Abstract
Analysis of views from a select group of Kenyan science teachers regarding the effect of student learning experiences on their teaching after implementing a contextualized science unit revealed that the teachers’ (a) literal interpretation and adherence to the official curriculum conflicted with the students’ desires to understand scientific phenomena embedded within their local environment; (b) inability or ability to sustain students’ motivations for understanding science through the local environment, which depended on initial teacher preparation; and (c) implementation of the contextualized science reduced the gulf that often hindered free student-teacher dialogue due to the teachers’ endeavors to maintain science and science teacher statuses.
Résumé
À la suite de l’enseignement contextualisé d’une unité scientifique, l’analyse de l’opinion d’un groupe d’enseignants des sciences au Kenya quant à l’effet des expériences d’apprentissage de leurs étudiants sur leur enseignement, révèle que: (a) l’interprétation littérale et l’application stricte du curriculum officiel sont en contradiction avec la volonté des étudiants de comprendre les phénomènes scientifiques en tant que partie intégrante de leur environnement local; (b) la capacité ou l’incapacité de soutenir la motivation des étudiants lorsqu’il s’agit de comprendre les sciences dans un contexte local dépend du niveau de préparation des enseignants; et (c) la pratique d’un enseignement contextualisé des sciences réduit les difficultés qui entravent souvent le dialogue entre étudiants et professeurs en raison du fait que les enseignants de sciences veulent maintenir la différence de statut qui existe entre eux et leurs élèves.
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The study was supported by funding from the Social Science and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) of Canada (Grant 15R8042).
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Nashon, S.M. Interpreting Kenyan Science Teachers’ Views About the Effect of Student Learning Experiences on Their Teaching. Can J Sci Math Techn 13, 213–231 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1080/14926156.2013.816391
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14926156.2013.816391