The teaching program using instructional coaching

Trial of coaching science

Instructional coaching had been embedded successfully in the school culture for the facilitation of professional development. As part of the school’s Annual Implementation Plan, a commitment to implementing instructional coaching for improving the teaching of literacy and numeracy had been implemented by resourcing time to release teachers for reflection with the coach and for other teachers to observe their teaching. The successful culture of coaching in the school has supported the researcher, who is also a staff member at the school, to expand coaching beyond the existing literacy and numeracy coaching

program. During the final school term of 2013 the researcher implemented a trial of coaching in Science.

With the Principal’s approval, the instructional coaching was offered to the year- 4 and year-5 teachers prior to Stella volunteering for this study. The teacher volunteered, in consultation with the Principal, as a subject who identified herself as having an interest in teaching Science and also an interest in coaching. Given that one of the goals of instructional coaching is to enable teachers to implement instructional practices that respond directly to teachers’ burning issues (Knight, 2009), it was important for Stella to be a willing and enthusiastic participant with a desire to develop her capabilities teaching Science.

Teaching science inquiry skills using GRR

The topic was a Primary Connections (Australian Academy of Science, 2012) life and living unit on plants. The purpose of this study was to develop

innovative learning activities designed in accordance with the framework for GRR (Fisher & Frey, 2008) to explicitly teach the Science Inquiry Skills identified as being important for learning in Section 2.1.6, through the four categories of scientific literacy distilled from the literature.

of explicit teaching episodes in the GRR and provided a framework for collecting evidence of the teacher’s Science pedagogy as well as students’ learning outcomes.

Table 3.3

Elaboration of Science Inquiry Skills for teaching in the GRR

Science Inquiry Skills Evidence of learning

What I’m Looking For (WILF) Questioning

Students: Ask and answer questions

How you ask and answer questions to:  Expand your knowledge

 Seek solutions  Clarify information Investigating

Students: Conduct

experiments using fair testing procedures

How you make the test fair test by:  Cows – change one thing

 Moo – measure or observe something  Softly – keep everything else the same Observing

Students: Make and record observations

How you:

 Use your senses to observe and gather information accurately

 Accurately represent observations Measuring

Students: Make accurate scientific measurements

How you make:

Accurate scientific measurements

Data analysis and interpretation

Students: Analyse and record data

How you:

 Look for patterns and relationships in the data  Use scientific language to explain possible

reasons for data

 Compare data with your prediction Communicating

Students: Communicate scientifically

How you:

 Use scientific vocabulary to communicate understandings

 Use a concept map to organise thinking

As explained previously a trial of instructional coaching in Science has laid the foundation for the study. Resources that were developed by the researcher and used in the trial to support the implementation of the GRR framework included: lesson development; digital resources, (i.e., PowerPoint presentations for

lessons, Ed Studio); professional development resources; posters; student worksheets.

Table 3.4 illustrates the way in which Science Inquiry Skills became a focus for teaching in each lesson. By identifying the learning outcomes (WALT: We are learning to) and strategically planning the sequence of learning in each lesson prior to implementation, Stella determined which Science Inquiry Skills were required for students to engage in the science inquiry process as well as the best possible placement within the Life and Living science unit for teaching each skill.

Table 3.4

Elaboration of Science Inquiry Skills taught in the life and living unit

Year-4 Science Unit Lesson 1 SIS Focus WALT:

What goes where? Observing

ENGAGE

• BIG IDEA – ‘How Does Time Affect Me?’ • recall the basic needs of living things.

• represent stages in the life cycle of flowering plants • label parts of a plant: root, stem, leaves, flowers,

fruit.

• discuss ideas and questions for a TWLH chart • create a list of words that relate to plants and

animals Lesson 2 SIS Focus WALT:

What’s in a seed? Questioning

EXPLORE

• What have we learnt so far? Review TWHL Chart • Using the skill of Questioning to discover what we

know about seeds

• Use ‘We Do’ strategy to record observations of a dry bean seed

• Use ‘You Do’ strategy to record observations of a soaked bean seed

• label a diagram of the inside of a bean • Update TWLH Chart

• Review word wall Lesson 3 SIS Focus WALT:

Bean seed germination Observing and Questioning

• BIG IDEA – ‘How Does Time Affect Me?’ • explore packaged bean seeds

EXPLORE

• work in teams to prepare bean seeds

• make ongoing observations and recordings of bean seed germination

• Review TWHL chart Lesson 4 SIS Focus WALT:

Observing, Investigating and Communicating

EXPLORE

• Review TWHL chart • Review Observation skills

• Make observations of bean seed growth • Review Investigation Procedures

• Review Communication skills • Review word wall

Lesson 5 SIS Focus WALT: Making sense of

communicating in science

EXPLAIN

• Review Communicating in Science • Making Observations

• How does sunlight affect plant growth? • How do soil types affect plant growth? • How does temperature affect plant growth? • Review TWHL chart

• Review Word Wall

Lessons 6 & 7 SIS Focus WALT: Measuring in science

ELABORATE

• Review measuring in science

• Review ways of recording measurements • Fair testing and measuring

• Make and record measurements • Review TWHL chart

• Review word wall

Lesson 8 SIS Focus WALT: Analysing data in science

EVALUATE

• Review investigation

• Discuss results of investigation from each group • Consider ways of analysing data in science • Record in science journals

• Review TWHL chart