Abstract
This chapter describes and discusses the role of assessment as part of teaching primary science. In doing so it acknowledges the historical trajectory and situated, multilayered nature of teaching and learning science in New Zealand. We adopt a view of education as an ecosystem of social, cultural, and political influences including the individual funds of knowledge of teachers, students, and whānau (family). Education policy in New Zealand requires that teachers acknowledge diversity, especially celebrating student and community cultural knowledge and experiences. Assessment needs to make the breadth of valued knowledge visible and recognize the role it has in shaping students’ sense of themselves as science knowers and doers. Examples of teaching and assessment activities are provided to illustrate how student and teacher funds of knowledge and relations can inform curriculum and assessment in primary science. The implications of these for education policy and practice are that teachers need to find ways to support students to represent their science learning in ways that are appropriate for them and that acknowledge and respect the diverse nature of our student population.
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Cowie, B., Trevethan, H. (2022). Funds of Knowledge and Relations as a Curriculum and Assessment Resource in Multicultural Primary Science Classrooms: A Case Study from Aotearoa New Zealand. In: Atwater, M.M. (eds) International Handbook of Research on Multicultural Science Education. Springer International Handbooks of Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-37743-4_59-2
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Funds of Knowledge and Relations as a Curriculum and Assessment Resource in Multicultural Primary Science Classrooms: A Case Study from Aotearoa New Zealand- Published:
- 19 April 2022
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-37743-4_59-2
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Funds of Knowledge and Relations as a Curriculum and Assessment Resource in Multicultural Primary Science Classrooms: A Case Study from Aotearoa New Zealand- Published:
- 14 October 2021
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-37743-4_59-1