The Instructional Leader's Guide to Implementing K-8 Science Practices

Rebecca Lowenhaupt, Katherine L. McNeill, Rebecca Katsh-Singer, Benjamin R. Lowell, Kevin Cherbow

• Verlag: ASCD
• Jahr: 2021
• ISBN:
  9781416630968
• Thema: Pedagogía
• Thema: Enseñanza de ciencia y tecnología

An accessible, engaging primer on the eight science practices at the heart of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), providing K–8 instructional leaders with the grounding they need to ensure excellent science instruction in every classroom.

The NGSS reconceptualize science instruction by redefining the teacher as someone who helps students construct their own knowledge by "thinking like scientists" and engaging in discrete science practices.

However, with STEM teachers in short supply and generalists often feeling underprepared to teach elementary and middle school science, what can instructional leaders do to ensure students get a strong start in this critical area and learn to love science?

Although a content-neutral approach to supervision—one that emphasizes general pedagogical features such as student engagement, cognitive load, or classroom management—is undoubtedly beneficial, the best instructional leaders know that content-specific approaches are necessary to achieve real excellence.

We therefore need to go deeper if we want to engage both teachers and students with the science practices. We need science-specific supervision. With that in mind, the authors provide vignettes and examples of the science practices in use, advice on observing science classrooms, concrete look-fors, and guidance on fostering ongoing teacher learning. They also offer a rich compendium of research- and evidence-based resources, including sample lessons, FAQs, and more than a dozen downloadable tools to facilitate classroom observation, feedback sessions, and professional development.

This is an essential guide for any K–8 instructional leader who wants to empower all teachers to provide all students with rich science experiences and develop the cognitive and noncognitive skills students will need to thrive in more advanced courses, work, and society.

---

Chapter 1

---

The Science Practices
A Primer

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ms. Chavez is a principal in an urban elementary school. Currently, her school is focused on disciplinary literacy, and she told her teachers she was interested in observing lessons in content areas such as science. Ms. Chavez observes a kindergarten classroom where the teacher, Ms. Brown, is introducing a new science unit. Ms. Brown says to her class, "We are starting a new unit on forces and motion. A force is a push or a pull. When you use a larger force, like a larger push, an object will go farther." She writes the definition of the word force on a piece of chart paper. Then she adds—and explains—two drawings to the paper: one with a person giving a big push to a ball rolling a far distance and a second with a person giving a small push to a ball rolling a short distance.

Ms. Brown then tells her students, "We are all going to do an experiment to see how this works—how larger forces make things, like a ball, move farther." She passes out a straw and ping-pong ball to each student and then holds up her same supplies. She puts the ping-pong ball on the floor and says she will blow as hard as she can in the straw to make the ball move. She explains she is using a large force and then counts the number of floor tiles the ball moved: five tiles. She then has all students try the experiment independently. After students complete the trial, she has them raise their hands according to how many tiles the ball moved. For example, she asks, "How many of you moved the ball five tiles? Raise your hand." She records on a second piece of chart paper that 11 students' balls moved five tiles. She continues recording responses for all students, gathering data from the entire class.

Then she repeats the demonstration by blowing through the straw softly. This time, her ball moves only one tile. After students complete the same experiment, she again asks them to raise their hands to show how many tiles the ball moved. At the end of the class, she returns to her original chart paper and reads the definition again: "A force is a push or a pull. When you use a larger force, like a larger push, an object will go farther." Finally, she asks one student to share how the experiment was similar to the two pictures posted of a person pushing a ball.

After the classroom observation, Ms. Chavez reflects on the science lesson. She is excited to see science in a kindergarten classroom because she knows it is important to engage kids with science at a really young age. She is also pleased that the lesson was hands-on and that Ms. Brown used both text and images to illustrate the science ideas in multiple modalities. However, Ms. Chavez feels like there was something missing from the lesson. She knows the new science standards in her state include a focus on the science practices, so she wonders if they were represented in Ms. Brown's lesson. And if so, which ones? During her observation, she also noticed that some students were quiet and did not appear interested in the experimental procedure. She wonders if there might be a different way to engage these students in group discussions and in "doing" the science.

In this chapter, we introduce the science practices. We begin by discussing recent shifts in science standards and describing the science practices. Next, we describe how grouping the science practices can serve as a tool to analyze curriculum and classroom instruction. We use concrete examples from K–8 science classrooms to illustrate these groups of science practices. At the end of the chapter, we offer practical tips and return to Ms. Chavez's concerns to discuss how to shift classroom instruction to align with the science practices.

Theorizing the Science Practices: Figuring Out the Natural World

What Are the Science Practices?

The science practices are the language, tools, ways of knowing, and social interactions that scientists (and students) use as they construct, evaluate, and communicate science ideas. This view of science as practice originally stemmed from the variety of activities in which scientists engage, including specialized ways of reasoning, talking, and making sense of the world around them (Lehrer & Schauble, 2006). Focusing on the science practices offers a different vision of classroom instruction—a vision that moves beyond "learning about" science (i.e., memorizing facts) to "figuring out" the natural world using these different ways of reasoning and communicating (Schwarz, Passmore, & Reiser, 2017).

Specifically, A Framework for K–12 Science Education (the Framework; National Research Council, 2012) and the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS; NGSS Lead States, 2013) include eight science practices (see Figure 1.1). Later in this chapter and throughout this book, we will include examples of each of these science practices to illustrate what they look like in classrooms. As a set, though, you can see that each practice includes actions or activities students should engage in as they build and use science ideas. This is a more student-directed and collaborative vision of science than some previous traditional approaches.

---

Figure 1.1. Eight Science Practices

1. Asking Questions
2. Developing and Using Models
3. Planning and Carrying Out Investigatioens
4. Analyzing and Interpreting Data
5. Using Mathematics and Computational Thinking
6. Constructing Explanations
7. Engaging in Argument from Evidence
8. Obtaining, Evaluating, and Communicating Information

---

Each science standard in the NGSS includes both a science practice and a disciplinary core idea (i.e., science idea) because the two work together synergistically as students make sense of the world around them. Science instruction should not focus on only one science idea (e.g., understanding that a force is a push or a pull or describing the characteristics of a scientific model); rather, it should include the science practice and science idea working together. For example, one of the 4th grade NGSS standards states, "Develop a model to describe that light reflecting from objects and entering the eye allows objects to be seen" (4-PS4-2). The science practice in this standard is the second one listed in Figure 1.1: Developing and Using Models. The disciplinary core idea—or science idea—focuses on light reflecting off a surface and entering an eye to see an object. A science classroom targeting this standard should have students develop their own models about how they see objects as they build stronger understandings of light reflecting and eyesight.

Figure 1.2 includes specific definitions for each of the eight science practices. It is important to note that a number of these practices align with the disciplinary practices in English Language Arts and Mathematics contained in the Common Core State Standards (Cheuk, 2013). For example, Engaging in Argument from Evidence is a practice that is found across the disciplines. Connecting and building on these commonalities in other disciplines can help teachers and students in this important work. However, it is also important to keep in mind differences across the disciplines. For example, what counts as evidence in a science argument (e.g., data from observations and measurements) is different from evidence in English language arts (e.g., a quote from a text). Another example is that Developing and Using Models in science focuses on a representation that predicts or explains the natural world, which is different from other disciplines where the word model can be used to refer to an exemplar or demonstration.

---

Figure 1.2. Definitions of the Eight Science Practices

Science Practice: Asking Questions

Definition: Scientific questions lead to explanations of how the natural world works and can be empirically tested using evidence.

* * *

Science Practice: Developing and Using Models

Definition: A model is an abstract representation of a phenomenon that is a tool used to predict or explain the natural world. Models can be represented as diagrams, 3D objects, mathematical representations, analogies, or computer simulations.

* * *

Science Practice: Planning and Carrying Out Investigations

Definition: An investigation is a systematic way to gather data (e.g., observations or measurements) about the natural world, either in the field or in a laboratory setting.

* * *

Science Practice: Analyzing and Interpreting Data

Definition: Analyzing and Interpreting Data includes making sense of the data produced during investigations. Because patterns are not always obvious, this includes using a range of tools such as tables, graphs, and other visualization techniques.

* * *

Science Practice: Using Mathematics and Computational Thinking

Definition: Mathematical and computational thinking involves using tools and mathematical concepts to address a scientific question.

* * *

Science Practice: Constructing Explanations

Definition: A scientific explanation is an explanatory account that articulates how or why a natural phenomenon occurs and how it is supported by evidence and scientific ideas.

* * *

Science Practice: Engaging in Argument from Evidence

Definition: Scientific argumentation is a process that occurs when there are multiple ideas or claims (e.g., explanations, models) to discuss and reconcile. An argument includes constructing a claim supported by evidence and reasoning as well as evaluating and critiquing competing claims.

* * *

Science Practice: Obtaining, Evaluating, and Communicating Information

Definition: Obtaining, evaluating, and communicating information occur through reading and writing texts as well as communicating orally. Scientific information needs to be critically evaluated and persuasively communicated as it supports engagement in the other science practices.

---

Two of the science practices include distinct language in relation to engineering, which we did not include in our definitions in Figure 1.2. Practice 1 includes "defining problems," and Practice 6 includes "designing solutions." These practices ask students to learn about not only the natural world but also the humanmade or engineered world around them. These engineering practices highlight the type of work that engineers do as they try to solve problems (Cunningham, 2017). These engineering practices are related to the science practices, but they also include some distinct features and are not the focus of this book. If you're interested, there are other curricula (Engineering Is Elementary, 2011) and resources (Cunningham, 2017) focused on the distinct aspects of engineering and the designed world.

Science Practices and Equity

Including the science practices in classroom instruction can support an equity vision of science instruction in which each student is known, heard, and supported with access and opportunities for learning. Realizing the potential of the emphasis on science practices in recent standards "is particularly important in relation to students of color, students who speak first languages other than English, and students from low-income communities who, despite numerous waves of reform, have had limited access to high-quality, meaningful opportunities to learn in science" (Bang, Brown, Calabrese Barton, Rosebery, & Warren, 2017, p. 33). To support all students in science, we need to move away from traditional science instruction, which does not adequately address equity issues.

An emphasis on science practices can expand the sensemaking practices typically valued in classrooms as well as leverage the resources and interests students bring to their science classrooms. Research has shown that students from historically underserved communities can experience science class as disconnected from their lives and experiences (Bang et al., 2017). In a classroom focused on the science practices, instruction begins with students asking questions and investigating phenomena; it does not start with preteaching vocabulary or following prescribed steps in a science procedure. Furthermore, it engages students in a rich repertoire of practices such as arguing from evidence, constructing models, and communicating ideas. This opens more opportunities for students. As the Framework argues, "The actual doing of science or engineering can also pique students' curiosity, capture their interest, and motivate their continued study" (National Research Council, 2012, p. 42). Students can see science as a practice in which they have an opportunity to engage rather than as a set of predetermined facts or procedures they have to follow.

This work can start with students' direct experiences and empower them to use their own language and voice as they make sense of the world around them (Brown, 2019). As we discuss throughout this book, science begins with students asking questions about the natural world and the phenomena they experience in their science classrooms. By starting with this shared experience and with students' own questions, all students can feel more connected to and interested in science. In addition, when teachers attend to what students say and do in these spaces, they can build stronger relationships with their students (Bang et al., 2017). This focus on science practices can support the creation of more equitable and culturally responsive classroom environments in which more students see themselves as "science people" and build rich science ideas about the natural world. Consequently, a focus on the science practices supports more equitable classroom instruction.

Grouping the Science Practices into Investigating, Sensemaking, and Critiquing

At first, eight distinct practices can feel overwhelming, but they are not independent. Rather, they overlap and work together to support a new vision of science instruction in which students actively figure out the world around them (Bell, Bricker, Tzou, Lee, & Van Horne, 2012). To highlight this overlap and offer an entry point into the science practices, we cluster the practices into three groups. Figure 1.3 illustrates these groups of science practices and how they work together to support scientific sensemaking (McNeill, Katsh-Singer, & Pelletier, 2015).

---

Figure 1.3. Three Groups of Science Practices: Investigating, Sensemaking, and Critiquing

---

In Figure 1.3, we see that the overarching goal of science is to make sense of the natural world. Scientists and students do this by engaging in investigating practices, which result in the collection of data (i.e., observations or measurements). After collecting the data, they then engage in sensemaking practices, which result in the development of explanations or mode...