The use of inquiry in the development of preservice teacher efficacy in Mathematics and Science (original) (raw)
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Preservice and practicing teachers’ self-efficacy for inquiry-based instruction
Cogent Education, 2016
This review synthesized what the research tells us about teachers' selfefficacy for the enactment of inquiry-based instruction in the classroom. We selected 33 empirical studies that met specific search criteria. Teachers with previous inquiry experiences, including the completion of inquiry-based methods courses in teacher-education and previous authentic investigations, were more disposed toward adopting an inquiry approach, even if they had limited experience in authentic inquiry-education settings. Number of years taught, the maximum degree held by the teacher, and prior educational and work experiences were not related to an inclination toward using inquiry in the classroom. In addition, success in teaching with inquiry depended on teachers' interpretations of the challenges associated with this pedagogy. Implications for research and practice are discussed.
2016
This review synthesized what the research tells us about teachers' selfefficacy for the enactment of inquiry-based instruction in the classroom. We selected 33 empirical studies that met specific search criteria. Teachers with previous inquiry experiences, including the completion of inquiry-based methods courses in teacher-education and previous authentic investigations, were more disposed toward adopting an inquiry approach, even if they had limited experience in authentic inquiry-education settings. Number of years taught, the maximum degree held by the teacher, and prior educational and work experiences were not related to an inclination toward using inquiry in the classroom. In addition, success in teaching with inquiry depended on teachers' interpretations of the challenges associated with this pedagogy. Implications for research and practice are discussed.
Journal of Turkish Science Education
The aim of this study was to examine the effectiveness of a guided inquiry method for science teaching on elementary pre-service teachers' self-efficacy beliefs. In the study a pretest/posttest one group research design was used. The study sample that consisted of 101 second year pre-service elementary teachers who are registered to a science laboratory course in the 2008 Spring semester. At the beginning of the study, the Elementary Science Teaching Efficacy Belief Instrument (STEBI) was completed by the participants. A 14-week science laboratory course was taken by the learners that was designed to use a guided inquiry teaching method with heavy reliance on the use of science process skills. At the end of the course the STEBI was again completed by the pre-service teachers. The data were analyzed by using paired sample t-test with the SPSS 16.00 program at the 0.01 significance level. Focus group interviews were also conducted with 10 groups of participants after they completed the course. Qualitative and quantitative findings indicated that levels of participants' efficacy expectations and outcome expectations on posttest scores were higher than the pretest scores. The paper also presents the effectiveness of a guided inquiry method to increase the sense of self-efficacy beliefs of pre-service teachers in science teaching.
This study describes the effects of an inquiry-focused, content-intensive professional development program on Pre-kindergarten-9 th grade teachers' science and mathematics knowledge, use of classroom based inquiry, improvement in their science teaching self-efficacy and other motivation constructs. This two-and-a-half-year program was designed to meet the needs of teachers in a local urban school district. The professional development in the form of a graduate program intentionally sought to emphasize science and mathematics content knowledge and inquiry teaching. Twenty experimental teacher-participants were involved in the program with twelve additional teachers as a control group. Data collection instruments used for this study included content testing, student test-scores, self-efficacy belief surveys, and behavioral scales. The results of the study indicated greater growth for program participants in the areas of science and mathematics content knowledge. The participants also showed greater increases in science teaching self-efficacy as compared to the teachers in the control group.
2010
In a mixed method study, teacher efficacy and contributing theoretical constructs of teacher concerns and teacher orientation with preservice teacher candidates were examined. Intermediate/Senior mathematics preservice teacher candidates from two major Ontario Universities' Faculties of Education participated in this study. Data sources included a webbased survey containing two teacher efficacy scales and short answer questions, interviews with the preservice teacher candidates, and Intermediate/Senior mathematics course and program information collected from course instructors. Complexity theory provides support for the mixed methods methodology and the integrated and complex nature of teacher efficacy and its contributing factors. The literature on teacher efficacy rarely ventures into the secondary school mathematics preservice teacher level of teacher professional development. The study more clearly identifies teacher efficacy with preservice mathematics teachers and how teacher efficacy relates to teacher concerns and teacher orientation. The findings deepen the understanding of the connections between the constructs of teacher efficacy, teacher concern, and teacher orientation. Following from these findings, changes and considerations for preservice teacher preparation programs in order to more fully prepare secondary school mathematics teachers are described.
Inquiry Skills and Problem Solving Efficacy and Performance of Pre-Service Mathematics Teachers
Volume 31, No. 1 (2019), 2021
Adequate acquisition and development of high-level cognitive skills is an integral component of teaching and learning. The study looks into inquiry skills in the context of mathematical investigation and problem solving efficacy and performance of 41 randomly selected pre-service mathematics teachers (PSTs) in two state universities in northern part of Panay Island using validated and pilot-tested researcher-made instruments. Statistical analyses were used to summarize the levels of performance and relate inquiry skills, problem solving efficacy and performance; and thematic analysis for difficulties and misconceptions of PSTs on mathematical inquiry and problem solving. The pre-service mathematics teachers have developing problem solving efficacy implying the need to reconcile their optimism in their ability to solve problems and their actual performance through relevant learning experience. As they are yet to attain the proficient level of skills in problem solving and mathematical inquiry, the development of their skills in these competencies may have been inadequate to effectively facilitate acquisition of learning, understanding and transfer of knowledge and skills among learners expected from future teachers. The ability of pre-service mathematics teachers to formulate mathematical concepts and principles operationally and prove these mathematical statements are not adequately developed as they have difficulties in exploring mathematical situations, employing appropriate reasoning in analyzing and abstracting patterns, and formulating generalizations. There are complementary associations between inquiry skills and problem solving performance such that the development of one implies the need to develop the other. Learning difficulties and misconceptions are attributed to inadequate development of fundamental skills necessary towards successful problem solving and mathematical investigation.
Making a Difference: Increasing Elementary Pre-Service Teachers' Self-Efficacy in Mathematics
Educational Planning, 2019
Institutions of Higher Education across the United States strive to improve the quality of teacher preparation programs. The institution where this study took place discovered an acute problem when preservice teachers were completing practicum-embedded mathematics coursework during a senior level practicum experience. Preservice teachers reported varying levels of selfefficacy in mathematics and self-efficacy in teaching mathematics, which presented significant challenges when working with elementary students in their field placements. The focus of this study was to investigate how teacher preparation programs can better prepare preservice teachers to teach mathematics in an elementary classroom. By more closely examining preservice teachers’ selfefficacy in mathematics and examining specific strategies for increasing self-efficacy in teaching mathematics, teacher preparation programs can be more informed and bolster self-efficacy of teaching candidates. Findings from this study sug...
The Examination of Inquiry-Based Teaching Self-Efficacy of Teachers within STEM+S Instruction
While STEM refers to an integrated teaching process involving the instruction of the disciplines of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, STEM+S is the inclusion of social sciences within the scope of the aforementioned integrated education. The key skill of the STEM+S instruction is the ability of the inquiry-based teaching. in other words, a teacher who provides training in line with STEM+S should primarily have the basic inquiry-based teaching skills. in this regard, the aim of the study is to investigate the teachers' inquiry-based teaching self-efficacy among the key skills of the STEM+S instruction in terms of certain variables. The present study with a quantitative design based on causal comparisons was conducted on 535 teachers. The overall evaluation of the fındings indicates that the teachers' inquiry-based teaching self-efficacy does not differ according to the gender, the source of graduation and professional seniority. Moreover, it is concluded that the inquiry-based teaching self-efficacy of the teachers working at public and primary schools and science teachers is found to be relatively higher.
Educational Studies in Mathematics, 2008
This paper focuses on efficacy beliefs with respect to teaching mathematics; it aims at testing and validating an existing scale for measuring efficacy beliefs in the domain of mathematics, examining the development of preservice teachers' efficacy beliefs in mathematics during fieldwork, and identifying factors that contribute to the development of these beliefs. Exploratory factor analysis applied to longitudinal data collected through a questionnaire administered to almost 90 preservice teachers elicited a two-factor model, reflecting efficacy beliefs in mathematics instruction and classroom management. Using cluster analysis, we found four patterns in the development of preservice teachers' efficacy beliefs regarding these two factors. Our analysis of semi-structured interviews with eight participants representing these four patterns suggested that preservice teachers' efficacy beliefs were mainly informed by experimentation with teaching and interaction with mentors, tutors, peers, and pupils. Based on our findings, we draw implications for mathematics preservice teacher education and provide suggestions for future research.
International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education, 2019
Formal teacher preparation programs are facing the challenge of ineffective instruction of educational theories. It is partly because educational theories are taught through direct instruction, which could lead to problems such as impersonality and low motivation of pre-service teachers. In addition, it is also an unwieldy task for teacher educators to cover meaningfully a tremendous amount of theories through direct instruction within a limited time. This study presents an innovative approach of Inquiry-based Pedagogical Instruction (IPI) as a possible solution. The IPI approach has two key features: explicit modeling and scaffolding. In this quasi-experimental study, I compare IPI and direct instruction in promoting preservice teachers' competence in terms of their knowledge associated with science teaching and their disposition in terms of their sense of belonging to science and science teaching. The participants are 39 preservice teachers in Phase 1 with 23 of them receiving IPI and the other 16 receiving direct instruction and 92 preservice teachers in Phase 2 with 42 receiving IPI and 50 receiving direct instruction. The results from two-way ANOVA and effect size analyses suggest that IPI is a promising alternative to direct instruction for the instruction of pedagogical knowledge. IPI has the potential to empower pre-service teachers with the competence and disposition with which they are capable and willing to construct their knowledge of teaching. Implications for future research are also discussed.