In this episode of the wonderful Progressively Incorrect podcast, I experienced the satisfaction of interviewing Jo Castelino, a secondary faculty science instructor dependent in West Yorkshire in the Uk, and a single of my absolute favored bloggers about the art and science of excellent science instructing.
When I was schooling to be a trainer, science was explained to me as the a person matter that must under no circumstances be taught explicitly. Sure, phonics and math info need to possibly be taught straight, as extensive as it does not destroy students’ all-natural curiosity for discovering, but science was viewed as some thing unique. In science, students should be allowed to inquire and discover new concepts, relatively than getting a teacher educate it to them. After all, discovery is what serious experts do To feel like a scientist is not to discover information, but to produce it. So, instead of demonstrating learners what the wonderful researchers of the previous had been capable to find out, science class should really be targeted on owning students uncover very well-recognized points for by themselves by way of experiments and palms-on functions. I recall distinctly a relatively foolish lesson on science pedagogy throughout my Master’s when we had been requested to bake cookies in accordance to a recipe. Later on, we have been to share our cookies with the class and marvel at how, even although we had all employed the exact very same components, each individual batch of cookies diverse a bit in overall look and flavor from one a further. It was intended to be the “hook” that would get college students wondering about DNA, but all I could consider about, as an grownup learner with considerably far more self-handle than the normal kid, was when are we heading to consume these cookies and how are we likely to scrounge up ample containers to get the leftovers residence just after the lesson.
There are only a handful of weblogs that I read through religiously, and a person of these is Jo Castelino’s web site at drcastelino.wordpress.com. Alternatively than encouraging teachers to take care of pupils like “miniature scientists”, Jo writes weblogs about how to break down the trickiest science principles into easily digestible chunks and how to embed retrieval apply and cautiously structured routines into science classes. Even if you are like me and have never taught secondary science, her information on how to use mini-whiteboards and scaffold arms-on functions, and how to get little ones to do their homework are specified to have an influence on your teaching. So, without more ado, remember to appreciate this job interview with Dr. Jo Castelino.
Dr. Jo’s weblog: https://drcastelino.wordpress.com/
Dr. Jo’s encouraged group and source for training science: https://cogscisci.wordpress.com/
Dr. Jo’s research content:
Castelino, J. (2021). Encouraging Self-Controlled Finding out Through Helpful Research. Study Educational institutions Community. Offered at: https://researchschool.org.british isles/news/encouraging-self-regulated-studying-by-successful-homework
Castelino, J. (2022). Homework as a motivator for studying. Impact. Out there at: https://my.chartered.school/affect_article/research-as-a-motivator-for-mastering/