New Perspectives in Science Education

This paper is based on a case study of a large science department in a middle class, academic Irish school. It explores the processes, challenges and perceptions that combine to influence a science teacher’s selection of pedagogical approach to science teaching. This study was conducted using a multi-methods approach which incorporated focus group and one to one interviews alongside open ended questionnaires. This study specifically examines the factors highlighted by the participants as being pivotal to their willingness to shift from a didactic whole class approach to a cooperative learning approach, in order to facilitate greater opportunities for inquiry based learning and skill development. The findings highlight that a teacher’s sense of identity, core values and beliefs are significant determinants to whether change to existing practice is welcomed or feared. A number of issues impacted on the teachers’ willingness to shift from a predominantly didactic approach. These factors included finding time to attend appropriate continuous professional development (CPD), inadequate resources to teach groups through inquiry, workload, age and constraints of a content driven examination system.

In addition, the policy requirements issued from state bodies requiring teachers to adopt a range of diverse teaching approaches are not perceived as impactful. Teachers perceived irregular ‘snapshot’ inspections as being an insignificant influence on their pedagogy and valued their practitioner pedagogical autonomy as an accepted norm in Irish science classrooms. With the emergence of significant curricular reform at Junior Cycle level in Ireland and with science being the next subject to be implemented as a skills driven, student led specification, the issue of teachers’ use of effective pedagogical approaches to teaching, learning and assessment is more urgent than ever. Yet, industrial relations issues and teacher reluctance to engage with this reform has meant a delay in implementation of the new science specification.

Recommendations emerging from this research may illuminate a way forward by generating discussion in response to the challenges raised in this study. These recommendations include the need for greater collaboration within subject departments and the support of school management in supporting and facilitating change. Time to meet and share resources and ideas alongside access to effective CPD that continues on return to school were highlighted. Additionally, the forging of greater links with third level institutions and other schools were cited as potentially positive supports to changing pedagogical practice. The reform of Junior Cycle Science in Ireland offers great opportunities for science education but only if policy and practice can merge to accommodate teachers’ fears and needs, alongside the state’s management of such change and reform. This paper, despite being contextualised to the Irish context, has policy and pedagogical change management relevance for teachers, teacher educators and policy makers.