Enhancing primary science: an exploration of teachers' own ideas of solutions to challenges in inquiry- and context-based teaching

Studies of inquiry- and context-based science education (IC-BaSE) have shown that teachers find these approaches problematic. In this study, 12 primary school teachers' reflections on challenges related to IC-BaSE are explored. The aim of the study was to investigate which challenges primary te...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Education 3-13 2016-01, Vol.44 (1), p.81-92
Main Authors: Walan, Susanne, Mc Ewen, Birgitta, Gericke, Niklas
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Class Size
Content Analysis
Education
Elementary School Teachers
Faculty Development
Foreign Countries
Group Discussion
Inquiry
Inquiry method
Inquiry-and context-based education
Instructional Materials
Large Group Instruction
Pedagogical Content Knowledge
Pedagogik
Portfolios (Background Materials)
practical challenges
primary school
Problem solving
Professional Autonomy
Program Descriptions
Science education
Science Instruction
solutions
Sweden
Teacher Attitudes
Teaching Methods
Time Management
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Summary:Studies of inquiry- and context-based science education (IC-BaSE) have shown that teachers find these approaches problematic. In this study, 12 primary school teachers' reflections on challenges related to IC-BaSE are explored. The aim of the study was to investigate which challenges primary teachers experience when working with IC-BaSE and how these may be solved. Group discussions and individual portfolios were used for data collection. Content analysis showed that the challenges teachers experienced were mainly practical relating to: how to find contexts, lack of time, handling big classes, students working at different paces, handling materials, and the teachers' need of control. The teachers also presented their own ideas of solutions to the challenges.
ISSN:0300-4279
1475-7575
1475-7575
DOI:10.1080/03004279.2015.1092456