A Redesign of the Conceptual Physics Course SCI190 at The University of Dayton for Pre-Service Teachers

1
A Redesign of the Conceptual Physics Course
SCI190 at The University of Dayton for
Pre-Service Teachers

• Todd Smith, Said Elhamri,
• Lynne Erdei, and Susan Ferguson

2
GOALMore and Better Science Teachers

• Increased conceptual knowledge (content)
• Demonstration of best practices (inquiry)
• Bring elements of teacher preparation into the
  science lecture
• Create an environment conducive to choosing a
  science concentration

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The Redesign

• Placed 64 first year education majors in the
  same sections of lecture and labs
• Coordinated the lecture and labs with the teacher
  prep course EDT109
• Demonstrated best practices (inquiry)
• Encouraged them to teach each other in small
  group discussions
• Introduced the Ohio Academic Content Standards
  for Science and identified common physics
  misconceptions

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Assessment

• Pretest / posttest in 2 subject areas
• Force and motion
• Heat and temperature
• Three additional sections were given the same
  pretest / posttest
• Attitudinal surveys towards science and science
  education

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Normalized Gain vs. Pretest Score
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Changing Attitudes

• Will a science class designed for future teachers
  increase the number who will go on to teach
  science? YES!!!
• Attitudinal Shift
• Science as a subject of interest
• Difficulty in learning science
• Difficulty in teaching science
• Science teaching as a career choice