Another issue I have with science classes is the amount of excuses teachers give for not conducting labs. You do not have to have lab tables, or tables period. You can do labs on the floor, outside, and at desks. I have done so for ten years and my students have benefited from the experience. In fact, the high school biology teacher told me she can always tell when a student has had me for science in middle school. What a compliment! She can tell because my students know how to function in a lab setting.
Teachers have to be willing to go the extra mile to teach science. If they don't have the equipment, then do science with household items. I have done a variety of labs using paper plates, milk, cornstarch, pepper, marbles, and so on. I have bought many items at the local dollar store. When I needed safety goggles, I found them there too. When I wanted to teach a principle and needed a demo, I went to the internet to find an idea.
Years ago, I asked some seventh grade teachers how they conducted science labs in their classrooms. They told me they couldn't conduct labs because their students misbehaved too much. This saddened me because it sounds like the stduents are in control of the classroom rather than the teacher.
I had to change their thinking. Three years ago I was accepted into a grant program at a state university. It was there that I first learned about performance based assessments. For the last three years, I have taken what I have learned and taught it to my science teachers, as well as other teachers, in professional development workshops. I want then to understand how performance based assessments work. I also plan to share with them simple activities to go with our state frameworks. I would also like to share with the upper elementary teachers tips on how to improve science content in the classroom. Improving science in my school district can be done. We just need a willing body and that's me.
