ERIC Number: EJ1381873
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2023
Pages: 8
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0036-8148
EISSN: EISSN-1943-4812
Available Date: N/A
Learning to Teach with Science Representations
Park Rogers, Meredith; Hmelo-Silver, Cindy; Nicholas, Celeste; Francis, Dionne Cross; Danish, Joshua
Science and Children, v60 n3 p60-67 Jan-Feb 2023
Representation in science is anything that stands for something else--drawings, pictures, graphs, or other representational forms (Danish et al. 2020). Representations serve as public displays of phenomena that make aspects of those phenomena explicit (Gilbert 2008). They can serve to make the invisible visible, communicate ideas, display relationships, and explain mechanisms (NRC 2012). However, representational practices may be challenging for learners, including teachers as learners. For example, a drawing that closely resembles an object may be easy to understand, whereas a more abstract representation such as a graph or equation might be more difficult (Gilbert 2008). Therefore, to support learners in using representations, teachers need to consider what concepts students will learn and what activities students will do when choosing representations to support learning science. In this article the authors describe a project they are working on to address these needs.
Descriptors: Science Instruction, Teaching Methods, Visual Aids, Freehand Drawing, Graphs, Scientific Concepts, Concept Formation, Learning Processes, Learning Activities, Faculty Development, Elementary School Teachers, Grade 1, Grade 3, Units of Study, Standards
National Science Teaching Association. 1840 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA 22201-3000. Tel: 800-722-6782; Fax: 703-243-3924; e-mail: membership@nsta.org; Web site: https://www.nsta.org/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Elementary Education; Early Childhood Education; Grade 1; Primary Education; Grade 3
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A