevant to teaching &learning

|1BERAL EDUCATION 15% Humanities, communications

The balance between the three components of a science teacher's preservice education ispartly a reflection on the length of secondary education, and partly on the degree ofspecialization at the secondary leveL For example, in the Philippines, students enter collegewith only 10-years of formal education; hence, there is a greater need to provide generalcourses to complete the educational background of the future teacher than in countrieswhere undergraduates enter university with 12 or even 13 years of previous instruction. Inthe United Kingdom and other countries where there is significant pre-universityspecialization, all general education has basically been completed before entry intouniversity. Thus, for these countries, little emphasis is likely to be placed on breadth ofstudy at the university. In countries where specialization does not occur at the secondarylevel, university programs cover a much wider range of courses.

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Within one country, the percentage of time devoted to science is generally less for futureteachers at the lower secondary level than at the upper secondary level, although this doesnot hold across countries. For example, teachers at the lower secondary level in China takea higher percentage of science courses than do specialist teachers at the upper secondarylevel in Venezuela or the USA. Wbile the course emphasis varies considerably from countryto country, most of these courses of study are four years in length for upper secondatyteachers, and three or four years in length for lower secondary teachers.

Practice teaching varies significantly in length from country to country. Ghani (1990)compared the role of the teaching practicum in 12 secondary teacher preparation programs(not speeifically science teaching) from a number of developing nations. He found thateight of these progmms held a single practice teaching session at the end of the professionalcourse- work, wbile four institutions included practice teaching throughout the instructionalprogram. The advantage of the former approach is that, at the end of the program, ateacher has greater theoretical knowledge both of subject content and methods of teaching.The advantage of the latter is that the continual, relevant feedback between course theoryand classroom practice may facilitate teacher learning (Copeland, 1975).

The most common length of the practicum is 12 weeks, with the range extending from fourweeks to 24 weeks The preparation of secondary science teachers in PNG includes aneight-week practicum; in Singapore the period is 12 weeks in length (Rosier and Keeves,1991). For most progrms the practicum takes place at secondary schools associated withthe teacher training institution; there are a few laboratory schools; and several institutionshold on-site practice sessions.

3.3 TaoefBac4wh orgto dw SISS

The qualifications of lower secondary science teachers participating in the SISS are shownin Table 4. The countries are listed in order of achievement (from highest to lowest) forthe 14-year-old (population 2) students tested. All of these countries except England,Ghana, Hong Kong, Italy, Singapore, and the Philippines now provide 12 years of schoolingbefore entering a tertiay institute. The exceptions all offer 13 years of schooling except thePhilippines which is usually 10 years. These years of schooling do M necessarilycorrespond to the number of years the teachers in this particular study attended secondary

18

Table 4: Edca wac und of Lower Seconda,y School ScenceTeache, PWici n in the Second IEA Science Study

(Postlehwalte and Wikqy, 1991)

NO. OF YRS % POSTISEC YEARS OF DAYS/YEARCOUNTRY TEACHERS POSTSEC SCL ED. TEACHING INSERVICE

.. ___ ,___ ED. _ ED.

Hungay 354 4. 65 15.8 4.5

Japa 314 3.8 61 15.7 3.8

Netherlands 393 5.3 57 11.6 2.0

Korea 62S 4.1 63 9.8 32

Fmiland 244 5.7 68 12.5 32

Swedengr8 94 2.0 25 na 2.1

China 07 1.5 na na tna

Italy-gr9 319 4.2 76 15.9 2.9

Poland 798 4.1 59 163 3.6

Norway 76 4.7 74 11.0 0.8

Australia 1630 4.6 54 10.4 15

Canada (Fr) 224 4.8 27 16A 32

Israel 59 4.8 75 10.9 4.8

Thaland 96 4.0 62 6.5 2.2

Sinapore 225 3.6 77 10.7 L9

Sweden-g7 96 2.0 25 na 19

Englad 1077 4.3 na 12.0 2.2

PNG 94 3.4 47 14.8 3.9

Haog Kon 133 2.8 82 7.7 2.0

USA 119 3.4 62 13.9 3.0

italyV8 1425 4.1 68 14.5 2.6

Ghana 70 4.2 79 6.3 12

Zimbabwe 256 3.4 53 7.2 2.0

Nigeria 261 4.8 81 9.5 1.5

Phlpines _ 241 4.8 17 9.8 4.1

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s.:hool, since many have been teaching for some time and policies have changed over theyears.

For the lower secondary teachers, the years of post-secondary education reportedly rangefrom highs of 5.7 years in Finland and 53 in the Netherlands, to a low of 2.0 years forteachers at grades 7 and 8 in Sweden, and 1.5 years in China. Most of the countries arefailing within the range of three to five years, with a mean of about four years. Thepercentage of this time devoted to science instruction generally falls between 600-80%,except for Hong Kong (82%) and Nigeria (81%) above the range, and Sweden (25%o) andthe Philippines (17%o) at the bottom of the range. Most teachers seem to be receiving twoto four days of inservice training a year, except those in Norway (0.8) and Israel (4.8).

The qualifications of the upper secondary school teachers participating in the SISS areshown in Table 5, with the countries again being listed from highest to lowest achievement.For these teachers, the number of years of post-secondary education is highest in the UnitedStates at 5.9/5.8/6.4 years for biology, chemistry, and physics teachers respectively. (Thisdoes not imply a higher level of academic attainment. U.S. undergraduates may be staringtertiary education 1-2 years behind students from some other countries because of the weakcurriculum in the secondary schools.) The Finnish teachers have 5.9/5.8/5.9 years of post-secondary education for biology, chemistry, and physics respectively. French Canadianupper secondawy science teachers have also had many years of post-secondary education at5.8/5.6/5.5 years for biology, chemistry, and physics. The fewest years of post-secondaryeducation are found in Hong Kong (3.8 to 4.0 years), and Singapore (3.0 to 4.0 years).However, both these countries devote high percentages of that time to instruction in science(869'o-87%). Most of the countries fall within the range of four to five years of post-secondary education with a mean of 4.7 years for biology and chemistry teachers, and 4.8years for physics teachers.

The percentage of this time devoted to science instruction generally falls between 70%-&87%o.No country reports an average amount of time spent in science instruction of less than 61%(biology teachers in Japan). Most teachers seem to be receiving about two to four days ofinservicing a year, except those in Singapore (0.9 chemistry teachers, and 0.1 for physicsteachers). In the case of Ghana, so few teachers were part of the sample, that the resultsare not representative.

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Comparing the two sets of data, the lower secondary teachers have, on average, nearly oneless year of formal post-secondary education than the teachers at the lower secondary leveLThey also have spent a smaller percentage of time in science courses.

Table S: Educational BacAround of Upper Secondary School SciencePwticapatig in the Second IEA Science Study

(Postkethwaite and Wdey, 1991)

Countzy No. of Yrs % Postsec Ys Days/YearTeachers PostSec Ed. Sci Ed. Teaching Inservice Ed.

Hong Koag 4 55 4.0 86 8.5 4.0-Grade 7 C 82 4.0 87 8.5 4.0

P 94 3.9 87 7.9 3.9

England B 248 4.7 na 13.0 naC 259 4.8 na 142 2.2P 283 4.5 na 14.2 2.8

Singapore B 8 4.0 87 12.7 2.4C 10 3.0 87 8.7 0.9P 16 4.0 87 7.1 0.1

Hong Kong B 200 3.9 86 8.7 3.8Grade 6 C 251 4.0 87 8.3 3.4

P 245 3.8 87 7.7 3.1

Hungary B 84 5.4 82 17.9 39C na na na na naP 89 5.4 79 15.4 43

Japan B 40 4.4 61 16.1 3.6C 46 43 62 19.0 3.9P 37 4.2 65 18.1 3.6

Ghana B 5 3.8 87 na 0.9C 3 4.3 86 4.7 1.3P 2 5.0 87 3.0 7.0

Poland B 145 5.5 78 18.9 3.6C 60 5.6 75 18.0 3.4P 164 5.2 72 183 3.4

FinMand B 31 5.9 87 18.6 3.6C 21 5.8 65 118 3.4P 32 5.9 68 14.1 33

Australia B 276 4.8 67 1L2 2.0C 221 5.0 71 13.1 2.2P 203 49 69 12.5 1.7

Italy B 26 4.0 87 119 2.9C 18 4.5 84 15.5 3.6P 321 4.2 68 15.7 3.1

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Table 5 (continued)

Country No. of Yrs % PsiOWC Yrs Days/YearTeachers Postsec Ed. SL Ed. Teachng Insemice Ed.

Korea B 217 4.4 65 119 2.1C 208 4.5 72 1L7 22P 166 4.4 72 123 2.1

Thaland B 151 4.4 66 86 4.4C 140 4.4 67 7.9 3.5P 140 4.5 64 7.8 4.1

USA B 43 5.9 71 16.7 3.C 37 5.8 74 17.2 3.7P 34 6.4 71 16.7 3.1

Canada FR B 17 5.8 62 16.1 3.7C 24 5.6 75 12.5 3.4P 20 5.5 63 18.6 3.5

PNG B 6 5.0 75 95 2.8C 7 4.9 71 10.7 3AP P 7 4.6 82 12.7 43

With this in mind, it is interesting to recall that the SISS does indicate that higherachievement of 14-year-old students is associated with those teachers with the strongestscience background (Keeves, 1991). Also of interest is that both groups of teachers in allcountries have received more science instruction ta the 50% tinm allotment recommendedby Asian educators at the 1985 UNESCO conference cited in Table 3.

Both groups of teachers are relatively well experienced, particularly teachers from thedeveloped countries (where science teachers tend to be an aging population). Teachersfrom the developing nations represented are clearly younger, having spent from about sixto twelve years in the classroom (the samples of upper secondary teachers in Ghana andPNG were too small to be significant). It is impossble to conclude much from these datawithout access to additional statistical analyses. However, even some of these raw datasuggest a direction for action in individual nations. For example, the very low percentageof time spent on science study by teachers in the Philippines (ranked at the bottom inachievement for the 14-year-old population) compared to teachers in other nations suggestsa need to increase the science content of existing teacher prepartion programs in thatcountry (see also the data in Table 2). The fact that science teachers in the Philippines mayneed additional science training is recognized (see the case stuy on the Philippines, section9.1).

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4. What Should a Welleducated Science Teacher Know?

Al The Am= of Erpseke

Having examined the expected and actual backgrounds of science teachers in a number ofcountries, it is useful to review the knowledge and skills that a secondary science teachernees to have, in order to teach modem science in an effective fashion. There is, as shown,agreement that science teachers need to have developed knowledge and sklls in three basicareas: i) science content knowledge, ii) educational theory and practice, iii) a broad generaleducation, including the humanities. As has also been shown, there is no agreement on thebalance between each area, nor on how each should be executed to produce "effecdvescience teachers. The research base is incomplete in terms of explaining what teachers ofany subject need to know in order to teach any subject effectively (Kennedy 1990: Shulman,1986).

The confusion on how "best" to train a science teacher at any level appears to arise frm thefollowing:

(1) The absence of a clear definition of what is meant by an "effective" scienceteacher and how to measure teacher "effectiveness" in practice once it hasbeen defined.

(2) The lack of unambiguous data relating the effectiveness of a science teacher(or any teacher) to any particular model of teaher preparation.

(3) A belief that certain kinds of competencies, e.g, teaching skills, can best beacquired through experience rather than formal instruction. Hence, teacherscan best learn teaching skills by actually teaching rather than through formalcourse work

As a consequence of this confusion, it is common, in many institutions in many countries,to segregate subject matter knowledge from pedagogy in both preservice and inserviceeducation. This makes it difficult to give teachers instruction in pedagogical contentknowledge (PCK - see below).

Tbis confusion also results in attempts to mass-produce teachers as quickly and cheaply aspossible which, apart from necessity, also arises from the misconception that it is easy toteach effectively, and to teach teachers to teach effectively.

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This confusion also results in attempts to mass-produce teachers as quickly and cheaply aspossible which, apart from necessity, also arises from the misconception that it is easy toteach effectively, and to teach teachers to teach effectively.

Despite this confusion, there is agreement on better ways to educate secondary scienceteachers, based as much on common sense and individual case studies as on a firmlyestablished research base acceptable to all. The following sections describe an "ideal"education that may be difficult to realize in practice but which defines a high standardagainst which to evaluate any specific teacher training program.

4.2 Science KnoweK

There is a growing consensus that science teachers must have a strong science background.This may seem obvious. However, given the lack of scien=e content in some science teachertraining programs (see Table 4), and the belief that a good textbook or a "teacher-proof" kitis a cost-effective way to circumvent the poor science background of many teachers, it is nota position accepted by alL

There are also several schools of thought regarding the agrriai science knowledge fora secondary science teacher. It is argued that: i) the science teacher needs to know lessscience than a science major, ii) the teacher needs the same knowledge as a science major,iii) the teacher needs more (and different) science knowledge than a science major.

What do science majors know, and how well they know it? There is a fairly widespreadconcern that science instruction within the faculties of science is often very poorly presenteddue to: the large volume of information to be digested in a comparatively short time; theemphasis on fact and concept recall; the absence of a broad context from which to evaluatethe relative importance of specific science principles; and the lack of attention paid toconveying the logic of the discipline being taught.

This is a problem common to both developed and developing countries - the sheer tediumand concept overload of much of undergraduate science instruction. This type of scienceinstruction leads to the production of students who can solve algorithms but not apply theirknowledge in problem-solving situations - nor convey the essence of their knowledge tonaive learners.

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This kind of science instruction does not give the novice teacher the preparation he or sheneeds for the classroom. (It is also not the best way to prepare future research scientistsl)A teacher must know the subject matter to be taught at a more sophisticated level the a thestudents. Ideally, whatever the reasons for teaching school science (to produce futurescientists or future citizens), this means that, in terms of science content teachers shouldknow

(1) the facts and concepts to be taught, and why these facts lead to a formulationof accepted models and theories;

(2) how these facts and concepts relate to other important ideas in a givenscience, as well as to the 'big" ideas in other sciences;

(3) which facts and concepts are the most important in science;(4) haw knowledge becomes "science" knowledge, and how"accepted" science may

be modified based on new data;(5) the laboratory skills necessary to accumulate such data; and,(6) that science is a human construct, developing over time to explain both the

universe and the near environment in which we live.

Thus, the teacher's understanding of the subject matter must go beyond knowledge andcomprehension into the domain of analytical thought, including the abilites to cntique andapply subject matter knowledge. A commonly accepted wisdom is that a teacher's subjectmatter knowledge should be at least three years ahead of his/her students. However, if thatknowledge is defined solely in terms of quatiy of knowledge recall and not qualiy ofunderstanding, in other words if the teacher has not achieved some level of critical thinkingin the discipline, then the teacher is not well prepared to teach that subject.

Paradoxically, it is possible that, as a teacher-learner becomes more of an expert learner,he/she may have greater difficulty explining certain concepts to students. As a disciplinebecomes very familwar, its knowledge base and structure become so internalized by thelearner, that recall is more or less automatic (Dreyfus and Dreyfus, 1988). The now expertlearner begins to forget. how the kmowledge was constructed in the first place; whichmisconceptions clouded initial comprehension; and, how meaning was eventually wrestledfrom the abstract. If the learner becomes a researcher, it may not matter that the structureof this network of knowledge is held in the unconscious mind. However, the teachers

25

knowmedge of science needs to be "explict and seff-conscous, rather than tacit" (Kennedy,1990).

It is perhaps becas this process of lmowledge storage in the unconscious mind tends totake place that those who are extremely familiar with their discipline (e.g., researchscientists) are not, by virtue of their knowledge, automatically excellent teachers - although,of course, some are. Some may have moved too far away from the process of scienceknowledge construction to be able to assist the novice learner in understanding concepts thatmay be not only counterintuitive but, somehow, alien to the culture in which they are beingexpressed (Okebukola and Jegede, 1990; Vlaardingerbroek, 1990; George and Glasgow,1989).

The Nationa Center for Research on Teacher Learning at Michigan State University hasbeen studying what teachers acually learn from differently structured teacher educationprograms. Their Teacher Education and Learning to Teach (TELT) study is followingteacher-learners from their entry into a teacher education program through their first yearof achally teaching. One major finding of the TELT study is that

"majoring in an academic subject does not guarantee that teachers will have the kindof subject matter knowledge they need for teaching. When we contrast teachers whomajored in a subject with others who did not, we find that majors are often no moreable than other teachers to explain fundamental concepts in their discipline"(Kennedy, 1991b).

The TELT std is following teachers of writing and mathematics, but clearly lendssupporting data to the position presented above in terms of science majors. Kennedy(1991b) concedes that

".certain types of college educational experences do make a difference. Inpardcular, college courses or inservice workshops that require teacher candidates toreason about the subject, to argue about alternative explanations, and to testhypotheses seem to alter substantially students' undeding of the subject andbetter enable them to respond to the kinds of tasks we gave them."

26

In terms of science knowledge bacground, it is particularly important that future scienceteachers are taught to be self-conscious, life-long learners in the sciences because:

(1) science continues to develop after the teacher graduates, in particular, sciencedisciplines have increasingly fluid boundaries;

(2) a growth in teacher knowledge as teachers interact with students is animportant charactstic of the most effective teachers (see, for example,Marshall, 1989; Ball and McDiarmid, 1987; Shulman, 1987) - a commitmentto continuing intellectual growth on the part of the teacher is a commitmentto the continual impvement of the teacher's classroom performance;and,

(3) a commitment to continuing education is one characteristic of a professionalidentity - teaching will become more clearly recognized as a profession whenmore teachers are encouraged to behave as professionals.

In this context, the question of how many sciences a future secondary science teacher shouldstudy takes on a different significance. While most science teachers have in-depthknowledge of only one science, a chemistry teacher at a German "gymnasium" may havestudied three science subjects in-depth. Learning two (or more) science disciplines in-depthmay add meaning to all of science, if both subjects are taught to emphasize the"connectedness' of the knowledge (Kennedy, 1991a; Prawat, 1989; Resnick, 1987). If bothare taught as discrete and distinct sets of facts and concepts, nothing may be added butcontent overload. To paraphrase an old song, "Its not what you know but the way that youknow it!"

Presuming well-taught science, should there be any difference in the science content forteachers at the upper and lower secondary levels? Teachers at the upper secondary levelshould be taught in-depth in at least two sciences for practical - as well as pedagogical -reasons. A coordinated two-discipline focus in training should produce a better teachercapable of more effective instruction in two sciences.

The preparation of a science teacher comfortable with teaching at least two sciences andtheir border areas is easier to recommend han to accomplish. The structure of highereducation in many countries in such that, especially if the training includes an undergraduatescience degree, it may not be possible within the three or four years of undergraduate

27

instruction to cover two sciences to the depth needed to teach both at the upper secondaxylevel

At the lower secondary level, science teachers are much more likely to have to teachintegrated or general science courses. These teachers need a broader exposure to the factsand main concepts of many sciences than teachers at the upper secondary level, but less in-depth factual knowledge of any one discipline. However, they do need to bring the sameuailix of understanding to their broad knowledge of science and scientific inquiry as the

teachers at the upper secondary level.

4.3 Pagicd Kiowkdp

The well-educated science teacher is one who has developed an understanding of howdifferent students learn science; who can help individual learners learn; and who canmeasure when that learning has taken place. This understanding is usually conveyedthrough formal "education" courses, as well as through a period of supervised teaching.

The professional education of the teacher is subject to much criticism, some of it merited,in terms of the lack of intellectual content of many education courses. It is argued that thebest place to leam how to teach is actually in the classroom.

One problem with this argument is that the classroom is exactly where most teachers havealready learned a set of asmptons, attitudes, and beliefs about the role of the teacher(Kennedy, 1991a; Shulman, 1987). It is often said, with regret, that "teachers teach the waythey were taught and not the way they were taught to teach." This should not be at alsurprising. As Kennedy (1990) has pointed out, most student teachers have alreadyexperienced 3,000 days of teaching before they get to their short period of practice teachingl

It is unrealistic to expect that a short period of practice teaching - however well-monitored --will have any significant, long-term impact on the ways in which a science teacher behavesin the classroowm As confirmed by the research, the typical 12-week practicum is unlikelyto alter the student teachers' preconceptions about how a subject "should" be taught(Eggleston, 1985; Fullan, 1985; Zeichner, 1980).

28

One way of extending the teaching practice period is to make the first years of teachingprobationary "apprenticeships," where the novice teacher is mentored by a master teacher.However, these apprenticeships are of varying content, character, and value since theirimpact depends on the knowledge, experience, personality, and dedication of the masterteacher.

Yet another way of structuring the practicum is to distribute several practice teachingsessions throughout the undergraduate years. This allows the student teacher to take newknowledge of science and teaching into the secondary classroom as it is acquired in thepreservice program, and to bring back the classroom experience for self-conscious studyduring the formal coursework Supplemented with microteaching, this may be one of themore effective ways for novice teachers to learn how to teach effectively (Copeland, 1975).

In addition to the practicum, student teachers are also expected to learn about the skills andcompetencies of teaching as well as the theoretical basis for conveying particular subjectmatter in the context of formal course work. The types of education courses offered covera wide range of topics, which are related to:

(1) the educational system as a component of society, and as a political system --e.g., Educational Foundations, Sociology of Education, etc.;

(2) the characteristics of the learner - e.g., Human Growth and Development,Educational Psychology, Cognitive Psychology, Learning Theory, etc.;

(3) the delivery of content to the learner - e.g., Fundamentals of Teaching,Science Teaching Methods, Classroom Management, CurriculumDevelopment, etc.;

(4) the evaluation of the learner -- e.g., Assessment, etc.

The extent to which any preservice teacher program emphasizes any one of these categories,or specific courses within these categories, varies a great deal from institution to institution,even within the same country. Some of these types of courses are considered part of thegeneral education of any teacher, but may not relate to actual classroom performance.Others may have a direct impact on the daily behavior of the teacher.

In designing the most effective science teacher training program, particularly if it must beshort and the academic backgrounds of the student teachers are poor, it may be necessary

29

to reevaluate the continued existence of some traditionally compulsoxy courses, and thespecific content of others, to eliminate both the superficial and the "not really necessary"from the curriculum. Under extreme conditions, perhaps the only questions which canlegitimately be asked of each course are all pragmatic: Can this knowledge be used directlyin the classroom? Does this skill make the teacher's task simpler? Will this informationhelp the teacher better understand how to present specific topics in the curriculum tostudents of varying abilities and culuural backgrounds?

It is especially important that science teachers are taught teaching methods and skills thatmake the science to be taught appear relevant to the students. The concept that there ispedagogical content knowledge is related to a growing understanding that students (andstudent teachers) do not enter the classroom as blank slates upon which new knowledge canbe imprinted (a "transmission" model of instruction). In order for learning to take place,the teacher (and the teacher of teachers!) must understand that the learner comes to theclassroom with previous explanations, misconceptions, and beliefs already in place(Grossman, Wilson and Shulman, 1989; Shulman, 1986, etc.). The task of the scienceteacher is to identify which ideas and misconceptions are likely to be associated withparticular science concepts for students of a particular level of development and culture; andto use this knowledge to help each student begin to construct satisfying scientific models ofnatural phenomena (Mestre, 1991; Resnick, 1987; Driver, et ni., 1985, etc.).

The "constructivist' model of learning is proving to be very useful in helping studentsunderstand science better. Science methods courses should both teach student teachers howto use this modeL and be taught by teacher educators who recognize that the studentteachers are themselves harboring naive misconceptions of science concepts. Regrettably,as Kennedy (1990) has pointed out:

..... methods instructors, like other teacher educators, usually take their students'knowledge of the subject matter for granted and spend their time providing specifictechniques for handling specific topics, rather than helping their candidates betterunderstand how children learn this concept, what is conceptually difficult about it, orwhat is conceptually important about it."

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4.4 GenlduBacWic d

For science teacher preparation in the developing world, general courses which aremandatory may include mathematics, economics, political science, history, languages, religionand ethics, health and physical education, etc. It is accepted that all teachers should havea liberal education much broader than the subjects they will eventually teach. However, theargument that all these courses are an essential component of science teacher training issuspect, given that, in many countries, the time devoted to these general courses in programsfor lower secondary school science teachers is much higher than in programs for uppersecondary school teachers. There are two possible explanations for this discrepancy: i) acountry may not be able to afford science specialists at the lower secondary level -especially in rural areas the teacher may be expected to teach across the curriculum, or ii)the candidates at the lower secondary level are not considered smart enough to takeadditional science instruction - thus, the general courses are really only serving as a "fller."

There is also, as pointed out previously, a difference in the emphasis placed on thesegeneral courses from country to country, depending on the quality and the specialization ofpreuniversity training, and the role of the university in ensuring that its undergraduates havethe broadest education possible. The British style of education typifies the earlyspecialization model, at least for the elite, while the American system can accommodate apostponement of specdalization until graduate studies.

5. Who Becomes a Science Teacher?

As suggested above, the content of a curriculum designed to prepare future teachers maybe tailored to the perceived intellectual capabilities of those who will enter the program.There is evidence based on school-leaving and university-entrance examinations that, wherethe status of teaching is low, thosz students who enter science teacher training programshave, on average, a lower level of academic achievement than those students who enterprograms for science majors (e.g., in Brazil, Indonesia, Nigeria, the United States, etc.).Where the status of the teacher is high, the quality of entrants into the profession is alsohigh (e.g., Taiwan, Korea, Japan).

31

The selection of teaching as a career will depend on the actual and perceived rewards ofteaching -- including pay, working conditions, opportunities for further education, careerladder, status of the teacher in the community - as well as on other employmentopportunities available. While conditions are relatively good in some developing countries,teacher pay, which is usually tied to civil service pay structures, is so low in others thatteachers need to take two or even three jobs to pay essential bills. Conditions in many ofthe schools are poor, especially in rural areas. Science teacher morale tends to be especiallylow in Sub-Sahelian Africa and Latin America (Ware, 1992).

Given these conditions, it is not surprising that in many countries the better science studentstend to become science majors, and eventually take graduate research studies, oremployment in the private sector. This leaves the future science teachers to be selected, bysome combination of competitive examination and interview, from the lower achievingstudents.

Thus, some science teacher preparation programs may be designed to accommodate theexpected lower intellectual profile of the applicants. However, it is not logical to offerfuture science teachers with a weak background in science fewer science courses. Thesestudent teachers should be taldng as many remedial science courses as possible, togetherwith courses in pedagogical content knowledge to help clarify their own misconceptions aswell as those of their future students.

Apart from redesigning the teacher preparation programs, another obvious way to improvethe quality of teachers entering the classroom is to improve the quality of the intake intothe teacher training programs in the frst place. This is an issue that cuts across disciplinesand levels of teaching, and goes way beyond the scope of this particular report.

It can be said that, in general, the better students will continue to avoid teaching, if otherjobs are available, as long as teaching is a poorly paid, low status job. Should limitedresources go into improving the conditions of service for teachers before they go intoimproving the quality of teacher preparation programs? Given the complexity of anyeducational system, it would be intellectually presumptuous to suggest that this question canbe answered without an in-depth analysis of specific system variables.

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6. The Trainers of Teachers

Problems related to the background of the trainers of teachers have previously beendiscussed in some detail by Ware (1992). In many countries, the teacher trainers do notreceive any instruction in how to teach themselves. Often they are former secondary schoolteachers promoted out of tbe classroom; even then there is no guarantee that they have theexplicit knowledge necessary to teach others how to teach. They may also have a weakbackground in modern teaching methods or in science content (see Table 8 for Indonesia).Another possibility is that the teacher educators have a relatively strong background inscience but have never taught at the secondary level (see the case study for Egypt, section72).

Science teacher educators need to be upgraded to at least a master's degree level in scienceeducation. The course of study should include both additional science content, a scienceeducation research project, and topics with which the teacher educators may be less familiarsuch as: subject-specific pedagogy, continuous assessment techniques, cooperative learning,student-centered learning, concept mapping, and teaching STS.

A worldwide problem alluded to previously is the lack of cooperation and respect betweenscience and education faculty in universities. Increased collaboration between the facultiesof science and education is absolutely essential if teacher training programs are to improvesinificantly. This cooperation is more likely to take place if there is some kind ofinstitutional support system in place to encourage and reward instructors who work togetherin cross-disciplinary partnerships (an increasing practice in the United States). A mandatefrom the university administration establishing that all faculty are responsible for teachereducation is a beginning. This might involve the formation of faculty teams to collaborateon an analysis of the current curriculum, and on joint recommendations for curriculumredesign. The faculty teams would then be responsible for implementing the reforms.

The offering of pedagogical seminars to science faculty members could also begin tointroduce them to the importance of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). A recognitionby scientists of the value of PCK can lead to team-teaching collaborations involving scientistsand educators.

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It is also important that there be collaborations between science faculty at a university, andeducation faculty at a separately administered teacher training institution. Increasedcollaboration between institutions, and between institutions and school systems, needs to beencouraged at the ministry level. Perhaps special grants could be made available to supportthe activities of a wide range of cross-institutional collaboratives designed to bring all ofthese groups together (a program being attempted as one component of a much largerproject to improve science capacity in Brazil.)

7. Country Case Studies: Preservice Education

The following case studies are presented to give more specific examples of how teachers areprepared in particular institutions in different countries. They are not meant to illustrateeither best practice or worst practice, just the variety of practice and the concerns associatedwith each.

7.1 Cidr An Emphasis on Scienc ContW

As pointed out prtviously, upper secondary science teachers in China are prepared at anormal college or irliversity for four years, while future teachers at the lower secondarylevel take two to three years of training at a higher teacher training school. The balanceof instruction for both types of program is on the science content, with pedagogy accountingfor some 2% to 5% of course content.

Table 6 shows the recommended teacher training curriculum for Beijing Normal University.In practice these guidelines may be exceeded. Student chemistry and physics teachers willtake about 90 contact hours in teaching methods and materials development, and some 40hours in pedagogy and educational psychology (Lewin, 1987). However, the course of studyclearly emphasizes the science content - which pleases many students since, aftergraduation, they may avoid teaching by staying on to do research. (In 1984 in Beijing, about50% of the biology stihdents, and 20% of the chemistry students continued with graduatestudies.)

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There is a six-week period of practice teaching offered in the third year. According toLewin (1987), this period is not well monitored, and may even be avoided since contactbetween the training institutions and the practice schools is minimal.

Table 6: Teacher Training Cuniculum at Beijing Normal University(Lewin, 1987)

SUBJECTS CLASS HOURSRECOMMENDED

Specialized subject (science) 2,000Foreign language and foundation 1,000Pedagogy 36Psychology 36Teaching methods 72

Approxrimate total time taught 3,500

The science course content is organized by the traditional science boundaries of biology,chemistry, and physics, with interdisciplinary content very rarely taught. Liyuan (1992) hasindicated that some universities, in particular Suzhou University, are introducing lectures ontopics related to science, technology, and society (STS), to help future teachers introduceSTS activities into traditional courses. However, in most programs, the facts and conceptsof the disciplines are stressed, rather than the application of the processes of science toproblem solving in the real world (Liyuan, 1992; Lewin, 1987). The laboratory accounts for15% of the science content time, and involves the usual laboratory activities associated witha degree in science, with few connections made to the reality of practical work in the schoolclassroom.

As pointed out by Lewin (1987), despite their limited exposure to education courses, theteachers are expected to:

* develop subject matter competence in their students* guide the "all-round development" of their pupils* serve as exemplars of high moral and intellectual standards* demonstrate mastery of pedagogical and psychological principles.

As of the mid-1980s, it was estimated that some 70% of lower secondary science teachers,and 40% of upper secondary school teachers were unqualified, with the problem viewed as

35

most severe in the rural schools. This leaves hundreds of thousands of chemistry, physics,and biology teachers at the upper and lower secondary levels in need of inservice training.

This need is well-recognized by the Chinese government. The World Bank is currentlysupporting an educational development project in Cbina which includes funds for theinservice training of science teachers, especially in poor rural areas. This program will usewell-trained teachers from key schools in each province to provide instruction to otherteachers on how to:

* design and conduct experiments in the classroom;* evaluate how well the students are learning science;* relate science to daily life.

The emphasis will be on the use of low-cost, simple materials; simple kits will be madeavailable to participating teachers. There will also be an effort made to establish schoolscience clubs and competitive science fairs.

72 Egypt The Univerity of Akxandjia

Science teacher preparation at the Faculty of Education, University of Alexandria, entailsstudying for four years to obtain a bachelor's degree in science education (El-Nemr, 1992).Students are selected based on their performance on school-leaving examinations and aftera personal interview with education faculty. The faculty accepts some 200 students eachyear.

All entrants into the program are prepared to teach science at both the lower secondarylevel (grades 7-9), and the upper secondary level (grades 10-12). On graduation, moststudents will begin by teaching at the lower secondary level and, then, after about three tofive years of experience at that level usually move to an upper secondary school.

The students have basically chosen a career in teaching because the job is secure; they arecomparatively well paid; they receive three months of paid vacation a year; and, the job isnot perceived as particularly demanding. There is also a high possibility of taking leaveafter four years in the classroom to work abroad, especially in the Gulf States.

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Graduation rates are high (95%), with some 80% of these graduates actually becomingteachers. Those who do stay in teaching teach general science, integrated science, andenvironmental science at the lower secondary level. At the upper secondary level, thesubjects taught include biology, chemistry, physics, earth science, and environmental science.

Those students who do not become teachers find employment in private business, and thechemical or pharmaceutical industries. and in computer offices. Most have decided thatteaching is not the best career for them.

It is possible to major in either biology or chemistry plus physics. Students take 60 courses,each of which lasts for eight months. A total of 480 credits (at eight credit hours/course)are required to graduate. The program concentrates on science subjects (400 hours), witha lesser amount of time given to education courses (60 hours), and mathematics instruction(18 hours). There is a practicum in the third and fourth years of four contact hours perweek, for a total over the two-year period of 256 hours of practice teaching.

The students do not spend much time in laboratory instruction, nor are they receivinginstruction on the same equipment they will use in the schools (El-Nemr, 1992). Thefacilities are not sufficiently well enough equipped to provide the instruction the studentsneed, nor are the students taught how to build or repair simple equipment

Some 60% of the teaching staff have taught before at the secondary level, 35% at the lowersecondary level and 25% at the upper level. They may have a bachelor's degree, a master'sdegree, or a doctorate in science or education. A graduate science education degree is notcommon. As at many institutions that prepare science teachers, the relationship betweenthe science and the education faculties needs improvement

A number of professional growth opportunities are available to the teaching staff including:leave for post-graduate research; leave to teach abroad; attending a local or internationalconference; publishing in a either a local or international journal.

Both the science courses and the education courses are fairly traditional and need to beupdated and improved in general quality. There is also a need to introduce improvedmethods of evaluating the success of the program (El-Nemr, 1992).

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Z3 Cernas,y: Preparbig to Teach Chedsy baa Gpmium

Future science teachers in the German gymnasium (academic high school) begin theirteacher preparation by studying two academic subjects in depth at the university for a periodof six years. In the past, three subjects were mandatory, an option becoming more popularagai Future chemistiy teachers are likely to also study either biology (25% of futurechemistry teachers), physics or mathematics (339%), or either geography or physicaleducation (339o). Apart from taking wntten and oral examinations, the students must alsowrite a thesis in one of the subjects.

On graduating from university at about 26 years of age, students enter a teacher-trainingcollege for two years. During this period they are paid as civil servants a sum of about$11,000 -$15,000 per year (Bottinger, 1992). For the two-year period, students take bothadditional coursework and teach in selected secondary schools for eight to ten periods aweek (in both subject areas), under the supervision of the usual subject teacher. Theirclassroom performance is regularly observed and critiqued.

The coursework at the teacher training college includes pedagogic and psychological theoryplus didactics, subject-specific methods, and rules and regulations of the educational system.Students also continme to perform expernmental work. At the end of the two years, thestudents take additional written and oral examinations, present a thesis on a teaching unitreked to one of their sciences, and submit four graded lesson-plans (Bottinger, 1992).

Even after this extended training, the new teacher may have difficulty finding a job in agymnasium since there is currently an oversupply of qualified chemistiy teachers inGermany. Teachers at a gymnasium are paid well - from a minimum ofUS$ 35,000 per year (comparable to an army major) to a maxiAmum of $65,000 per year(comparable to an army colonel). As civil servants, German teachers are exempt frompaying any social seacuity taxes.

7.4 Indowia: A Raid ExaNdon of Seconday &Aiati

In Indonesia, as indicated previously, secondary science teachers may be prepared througheither a university Faculty of Teacher Education (FKIP) or a separate terdary Institute ofTeacher Education (EIP) to teach at the upper or lower secondary levels. The SI program

38

lasts for four years and leads to the award of an undergraduate degree in education. TMeD3 instructional program offers a three-year diploma for upper and lower seconday scienceteachers. The two-year diploma (D2) program for teachers at the lower secondaiy level hasbeen phased out Both the FKS and the IKIPS offer programs at all thee levels, althoughnot all the FEIPS can train chemistry and physics teachers (Somerset, 1988).

In addition, in order to reduce the shortage of science teachers particulrly in the OuterIslands, a three-year diploma program was established at nine selected science faculties (theD3-MIPA program. As this program meets its target mimber of graduates (at a rate of1,200 per year) it is being phased out at some of the Javanese faculties (rhulstrup, 1990a)The planned intake for all programs is shown in Table 7.

A fraction (259%) of the students are selected for higher educational opportunities based onupper secondary school records and nions The remainder take a multiple choicepublic ea on in the physical sciences and/or the biological sciences. Candidates forteacher training institutions must select two choices of program which may be at the sameordifferent institutions but must both be in teacher training insdttions.

Table 7: Planned Intake into Science Teacher Edon Progum(Someut, 1988)

APPROX. STUDENT INTAIKE~ 1988/89INSTITUTIONS NUMBER PERCENTAGE

KILPS 6,900 49.6

FKIPS 5,800 41.7

D3-MIPA 1,200 6

TOTAL 13,900 100.0

Before 1987, students could select a science program and a science educadon progam. Thelatter was usually the second choice, if a place in a science faculty was not obtained. Lowergrades are accepted for a place in a teacher training program than are needed for auniversity place.

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Between 144-160 semester credits are needed for a SI degree, about 110 credits for a D3diploma, and about 80 for a D2 certification. For both the SI and D3 programs studentstake:

sgeneral education courses in: social education, religion, Pancasila, and BahasaIndonesia, etc. (15 semester credits);

* basic educational theory courses in: educational psychology, educationaladmiistration, guidance and counselling, etc. (10 semester credits);

* subject matter courses in: main teaching subject (100-110 credits for an SIdegree, 80-85 credits for a D3 diploma, 55-60 credits for a D2 diploma); and,

* teaching and learning courses in: teaching methodology, assessment, teachingpractice (15-20 credits for an SI degree, 10-12 credits for a D3 diploma, 8-10points for a D2 diploma).

This curriculum is currently being upgraded to place a greater emphasis on the subjectmatter and to move away from a lecture-based approach to teaching problem solving anddecision making New instructional materials and guides are being developed by teachertraining institution and university faculty. Laboratory facilities are also being upgraded.

As can be seen in Table 8, the majority of the faculty of both the IKIPs and the FKIPs haveonly a bachelors degree. Only 3% of the science faculty of the IIPs have a doctorate; onlyone doctorate is found in the science faculty at the FKIPs(Thuistrup, 1990a).

Current efforts to upgrade the teacher training programs at the UIs and the FKIPs includeplans to upgrade a large percentage of the faculty to a master's degree, and a slightly lowerpercentage to a doctorate, through science and mathematics studies at the strongestIndonesian universities. The costs of

this program are modest The master's program is expected to cost US$ 325/month/studentfor 30 months; the doctorate program is expected to cost US$ 400/month/student for 42months. There is also a travel grant of US$ 222/student. An additional component of thiseffort is a provison for additional teaching staff to study for three months at Indonesian andoverseas universities.

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Table 8: Academic Staff in Major Science Subject, 1988/1989(ThuWup, 1990a)

Country Bachelors Masters Doctorate % With Higher TotalDegree Degree Degrees

Indonesiaa) iIPS (10)

Math 249 25 9 12 283Phys 232 31 2 12 265Chem 208 43 11 21 262Biol 271 37 14 16 322

Indonesiab) FKIPS (20) 195 11 1 6 207

Math 90 6 0 6 96Phys 96 8 0 8 104Chem 179 27 0 13 206Biol

This effort to upgrade the qualifications of science education faculty is one component ofa wider effort to enhance science and technology capacity in Indonesia. Efforts to providemservce education to science teachers in the system are also extensive (Ware, 1992;Somerset, 1988).

8. Inservice Education

Inservice education can be variously defined. In the context of this report, inserviceeducation refers to the further education of teachers who are already teaching, whether thiseducation is remedial, or part of the further professional enhancement of the teacher. Thecosts of upgrading teacher qualifications are usually covered by the ministry of education,although other regional and local authorities may also conitnbute (ILO, 1991), or the costsmay be shared by the participating teachers (this latter arrangement is common for distancelearning programs). Inservice education may be voluntary or mandatory, and may or maynot be accompanied by a raise in pay and/or promotion prospects (ILO, 1991). Forexample, all teachers in Korea must take a 240-hour inservice course after three years of

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teachmg in order to be promoted to a higher saly scale. Thereafter, science teachers musttake 60 hours of inservicing every three years (UNESCO, 1985).

In the developing world, especially for science teachers at the lower secondary leveL muchof this inservice education is, of necessity, an attempt to upgrade the educationalbackground of inadequately prepared teachers. TMs may be accomplished either throughextended coursework leading to a formal qualification (a bigher diploma or a higher degreethan the teacher currently holds), or through workshops, seminars, and short courses of bothlimited duration and content.

Extended coursework may be provided: through residential programs at colleges anduniversities (which teachers attend during vacations or, more rarely, study leave of somekind); through non-residential programs held in the evenings, weekends, or vacations; ortrough distance leaming opporunities including correspondence courses, and/or radio andTV proamming (which are less likely to take teachers from the classroom). The rationalebehind providing these longer progams is that a better-educated science teacher will be amore effective science teacher.

Where poorly qualified teachers are upgrding their existing formal qualifications forteaching, the coursework they take will mirror the balance between science/pedagogy/general education found in a more rigorous preservice program than their initialpreparation. Since, as discussed previously, the higher qualification is likely to include ahigher percentage of science courses than the lower, these inservice programs are likely toemphasize science content rather than pedagogy.

The shorter inservice workshops, seminars, or nprofessional development days" tend to betargeted toward preparing teachers to implement specfic new curricula, new textbooks, newapproaches to classroom teaching, or to introduce new materials, including science kits, intothe schools (Ware, 1992; Lewin, 1991). Thus, they are more limited in their general content,although their purposes may be vauious. This is the type of inservice education that is alsoprovided to those teachers who are already conidered well-qualified to teacb, as well asthose who are not. The teachers may be intoduced to:

* the content of a new sylbabs or a new examination* the format of a new textbook;

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* new regulations related to reporting functions;* spedfic pedagogical tecbniques;* the operation of new instruments;e ways of making, and repairing low-cost equipment; and,* ways to improve laboratory practice, etc.

These types of shorter programs are often mandatory, even if held during school vacations(e.g., for science teachers in Malaysia and Thailand), and may take place either at theschooL at a teacher resource center, or at a local college or university (ILO, 1991). Theymay be provided through governmental ministries or through local science teachers'associations (e.g., in Argentina, Brazil, Ghana, Hong Kong, Nigeria, the Philippines - seeWare 1992).

Little reliable information is available on the effectiveness of these shorter programs. Thecase can certainl be made, even if the research data are not available, that short-termimservice instruction is especaly unlikely to have any long-term impact on teacherparticipants who are minimally qu- lified. Macdonald and Rogan (1990) have descnbed thedifficulty of moving secondary s ence teachers in the Ciskei from a teacher-centered to astudent-centered classroom Other researchers have reported similar difficulties associatedwith science instruction in Nigeria (Buseri, 1987; Ogunniyi, 1983), in Kenya (Kay 1985), andAustralia (Hacker, 1984). While part of the problem is teacher insecurity with the sciencecontent, there is also the issue of moving from the culturally accepted relationship betweenthe teacher and the taught toward a more student-centered classroom. It should be pointedout that a reluctance to change teaching practice is not just a concern in the developingworld for science teachers For g teacher to accept the need to change his or herclassroom practice, and then make that change, has been demonstrated as a slow,developmental process which leads teachers through a series of personal concerns to theeventual implementation of innovation in the classroom - the Concerns-Based AdoptionModel (Hord, et a, 1987; HalL 1978).

The research data on the impact of inservice traning for teachers in developing countriestends, understandably, to focus on the cost-effectiveness of various means, and locations, ofdelivery of inservice instruction. Ih both developing and developed nations, other variablesthat impact upon the success of a particular approach to inservice instruction are usually notconsidered. These variables include the course content of specific inservice programs; the

43

educational backgrounds and current teaching styles of both the teacher trainers and theparticipating teacher-students; and the long-term impact of the training on the teachers'knowledge, classroom behavior, and attitudes to teaching.

Clearly, the inservice needs of well-qualified and poorly qualified science teachers are verydifferent, especially in developing countries where the range of teacher qualifications maybe extreme. However, despite their differing needs (see, for example, Kamariah et aL,1988; Al-Mossa, 1987), all of these teachers may be enrolled in the same inservice programs.This was one problem identified in Indonesia during the early stages of development of theircurrent 'teachers training teachers" inservice program. The initial PKG program (PKG --Strengthening the Work of the Teachers) was designed to upgrade science teachers throughan ambitious, and relatively expensivz, inservice/onservice program (Somerset, 1988). Asthe PKG program developed, a paralleL shorter, and less expensive program, the SanggarPKG, was established with two objectives: i) to reach teachers who had not received PKGtraining, and ii) to continue the training of the PKG teachers. The very differentbackgrounds of these two target groups has led to a modifcation of the PKG/SPKGprogram to take greater advantage of the skills of master teachers (guru inti) alreadywithinthe system.

The use of master teachers, sometimes called the "cascade" method of providing inservceteacher training, is found in many other countries, including Malaysia, Peru, Sri Lanka, theUnited Kingdom, and the United States. As pointed out by Lewin (1991) among others,while this may be a relatively inexpensive way to reach large numbers of teachers in a shortperiod of time, the quality of the presentations, and the messages delivered, may be ofdeteriorating quality. The onservice component of the Indonesian PKG/SPKG program isone attempt to control quality along the cascade. Lewin mentions the possibility of usingwell-designed instructional manuals as a means of quality control. If audiovisual materialsare available (perhaps through television progran), they also can be used to maintainquality control in a cascade system. (One U.S. cascade program for chemistry teachers,'Doing Chemistry," uses interactive videodisc technology with master teachers to maintainquality along the cascade.)

Where teachers have had only a limited presevice education, an extended leave from theschool system to return to college or university may be the most appropriate route tomeeting the teachers' educational needs. Where study leave is permitted, the teachers may

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take from weeks to years, depending on the country, their length of service, and the subjectsbeing taught. For example: in Argentina, teachers may take study leave of between sixmonths and one year in length after ten years of teaching; a maximum of one year ispermitted in Jamaica; in Sri Lanka, the maximum is two years (ILO, 1991). Teachers mayreceive no pay for study leave (e.g, Bangladesh, Cameroon, Jordan, Madagascar, Tunisia);or, depending on the subjects studied and the length of time taken, either half- or full-pay(e.g., Bahrain, Chile, India, Iraq, Jamaica, Kuwait. Nicaragua, Thailand, Tunisia, etc.).

There are obviously a number of disadvantages to the study leave option, in particular it isexpensive, and it takes teachers out of the classroom. As previously mentioned, a lessexpensive option which permits teachers to continue to teach, while studying for a higherdiploma or degree, is the use of distance teaching methods. This form of inserviceeducation appears to be less commonly available to secondary science teachers than tosecondary teachers of other disciplines, and to elementary school teachers. It is availableto science teachers in Columbia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guyana, Jamaica, Namibia, Nigeria,and Sri Lanka (see the case study on Sri Lanka, section 9.2). Where science teachers areenrolled in a distance learning program, it is very important to bring these teachers togetherfor laboratory instruction, the sharing of experiential knowledge, and mutual support

What is known about the characteristics of an effective inservice training program?Recognizing the absence of outcomes-based data, Andrews, Housego, and Thomas (1990)developed a subjective questionnaire on the characteristics of effective inservice programsfor primary and secondary teachers (not specifically in science). This questionnaire wasanswered by a distinguished panel of international experts from both developing anddeveloped countries (Australia, Bangladesh, Barbados, Canada, Hong Kong, India, Kenya,Malaysia, Nigeria, Singapore, the United Kingdom). Table 9 sumnuaizes those programcharacteristics identified by the panel, based on their own experiences of inservice education,as of greatest importance in ensuring the effectiveness of a teacher inservice program.

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Table 9: Reaive Impotance of Inservice Program Charaderistics(Andtw4 Housego, and Thmas 1990)

CHARACrERITC RAING (RANK)

Ensuig implementaon 4.72 (1)

Motivation 437 (2)

Content emphasis 4.13 (3)

Program control 4.08 (4)

Best use of $ 335 (5)

Method of delivery 3.17 (6)

The characteristics listed in Table 9 were rated on a five-point scale, where five was "mostimportant" and one was least important" The most important characteristic of an inserviceprogram was identified as "ensuring that the program is implemented in the classroom."Ways of ensuring better implementation identified were: establishing a continuing studygroup for the inservice participants, and ensuring that the teachers had an opportunity towork in groups; and organizing onservice visits to the teachers' classrooms by consultants,or as part of the regular supervision process.

The motivation of teachers was viewed as the next most important variable, being associatedin particular with increased teacher pay and minstry certification. The panel of experts alsofelt that it was important that the course content include both subject matter and pedagogy.They rated "methods for helping teachers acquire specific sldlls for teaching the existingcurriculum," "helping teachers acquire methods for teaching for meaningfl rather than rotelearnin" and 'helping teachers acquire methods for developing in pupils a positive attitudeto lifelong learning," as the most important of eight content-related variables.

For this group, the control of the program by the local teachers college was considered moreeffective than control by the ministry of education or the university. It should be noted thatthe panel did not comment on the importance of including teachers in decisions related tothe content of the inserice, nor mention the use of teacher-feedback to refine futureprogram design - both aspects of inservice programs associated with effective programdesign (see, for example, de Bascones, 1990, a description of science teacher inservice

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workshops in Venezuela). The panel believed that prga funds should support both thedirect costs of the program and release time for the picipatng teacers. Fiay, the leastimportant aspect of the inserice program was identified as 'method of delivering theinstruction." However, within that category, the exprts favored school- or locally basedinservice programs. Distance education, and informal instrucdon were viewed as the leasteffective ways of providing inservice instruction

The extent to which inservice education is provided in different countries was shown inTables 4 and 5. At both the lower and upper secondary levels, the countries paricipatingin the Second International Science Study reported a range of about two to four days peryear of inservice training. The teachers pardeipating in this study had an average of aboutfour years of post-secondary education. Hence, the two to four days of insece trainingis associated with relatively well prepared (in terms of length of preparation andconcentration on science content) teachers. It is bard to believe that such a brief inserviceperiod had much impact on even these better-prepared teachers.

Specific information on the extent of inservice training provided to science teachers indifferent countries is not readily available. Yoloye (1989) reported that, over a five-yearperiod, 55% of Nigerian seoondary tachers of physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics,agricultural science, and health science had no inservice traning. Soydhurum (1990) statedthat, over a one-year period, 46% of Thai secondary science teachers received no inservicetraining

9. County Case Studies: Inservice Education

The inservice training oppormnities available to science teachers cover a wide spectrum ofpossibilities. Three very different examples are dered in the case stdies below.

9.1 The Ph1lppiw Upgrudin Un&WaWale Tewkem

In 1986/87, 31% of Philippine teachers of biology had either a bachelor of science orscience education degree in biology, while 23% bad a bachelor of science education degreein general science (Thuistrup, 1990b). Some 15% of chemistry teachers had anundergraduate major in chemistry, while 21% of chemistry teachers had either a science or

47

a science education degree in biology. For physics teachers, only 4% have a science orscience education degree in physics, 31% have a mathematics major, and 18% a backgroundin general science.

Magno (1987) reported that the curriculum for secondary science teacher preparation in thePhilippines, " [did) not give sufficient depth for teachers to be able to innovate, improvise,or teach basic concepts and skills." The need to provide a choice of inservice educationoptions for science teachers in the Philippines has led to the development of a variety ofprograms supported by government agencies, the universities, and professional associations,using a "cascde" approach to teacher inservice education.

The Department of Education, Culture and Sports supports an 18-22 month Master of Artsin Teaching (MAI) degree, conducted jointly by the Institute for Science and MathematicsEducation Development (ISMED) and the Graduate College of Education at the Universityof the Philippines. For chemistry teachers, this program is designed to improve theireffectiveness in the classroom, emphasizes the chemistry content, and includes a chemistryeducation research project. Teachers are also taught how to function as community-development leaders when they return to their schools, how to organize teacher trainingworkshops, and how to use curriculum materials developed by ISMED.

A Master in Science Teaching program for chenmstry and physics teachers is offered at DeLa Salle University. This program was originly designed to support the integration ofchemistry and physics instruction in high school and the frst two years of university (Magno,1987). Because of teacher concerns, this program is now taught as separate disciplines.

Graduates of the masters progams may take a PhD. in science education at the Universityof the Philippines and De La Salle University, and become educational leaders in theirregions. They also may be used as teacher trainers at one of twelve Regional ScienceTeaching Centers found throughout the country. University professors serve as technicalresources to the centers. The centers offer a six-week summer institute of either one or twosummers in length. The program concentrates on teaching methods and carries graduatecredit. The coursework includes lectures, discussions, group activities, film viewing, and fieldtrips. Center trainers are supposed to pay onservice visits to the participants' schools duringthe school year to assess the extent of implementation of the summer program.

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Teachers participating in the center programs are expected to conduct their own workshopsfor local teachers. The local workshops may be from one da; to one week in length,depending on the funds available. As expected, the quality of these workshops is variable,depending on the effectiveness of the center training as well as on the individual teacher'sbackground (Magno, 1987).

In addition to this particular cascade program, various schools throughout the country aredesignated as "leader schools" capable of providing workshops and seminars to bothsecondary and tertiary science teachers. These schools have superior facilities andequipment, as well as the better educated teachers. They use eperts from the universitiesand ISMED to help support their activities.

In 1989, a new high school science and technology curriculum was to be implemented in thePhilippines. To prepare for this, a previously existing four-week Integrated ScholarshipProgram has been extended to 200 contact hours to enhance the teachers' knowledge ofboth subject matter and pedagogy; improve their laboratory skills; and prepare them toshare their new understanding of trends and issues in science education with local andregional teachers.

Shorter courses of 18 to 36 hours in length are offered by ISMED at requesting institutions.Professional organizations such as the Philippine Science and Mathematics CounciL and thePhilippine Association of Chemistry Teachers also offer a variety of short courses tosecondary science teachers.

Finally, a distance education program leading to a graduate diploma in science teaching isrun from the University of the PhWpines at Los Banos for teachers with a science degree.Teachers learn from a series of print and audio-visual modules, and, during the summer,attend a two-week on-campus program which focusses on laboratory work, demonstrationsand teacher interactions.

9.2 Si Lanka: Dibwance Teacwhg fir Science Teachw

From the late 1970s to the mid 1980s, Sri Lanka made heroic efforts to expand theavailability of both primary and secondary education. These efforts led to the acceptanceby the schools of inadequately prepared teachers, including secondary science teachers,

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espeally at the lower secondaiy leveL By the mid-1980s, the focus moved towad findingcost-effectie ways of delivering inservice aning to untrained teachers already in thesystem (see Table 10 for mumbers of science and mathematics teachers), or expected toenter the system (see Table 11).

In Sri Lanka, graduates with a science degree may teach at the upper secondary levelwithout any presenice professonal training. Post-graduate teaching credentials may beobtained inservice through distance programs of the Open University (a post-graduatediploma in education) or the Institute of Teacher Education within the National Instituteof Education (a post-graduate certificate in education).

Table 10: Unined, NonWaduate Teachs in the Teaig Force, 1987(Dock at L 1988)

TYPE OF IEACHER NO. FOR.________________ .SCIENCE/MATH

Certificated: 1163Sinhala 1125Tamil 38

Uncertificated: 2814Sinbala 2521Tamil 293

Totl Untained 3977

Table 11: Ung,weSdence TeacserAppoibnents Since the 1987 Census(Dock of , 1988)

QUALIFICATION 1987 1988 1988 TOTAL_________ (PLANNED)Graduates 9 - 350 359

Non-graduates 1763 250 - 2013

Total 1872 250 350 2372

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Prior to the mid-1980s, the inservice training of non-graduate teachers (for primary andlower secondary schools) was undertaken by 16 teacher-training colleges. Teachers with an"Ordinary*- level or "Advanced&-level school-leaving certificate were enrolled in a three-yearprogram, of which the first two years were residential, and the third year was a monitoredteaching practicuam Following the mid-1980s educational reforms, these programs are beingreplaced by three-year, preservice programs at newly established colleges of education. Theintake of these colleges is confined to students with "Advanced-level certification. Theupgrading of primary and lower secondary teachers already within the system is beingprovided through the Institute of Distance Education within the National Institute ofEducation (Nielsen et p., 1991). The programs of the Institute are being offered tountrained elementary and secondary science and mathematics teachers (nongraduates) witha strong academic performance.

For the science and mathematics teachers, the Institute has developed modular units on thetopics listed in Table 12. These units were distnbuted to the teachers as they becameavailable through Regional Study Centers, where the teachers also meet throughout thethree-year program to receive tutoring support, interact with other teachers, and receivelaboratory instruction. The face-to-face sessions at the Regional Centers include: one-daystudy circles (officially at least six per year); two-day practical sessions (eight per course,held during the weekends); and five-day contact sessions (eight per course, held duringschool holidays). In addition, the tutors are supposed to visit the partcipating teachers oncea term, although some trainees have reported as little as one visit in the three-year period.

Table 12: Course Sttwre(Docket a, 1988)

SCIENCE/MATH COURSES NO. OF UNITS

Professional education 21Health and physical education 10 10Religion 35Mathematics 37 9ScienceSinhala/Tamil (mother tongue)

TOTAL 122

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Partiipants m the science/mathematics program have been less satisfied with theorganization of these Regional Centers than have the elementary school teachers (63%satisfaction versus 75% satisfaction); and have found the program less useful than theelementary teachers (70% rated "very useful" versus 86%). Only half the science andmathematics teachers rated the laboratory instruction "adequate." Complaints have centeredaround the inadequacy of facilities and equipment, the lack of time devoted to laboratoryinstruction, and the "irregular and insufficient" scheduing of practicals. The coursematerials have also been criticized for being at too low a level for either the background ofthe participating teachers (43% of whom already have 'Advanced"-level passes or higher)and the students they will teach (up to "Ordinary"-level).

For the first intake of science and mathematics students, 1314 of the 1591 students recruitedsat the final examination, which 1275 passed (97%o). The dropout rate of 17% was higherthan the dropout rate for the elementary program (10%o).

The number of students entering this program has been in decline for a number of years(see Table 13). This cannot be explained in terms of a declining need, since, while thenumber of applications to the teacher training colleges (Sinhala) in 1988 was 445 in science,and 320 in mathematics, the number accepted by these partialar institutions was 155 inscience and 169 in mathematics.

Table 13: Enrollment in Distance Educaton Courses n Science/Math(Dock, at at, 1988)

YEAR OF NO. IN SINHALA NO. IN TAMILINTAKE

1984 15911985 1112 -

1986/87 944 1861988 993 ?

TOTAL 4640 186

Other problems associated with this program in addition to those previously identifiedinclude a shortage of full-time tutors at the Regional Centers, and a shortage of staff at theIstitute. (Staff shortages were particularly acute for Tamil programs.) Finally,

52

organizational problems encountered at the Regional Centers, although small, contributedto the impression that the convenience and needs of the client teachers were not ofimportance in planning. All of these factors together with the difficulty of self-instructionin isolation may be contributing to the apparent decline of interest in this program.

Nielsen i a1 (1991) have conducted a comparative analysis of the costs of training primarylanguage and mathematics teachers in Sri Lanka through i) Distance Education Centers;ii) preservice education at the colleges of education; and iii) inservice education at theteachers colleges. The distance learning program cost 1/6th of the cost of the preserviceprogram and 1/3rd of the cost of the inservice training. (This is a total cost comparisonincluding the costs to the trainee as well as to the sponsor.) However, the distance learningprograms required a relatively greater financial outlay by the participants than the otherprograms.

In terms of program effectiveness, exit-level trainees outscored entry-level trainees in bothlanguage and mathematics, with the language group showing greater gains than themathematics group. The programs at the colleges of education were the most effective inraising the achievement levels of teachers in mathematics knowledge and mathematics andlanguage skills. These results parallel the results on the efficiency and effectiveness ofdistance learning for primary language and mathematics teachers in Indonesia, except thatdistance learning for mathematics teachers in Indonesia produced almost no enhancementof subject matter mastery and teaching skills.

9.3 TanOaa - The 7Wibar Sienc Camps

There is "a deep philosophical conflict between an attitude toward science as an activity ofpeople who strive to be instrumental in their world, versus science as what you do to learnwhat others are telling you to know about your world" (Zanzibar Science Project, 1992a).The former philosophy that science should empower people and societies, especially thoseof the developing world, to work toward the betterment of their society - both in materialterms and for intellectual enrichment - is the drving force behind the establishment of theZanzbar Science Camp ProjecL Initially founded in December 1988 as a three-weekscience camp for first-year secondary students held at Nkrumah Teacher Training College,the Project is developing into a model of how to introduce activity, inquiry-based scienceinto the school system and into rural communities.

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The first Science Camp involved teachers from the college; officials from the Ministry ofEducation; advisers from the University of Dar es Salaam; technical assistance fromBrandeis University, and more than a dozen of the island's best science teachers, all ofwhom were university trained, and many of whom also had administrative responsibilities.The teachers served as tutors to 30 students selected from all districts of Zanzibar (Bial,1992). Ihe camp introduced the students both to science in the laboratory and in the worldaround them through experiential learing. The students used microscopes and telescopes;they played with magnets; they observed and marvelled at the stars; they catalogued theecology of the shoreline and the sea. And, as the students learned to approach science withcuriosity and exploratory skills, so did their tutorsm

Since the camp was so successful, a second session was planned for 1989, with a number ofenhanced features. A pre-camp developmental workshop was held for the tutors. To widenthe impact of the program, each camper was mpanied by his or her teacher. The campacvities were expanded to include the building of equipment such as radios and telescopes.To support the post-camp activities, the teacher campers were provided with a box of simplescence equipment. A school visitation program was established for the three monthsfollowing the camp, using the tutors to help the teacher-campers innovate in their ownclassrooms (Zanzibar Science Camp, 1992a; 1992b). Community science festivals wereorgaized by the tutors, and run by the campers to introduce their communities to the workof the science camp.

In 1990, a Science Resource Center was established at Nkrumah Teacher Training College,where the campers and tutors worked with computers for the first time. Scientists from thenational Institute of Marine Studies and the Commission for Lands and Environment beganan association with the camp that is evolving into a wider project involving children andtheir communities in both in-school and in-community enviromnental education activities.

The 1991 camp built on the success of the previous camps, once again extending thepossibilities of the collaboratons imvolved. The teacher-campers were given help in lessonplanning and curriculum development. In addition, plans were prepared to expand thefacilities of the Science Resource Center to include new workshops, laboratories, and desk-top publishing facilities (Zanzibar Science Camp, 1992a; 1992b). There was participationfrom mainland teachers and students for the first time. (A second camp is now beingplanned on the mainland.)

54

In preparation for the December 1992 science camp, a two-week tutor developmentworkshop was held in June to enhance the capabilities of the tutors to work as a team, andto provide them with nsight into how chidren and adults learn science. The tutors wereasked to come to this workshop having already developed a number of science activitiesusing readily available materials, which they would share at the workshop, and fiutherdevelop for presentation at the December camp (Zanzibar Science Camp, 1992c). Theenvironmental institutions associated with the camp also sent participants to the workshop.In addition, the Provisional Government of Eritrea sent two representatives to the workshop,and will have participant-observers at the December camp.

Teachers applying to the 1992 workshop will be selected at-large based on their knownqualities of leadership, creativity, and experience - previously teachers have accompaniedtheir students to the camp. This group will include student teachers from Nkrumah TeacherTraining College.

While initially only a few of the teachers were women, conscious efforts are being made tobring more women into all facets of the project. (The first student intake was one-thirdgrls; the camp admissions policy is seeking to increase the number of girls participating inthis project up to two-third.)

In December, the teacher campers will work with the tutors to enhance their owncapabilities of developing innovative activities for the classroom. There will be a focus onhelping the teachers to select and use the most appropriate equipment, whether importedor produced locally. Camp activities will also include research on tutor and teacher training,and project administration. This will involve initiating a study of the implications of widelydisseminating the active science explorations of the camp into a school system bound bytraditional examinations (Zanzibar Science Camp, 1992a).

The environmental focus of many of the camp activities will be epanded into the schoolsthrough a collaboration with the Department of the Environment, and the Institute ofMarine Science. This will initiallry involve establishing enirnmental clubs in three schoolsto work with scientists from local government agencies in designig small ecology-basedresearch projects within the community. One major research project will be an eco-exploration of the sustainability of local mangove forests. In addition to technicalassistance, the participating schools will receive relevant equipment and supplies, and

55

supporting books and magazines (International Collaborative, 1992). Teachers from theschools wil receive special taning to lead the clubs, and will participate in future projectplanng. Cuiculum development will evolve from the club aciities, as a staff memberfrom the Ministry of Education observes the school-based activities. Local villagers, manyof whom are already concerned about the deterioration of their local environment, will beincluded in these activities through the schools.

The Zanzbar Science Camp Project goes beyond the traditional definition of "inservice"training yet is clearly functioning as a very imaginative approach to enhancing the teachers'knowledge and familiarity with science and the student-centered classroom It is helpingteachers implement new approaches in a practical fashion but, more significandy, it isencouraging teachers to participate in the development of this evolving project.

10. Discussion

IQI Towrd an '4gIPe4goy

As stated previously, science teacher training is only one of the variables that must beaddressed if science education is to be made accessible to all and if student achievement isto improve. However, it is an important variable that has received less attention than itshould have. It has been demonstrated that the educational qualifications and attitudestoward science of secondary science teachers influences the achievement and attitudes oftheir pupils. However, to some, preservice teacher education, especially the pedagogicalcomponent, is still an irrelevant waste of time and money. Others believe that teachertraining, even of the most superficial kInd, does make an appreciable difference to theclassroom performance of teachers. Those who hold the former position view teaching asa skill that is best learned by actually teaching. However, since teachers tend to teach theway they were taught, teaching without initial supervision tends to promulgate bad habits.These can only partially be rectified by practice teaching under the direction of a masterteacher. The novice teacher needs some formal instruction to give perspective and meaningto the classroom experience.

Even many of those who support pedagogical training tend to consider teaching as a set ofeasily acquired skills. Some educators believe that an effective lesson can be characterized

56

by a series of preprogrammed behaviors which, if followed precisely, will result in optimallearning. Here, teacher training is reduced to a formula for success that has little to do withthe students in the classroom. For, to be effective, a teacher needs to know not justteaching techniques but when to use specific techniques with individual students.

Even those who strongly oppose pedagogical training for the future science teacherrecognize that the future teacher needs a strong enough background in science content tobe able to teach students of a particular level with some degree of comfort. It is commonlyaccepted that the science component of a secondary teacher preparation program should bethe same as (for upper secondary teachers), or less than (for lower secondary teachers) thescience instruction given to science majors.

However, as discussed previously, science teachers at both levels need a different quality ofexposure to science knowledge than science majors if they are to become effective teachers.Al secondary science teachers need more than an in-depth understanding of one or twodisciplines; and they need a much broader appreciation of the scope of science as both abody of knowledge and a way of knowing.

In particular, teachers need to know the science well enough to recognize when and whytheir students are having problems grasping specific science concepts; and, they need toknow how to move their students toward an understanding of these concepts. However,pedagogical content knowledge can only be taught to teachers by teacher educators whothemselves are comfortable with both the science and the pedagogy.

As discussed previously, in many countries, teacher educators do not have the backgroundnecessary to teach pedagogical content knowledge. Nor, given the estrangement of sciencefaculty and education faculty is it very likely that team-teaching of the two groups ofspeialists can be widely implemented unless by administative fiat. However, it iA importantthat science faculty and education ficulty work more closely together than they do atpresent, and with mutual respect (see p. 33). It is becoming clear that the epertise of bothcontributes to enhanced student learning of science.

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1L2 Stgp to R4imr hwwvice Eation

In order to improve science teaching in the schools, the first priority must be to upgrade thescience and/or pedagogical background of the teacher trainers, since they are oftenresponsible for both preservice and inservice teacher education. Upgrading the knowledgeof the science teacher educators is necessaiy for staff of university faculties of science andeducation, as well as of teacher training colleges. In developing countries, many teachereducators have only a bachelor's degree in science (e.g., see the case study on Inconesia);they may themselves harbor misconceptions about the science concepts they are teaching.(There is a Danish study which shows that students harbor some science msconceptionseven beyond the level of a mastees degree in science.)

In most countries, the teacher trainers need to be upgraded in terms of both scienceknowledge and pedagogy. They also need to know how to relate the two areas. To teachpedagogical content knowledge, they should have had teaching experience at the levels forwhich they are training teachers. When they are expected to promote inquiiy-basedinstruction, then they need to be able to model such instruction themselves. They shouldalso be expected to conduct their own science education research project Finally, theyshould be introduced to topics such as continuous assessment, with which they may berelatively unfaniliar.

Once the educational background of the teacher educators has been raised to at least thelevel of a master's degree in science education (a master in science and a doctorate inscience education would be even more acceptable), then the content of the preserviceteacher trining curriculum needs to be drastically revised. Intelectuly superficial coursework needs to be purged from the curriculum. A broader spectrum of science courses needsto be added, including remedial science courses if necessary.

The student teachig component of the course should be integrated with coursework overthe total period of the program, and not just relegated to the last few weeks of the last yearof training. The student teachers need to experience the reality of the classroom as soonas, and as frequently as, possible. Microteaching, although useful, is not a substitute foractual experience. The student teachers need the opportunity to reflect on the schoollessons they have taught during fomal "debriefing sessions in college, to give meaning andperspective to their own experiences. Once they are actaly teacing, there will be littde

58

time for reflection, and less of an opportnity to share pedagogical problems and solutionswith their peers.

There appears to be a growing consensus that science teacher training should be a degree-level program of four years in length, after 12 years of precollege education, combining bothscience and pedagogy. However, the complete redesign of a three- or even two-yearprogram may have more impact than four years of participation in irrelevant and superficialcoursework.

Institutions need to begin to take teacher preparation seriously enough to put more thoughtand imagnation into program design and flexible course scheduing. Some students mightbe encouraged to interrupt their formal training to teach for one or two semesters, and thenreturn to finish their degree. "Sandwich" courses, industrial internships, and cooperativeeducation experiences are fairly common for engineering students- why not for teachers? For example, for some students a four-year program might be splitinto two years of formal instruction, one year of teaching (paid), followed by two more yearsof full-tme instruction, before the student graduates as a credentialed teacher. Perhaps amore useful split would be three years of instruction, one year of teaching, plus one finalyear at the teacher training institution. Another alternative might be some combination ofinitial full-time trmining, followed by part-time teaching and part-time training. There is nodefinitve evidence to support any one particular design of program as being the mosteffective. Experimentation with small numbers of students could help determine what typeof program will best meet the individual needs and capabilites of different countries.

1a3 Steps to Refbm- Inse FAdm

For some developing countries, inservice education may be really a form of "deferredpreservice" education (see the case study on Sri Lanka). Where inser1ice does serve thefunction of upgrading undereducated teachers, the contents of the programs offered shouldbe reevaluated in the same fashion as the course contents of the preservice programs.

As in Sri Lanka, distance traning is often considered a convenient and inexpensive way toprovide further training to underprepared teachers. Whether or not this is the best way toupgrade science teachers needs to be very carefully evaluated, since distance education maynot always include extensive teacher-to-teacher, and teacher-to-tutor contacts. The quality

59

of these contacts is vitally important, especially for science teachers, yet plamning for theseface-to-face sessions may not receive as much careful attention as the preparation of theprinted materials for the course.

A second issue related to distance training is that while it may be geographically convenientfor the teacher-participants, they may also be expected to contribute to payment of the costs.This was one factor that may have contributed to dechning enrollments in the Sri Lankaprogram

Inservice education may be provided as an adjunct to the introduction of a new textbook,examination, or curriculum. The tendency is to provide only a minimal amount of trainingand wonder why the training is later shown to be ineffective in changing teacher classroombehaviors Where major reforms are being introduced into the secondary science program,a one- or two-day workshop, or a one- or two-week workshop, or even a one-or two-monthworkshop may not be sufficient to ensure that the teachers are ready and willing toimplement change. Ti form of insemvice education should enlist the cooperation ofclassroom teachers as participants in designing, conducting, and evaluating the range ofinservice programs to be offered.

The "cascade" model of dissemination, using teachers to train teachers, can be an effectiveway both to involve and empower teachers, and to reach a large number of teachers withiservice education. However, efforts need to always be made to ensure the quality of themessage down the cascade.

The issue of "empowering" the classroom teacher is of concern in both developing anddeveloped countries. The s-called "top-down" approach to educational innovation mayresult in teachers ignoring intended reforms once the classroom door is shut. A "bottom-upapproach is as unlikely to be successfil because teachers lack the political power to pushthrough a reform agenda. It is in situations where "top-down" meets (or promotes) "bottom-up", such as is the case for the Zanzibar Science Camp, that meaningful change becomesa possubility.

The Zazmbar Science Camp Project is especially striking in the involvement of so manydifferent players: officials from various ministries, the faculty of teacher and technical

60

truning colleges and universities, classroom teachers, practicing scientists, U.S. consultants,and students and their parents.While the project has been relatively small, it appears to be steadily growing in scope andinfluence.

The Zanzibar Science Camp Project is a useful model for other developing countries toconsider adopting and/or adapting. It is apparently well organized; it involves a broadconstituency (decision-makers, teacher educators, research scientists, teachers, parents, andstudents); its aims have been relatvely modest; and, its growth has been carefully planned.Perhaps another factor contributing to its success is that it operates in-parallel to the formaleducation system - a less threatening way to introduce new ideas into the classroom.

Where inservice education is designed to bring all teachers up to some minimaly acceptablelevel of education, or to provide a supportive introduction to a new textbook or curiculum,it is usually mandatory. AR mandatory inservice science education should include a stipendfor participating teachers if it takes place on the teachers' time. Beyond these purposes forproviding inservice instruction, there is the need to ensure that even the best prepared andfunctioning teachers maintain currency in their discipline(s) and in ways of presenting theirsubject(s) to students.

The continuing education of teachers should be a responsibility shared by the authoritiesand the teachers. A nmber of inservice days should be mandatory for all teachers eachyear. The mnuber of inserice days reported for those countries participating in the SecondInternational Science Survey ranged between two to four days annually for both upper andlower secondary teachers. Four to five days seem a more acceptable number for mandatory,school-based inservice training. After a number of years of teaching (three), there shouldbe a month-long (at least) compulsory refresher course taken by all science teachers andtied to their continued certification as qualified teachers

Ideally, teachers should also accept some responsibility for the continual upgrading of theirown knowledge and sldlls. Reading science and science education journals; joining scienceteacher organiations; attending workshops at their own expense; particpating in scienceolympiads with their students; and organizing science fairs, are some of the activities whichcontribute to the professional development of the teacher. Given the conditions underwhich some of these teachers work, their relatively low pay, and probably limited prospects

61

for career advancement, it is a tribute to science teachers in developing countries that manYalready participate in these ldnds of continuing education opportunities with enthusiasm,dedication, and creativity.

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