Science education in an urban elementary school: Case studies of teacher beliefs and classroom practices

Through a case study approach, the state of science education in an urban e lementary school was examined in detail. Observations made from the perspec tive of a science education specialist, an educational psychologist, and an expert elementary teacher were triangulated to provide a set of perspectiv es from which elementary science instruction could be examined. Findings re vealed that teachers were more poorly prepared than had been anticipated, b oth in terms of science content knowledge and instructional skills, but als o with respect to the quality of classroom pedagogical and management skill s. Particularly significant, from a science education perspective, was the inconsistency between how they perceived their teaching practice (a "hands- on," inquiry-based approach) and the investigator-observed expository natur e of the lessons. Lessons were typically expository in nature, with little higher-level interaction of significance. Implications for practice and the associated needs for staff development among urban elementary teachers is discussed within the context of these findings. (C) 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.