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Introduction
The
Fresno Unified Core Science Program provides
all students in K-12 schools with a set of clear and rigorous
expectations. The Core Science Program is delivered through
the Science K-12 Courses of Study
and focus on what all Fresno Unified students need to know
and be able to do for scientific literate citizenship, regardless
of age, gender, cultural or ethnic background, disabilities
or aspirations in science. The FUSD Science Courses of Study
also include expectations for all Fresno students to safely
and effectively use technological tools for learning and
doing science.
The
California
Science Content Standards for K-12 Public Schools:
- Identify
essential expectations for students: concepts, principles,
theories, and understanding how science is done. The
science standards describe broad areas of content such
as the interdependence of organisms, the interactions
of matter and energy, objects in the sky, and the nature
of scientific knowledge.
- Serve
as the basis of statewide student assessments (STAR),
the science curriculum framework, and the evaluation
of instructional materials.
- Provide
for teaching and learning opportunities that include
accurate and technically precise science information,
scientific inquiry, technological design, communication
and understanding of science concepts, analysis of data,
and application of concepts.
Students'
success in meeting the expectations of the standards depends
on teaching and learning as an active inquiry process. This
means that all teachers need the opportunity to teach science
as something in which students are actively engaged.
When participating in inquiry, students describe objects
and events, ask questions, construct explanations, test
those explanations against current scientific knowledge,
and communicate their ideas to others. This includes engaging
all students' thinking with relevant, real-world activities
that extend students' thinking and communication skills,
and develop students' science process skills.
Teaching
and Learning
The
National Research Council (1999) in How People Learn
has recommended a framework to help guide the design
and evaluation of environments that can optimize learning.
(National Research Council, 1999, p.19). The framework
identifies four interrelated attributes of learning environments
that need cultivation:
- Schools
and classrooms must be learner centered. This
incorporates prior knowledge, cultural differences,
and students' own theories about intelligence and learning
(p. 19-20).
- Attention
must be given to what is taught, why it is taught, and
what mastery looks like. Many curricula fail
to support learning with understanding that knowledge-centered
environments emphasize (p. 21).
- Formative
assessments designed to provide evidence of learning
are essential. Assessments must be learner friendly
and provide the student with opportunities to revise
and improve their thinking over a period of time (p.
22).
- Learning
is influenced in fundamental ways by the context in
which it takes place. Teachers must design classroom
activities and help students organize their work in
ways that will build a community of learners.
Teachers must also be able to create a community of
learners among themselves (p. 22).
The
Role of Technology
The
use of technology in schools and classrooms will create
new opportunities for curriculum and instruction by bringing
real-world problems into the classroom. Peck and
Dorricott (1994), listed ten reasons for using technology:
- Students learn
and develop at different rates.
- Graduates must
be proficient at accessing, evaluating, and communicating
information.
- Technology can
foster an increase in the quantity and quality of students'
thinking and writing.
- Technology can
nurture artistic expression.
- Graduates must
be globally aware and able to use resources that exist
outside the school.
- Technology creates
opportunities for students to do meaningful work.
- All students
need access to high level and high-interest courses.
- Graduates must
solve complex problems.
- Students must
feel comfortable with the tools of the Information Age.
- Schools must
increase their productivity and efficiency (p. 53).
Science
leaders must keep informed about changes in technology and
its trends. Rapid changes in communications technology
can redefine what the classroom looks like. Technology
can also be a powerful pedagogical tool for human interaction
that supports learning (National Research Council, 1999;
Posner, 1995).
In
an effort to establish a consistent content for technology
education in schools, the International
Technology Education Association (ITEA) has created
the Standards for Technological Literacy: Content for
the Study of Technology . The standards
and associated benchmarks created present a vision of what
students should know and be able to do in order to be technologically
literate. The intent of the publication is to influence
what happens in every K-12 classroom in America through
the development of new curricula, textbooks, and student
assessments (International Technology Education Association,
2000).
Scope
and Sequence
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