Reflective jOURNAL: Revisiting Good Science Teaching

What Makes for Good Science Teaching? – Revisited

At the beginning of this class, you wrote about a previous science experience in which you witnessed what you considered to be good science teaching. Go back to tHAT FIRST REFLECTION AND READ It now with all of the knowledge you have gained in this class; can you identify specific science teaching strategies that you learned about in this class? Consider the following experiences from this semester in addition to our readings and in-class work:

What strategies did we use in class throughout the semester that reflect good science teaching?

What strategies did you use in your Mini Teach that reflect good science teaching?

1
Reflective Journal 1- Good Science Teaching
My most enjoyable science class was in grade 8. Our science instructor gave us an
activity to identify and describe the effect of contact and non-contact forces on moving objects.
Contact force is a force that acts amid two surfaces in touch, while non-contact force acts
between two surfaces apart. Some examples of contact forces we learned in class include surface
tension, friction, and applied force, among others. Some examples of non-contact forces are
gravitational force, electrostatics fore, magnetic force, and nuclear force.
Our instructor gave us several specific tasks to carry out to be able to complete the
activity. He provided us with the questions and procedure for the activity, and our work was to
come up with an explanation reinforced by our collected proof. For contact force, the activities
were throwing a football in the sky, stretching a string from its resting position, paragliding, and
bungee jumping. After throwing the football, it flew in the sky and reached the ground. We
observed two types of forces. The first one was under the effect of our kick contact force; it
made a vertical motion and then executed a projectile motion. Then, under friction or air
resistance, the ball slowed down and finally came to rest on the ground. When we stretched the
spring from its resting position, it started oscillating from its central place. After some time, the
spring returned to its original position under the restoring effect force.
For non-contact forces tasks, we observed how iron pins got attracted to a magnetic bar
without any physical contact due to magnetic force. We also observed gravitational force through
the falling down of an apple from a tree, raindrops falling on the earth, and leaves from the tree.
To my surprise, I also observed that when a ruler is rubbed in hair, it gets charged as it attracts
paper bits because of electrostatics.
The instructor made the activity memorable in many ways. The activity was in the form
of a game. We were divided into groups of five. The group that came up with the best
explanation and evidence became the winner. Also, the instructor would take the top three
winning group members on a science trip. This made the activity fun as every group tried to win.
The inquiry element used in this activity was an investigation, conclusion, and discussion. The
elements of 5E learning present in this activity were exploring, explaining, and elaborating. We
explored the new concept of scientific experimentation and group communications to make
observations. We also shared with our teacher what we had during the exploration phase. Our
teacher also utilized videos on contact and non-contact force to increase our understanding.
Moreover, our teacher also asked us to conduct additional investigations to emphasize novel
skills.
Our instructor employed increased praise statements to recognize appropriate conduct
during the activity as a way of interacting with us. He also practices active supervision of all of
us by encouraging us to be serious with the activity. Moreover, he responded positively to our
academic and emotional needs during the activity. I also interacted with my fellow students by
talking to them about my idea about our activities. Besides, I participated with other students,
particularly my group members, in coming up with appropriate explanations for the activities.
The instructor supported our learning by asking us to engage in our learning by
investigating, thinking, and discussing. He also encouraged us to propose solutions to our
activities and explain our ideas in our own words through discussion. Furthermore, he provided
us with timely feedback from the investigations and explanations of our activities.