Using the Internet to Support Your Science Teaching

John Twidle (Loughborough University, U.K.)

(Supporting a presentation made at the Conasta Conference, University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia. July 10, 2003)

A review, commissioned by the British Educational Communications and Technology Agency (Becta) (Harris, S. 2000), of studies concerning the benefits of networked technology, catalogues a persuasive array of positive outcomes from using this tool. Supported by additional research (Becta, 2000, 2001, 2003), the Department for Education and Skills, in its vision for the future of ICT in schools (DfES, 2002), would appear to be convinced that information and communication technology in general, and Internet access in particular, has the potential to improve learning in our schools. This view is supported by Becta (2002 P.7) when they state that:

“Secondary schools with better ICT resources achieved, on average, better results in the 1999 Key Stage 3 tests in English, mathematics and science. This difference was also true for Key Stage 4 and held true for the 2000 test results”.

The importance that the U.K. Teacher Training Agency (20021) places on the use of ICT is supported, amongst other resources, by a 57 page explanatory document on the use of ICT to support science teaching. In addition, the UK government finances a Web site (NGfL 2002) to provide a facility where practicing teachers are encouraged to share ideas and resources. Not surprisingly, the U.K. 2002 Standards for the Award of Qualified Teacher Status (TTA2) include a requirement (2.5) for trainee teachers to:

“….know how to use ICT effectively, both to teach their subject and to support their wider professional role.”

In the non-statutory guidance (TTA3 2002) on Qualified Teacher Status and Initial Teacher Training requirements, one of the illustrations is:

“the students’ ability to select, access and customise remote data-bases and use these materials with pupils.”

In addition, assessors are urged to consider how well trainees use, for example, electronic mail and the Internet. These requirements are not restricted to the U.K. and parallels may be found, for example, in Queensland where the ‘minimum standards’ for teachers state that teachers are expected to:

“ create learning experiences in which students actively use information and communication technologies to organise, research, interpret, analyse, communicate and represent knowledge’

(Education Queensland, 1997)

Similarly, in Western Australia, a teacher in Phase 2 of the competency framework:

“- provides opportunities for students to use technology for a variety of purposes: for example, to support enquiry, advance communication, extend access to resources [and] encourage expression of ideas”

(Martin, 2001 p.26)

Findings from the Impact2 enquiry (DfES 2001) reveal that many existing teachers have yet to develop confidence and competence in ICT and that relatively few teachers are integrating the technology into their subject teaching in a way that enriches learning or stimulates higher-level thinking and reasoning. However, the non-statutory guidance (op cit) assumes that trainees should be able to demonstrate that they have met standard 2.5 during their school-based training. Not only does this depend upon the placement schools’ hardware, software and access to the Internet but also raises the issue of how well the students’ mentors and subject teachers are placed to act as role models and offer advice. The evidence noted above would seem to indicate that not all existing teachers may be as well placed to offer advice as one would wish. Kirschner and Selinger (2003 p.5) rather humorously describe the situation for some existing teachers when they write that:

“If the Internet is an information superhighway, then teachers just might be the road-kill on the asphalt of the information superhighway.”

If, as it seems, many existing teachers are not yet in a position to act as the role models we would wish them to be, what do we, as trainers, need to do to (if anything) in order to support our trainees?

In order to establish the extent of any additional training or provisions needed, in the Summer of 2002, 128 students nearing completion of their course in 4 higher education institutions completed a questionnaire concerning their experience, confidence and competence in the use of the Internet to support their teaching.

A summary of the analysis of the questionnaire responses reveals that:

  • The use of the Internet by postgraduate certificate of education (P.G.C.E.) science students to support their teaching is independent of home access, subject specialism, age or gender.
  • The majority of P.G.C.E. science students feel confident in their use of search engines and claim to have had success in finding information.
  • Of the 81.6% of student teachers claiming to have used the Internet during lessons, some 92.2% claimed to have used it to deliver successful lessons on at least one occasion.
  • Very few of the students rated the Internet as not, or rarely, effective as a tool for teaching.
  • The main use of the Internet in lessons has been for extracting information, revision and supporting individual pupil research, although there were examples of more adventurous uses such as individual web-page design and collaboration in a national survey on woodlouse populations.

What then of the students who are not as confident as we would hope or are not yet persuaded as to the benefits of using the ‘net? What has prevented its use or dissuaded our students from experimenting? What do we, as tutors, need to do to help?

From the student responses, it is clear that school provisions and arrangements constitute the greatest barrier to students using the Internet to support the teaching of pupils in our schools. Such factors are largely outside the influence of the training institutions. However, within the suggestions for development, two significant items are ones that could be addressed:

  • An increased knowledge of suitable sites.
  • Guidance on Internet use.

The numbers involved would not appear to warrant a compulsory component for all students. However, there are those who would benefit from some form of

resource that could be accessed by any PGCE student (or, arguably, of even greater need by existing teachers) upon demand. The most obvious medium would seem to be a free-access web site. To that end, under the banner of ESCalate(a), we are in the process of constructing a web site that contains:

  • A site map.
  • Guidelines for new users of the Internet.
  • Teaching and learning with the Internet, including sample lessons.
  • Links to generic tools (such as Hot Potatoes and Puzzlemaker).
  • Subject resources: a catalogue of vetted sites with a commentary from P.G.C.E. students including the target audience and suitability. The sites have been categorised by Key Stage(b) and National Curriculum(c) area.

Progress to date

  • PGCE students from the higher education institutions involved have reviewed several hundred sites and, for appropriate ones, have completed a standard pro-forma.
  • Some sample lessons have been identified.
  • A prototype site has been constructed and, following comments from current students and existing teachers, is undergoing modification.
  • The web site can be accessed at:

. Biographical Data

John Twidle taught science for many years in independent, secondary modern and comprehensive schools. His current position is that of Lecturer in Science Education at Loughborough University, U.K.

E-mail:

John Twidle, Teacher Education Unit, Matthew Arnold Building, Loughborough University, Leicestershire. LE11 3TU. England

Appendix:

ESCalate: Education Subject Centres: Advancing Learning and Teaching in Education.

(a)ESCalate is a Centre for staff working in Higher Education and Further Education who teach Education and Continuing Education. It is involved in a wide range of staff development activities related to promoting high quality learning and teaching in Higher Education. For further details see:

(b)In the England, the compulsory years of schooling are divided into 4 Key Stages:

Key Stage 1: Ages 5+ to 7

Key Stage 2: Ages 7+ to 11

Key Stage 3: Ages 11+ to 14

Key Stage 4: Ages 14+ to 16

(c) In England, there is a statutory National Curriculum for all pupils in state maintained schools.

Bibliography

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July 2002 <

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