ELEM 5860 - Teaching and Assessment of Science

Credit Hours: 3

This course provides teacher candidates at the graduate level opportunities to acquire the science education knowledge, skills and dispositions expected of beginning early childhood teachers in self-contained classrooms. The course provides an overview of the nature of science, scientific inquiry and focuses on science process skill teaching strategies. Candidates learn and practice science teaching skills such as: creating a classroom environment conducive to scientific inquiry, designing science instruction, assessing student attainment of academic standards, and using the local community as a location and topic of classroom science instruction. The course assignments introduce students to the professional community of science education professionals and resources. Teacher candidates participate in university classroom and field experiences that provide them with the knowledge, pedagogy, and dispositions needed to teach in a variety of educational contexts.