High Quality Science Instruction

When I read the assignment for this week’s blog post, it occurred to me that it is a very
difficult challenge to ensure that all of the students at my school, let alone my district, are experiencing high-quality science instruction. I have over 100 students with a wide variety
of background knowledge, motivation, and abilities that I work very hard to teach every day. Providing hands-on, inquiry-based science lessons is something that I strive for; however, not all
science teachers share the same goal.

An example of this discrepancy is the science department at my son’s middle school. His science teacher is animated, passionate about the subject, and is constantly having the students participate in labs, experiments, and investigations. His friend is in a different science class; this teacher has done one (yes, one) experiment all year and teaches completely out of the textbook. Read, answer questions, take a test,repeat. Her students are bored out of their minds and are learning to dislike science. This is such a travesty to me since science lends itself to fun and exciting activities, more than any other subject (in my humble opinion).

In addition to the variation in teacher achievement, the district itself can present obstacles to
quality science instruction. We are due for a new textbook adoption; in fact, I was part of the team of teachers who piloted three different programs several years ago in anticipation of adopting a new curriculum. Unfortunately, because of the budget cuts, we have not been able to follow through with getting new textbooks and materials. At this point, our hands are tied simply because of monetary concerns, and we continue to use the outdated curriculum.

I try to overcome these obstacles by supplementing the curriculum with up-to-date information that I find online or through collaboration with my colleagues. I also try to use STEM-based lessons and encourage my students to explore STEM careers. Hopefully, once they get into high
school they will have a solid foundation in science, as well as a passion for active learning.