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Diversity Knowledge in Science Teacher Education-Translating Concept to Instruction: An Example Specific to African Americans

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Journal of Science Teacher Education

Abstract

Science education reforms promote access to quality science education for all students. Outcome disparities in various measures indicate that such access remains elusive for African Americans. Cultural incongruence is one among many explanations for this previously described inaccessibility. The intent of this article is not to report additional research findings, but to translate the information provided in the literature into an instructional form that science teacher educators can employ in the preparation of prospective science teachers or the further development of practicing ones. Pivoting around a role play, the authors discuss communication within African American communities, its incongruence with the discourse patterns typically valued and reinforced in school science, and the importance of such knowledge for science teacher educators.

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Notes

  1. Another pattern of engagement that is appreciated in African American communities involves the prominence of context. Before embarking upon a task, individuals expend time and effort addressing the context (e.g., establishing a personal connection, altering aspects of the surroundings so they resemble other surroundings).

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Correspondence to Eileen Carlton Parsons.

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Parsons, E.C., Foster, S., Gomillion, C.T. et al. Diversity Knowledge in Science Teacher Education-Translating Concept to Instruction: An Example Specific to African Americans. J Sci Teacher Educ 19, 69–83 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10972-007-9082-3

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