AN INSERVICE MODEL TO IMPACT LIFE-SCIENCE CLASSROOM PRACTICE .2.

This model for an inservice program describes why teachers change the nature of their students' experiences in science. In the evaluation st udy with 7th grade Life Science teachers in Southeast, evidence showed that as teachers' knowledge in specific topics in biology was enhance d, their classroom use of this knowledge also changed. As their knowle dge of science and alternative teaching practices was expanded, their attitudes toward teaching showed that they were more aware that there was more to learn but were also more confident that they could acquire the new knowledge they needed. In their classroom, their concerns for students showed significant shifts toward involving students more in their learning rather than being most concerned about managing or cont rolling them. This was especially true if there was an institutional w illingness for them to use different teaching strategies. Thus based o n this evaluation study, teachers are more likely to change if the cha nges are consistent with the external demands of their schooling conte xt; and their internal belief systems.