Here’s Looking at You Kid: When the Researcher Becomes the Sample

Abstract

The quality of the K-16 science curriculum and the level of students’ science achievement remains a critical global concern. Science education has always chased the ever elusive goal of scientific literacy and dissatisfaction with students’ knowledge and ability typically leads to concerns about the science curriculum and science teachers. Eventually, stakeholders and policymakers focus on teacher education programs (i.e., graduate degree programs, preservice programs, and professional development programs) and those directly involved with the education of teachers. This concern often leads to discussions about whether teacher education programs are needed at all, or even detrimental. Needless to say, the audience for this book does not need to be convinced of the value and importance of systematic teacher education programs in science. Although many recognize that postsecondary science instruction is critically important, the overwhelming focus on the improvement of science teaching (conceptually and empirically) is at the K-12 levels. We strongly believe that many of the problems related to science instruction in K-12 levels should be a concern of those who teach science at the university level. That said, science teacher education is believed, by many, to be the root cause of many of the problems related to the quality of students’ learning of science.