A framework and a research design proposal to identify preservice teachers’ integration performance of science and mathematics

• Autor(a) principal: Cavadas, Bento
• Data de Publicação: 2022
• Outros Autores: Rézio, Sofia, Nogueira, João Robert, Branco, Neusa Cristina Vicente
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
• Texto Completo: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.15/4401
• topic: framework; problem-based learning; initial teacher education; integration of science and mathematics; preservice teachers

Integration is an important, albeit difcult, goal of science and mathematics education. This paper presents a framework and a research design proposal to identify preservice teachers’ (PSTs) integration performance of science and mathematics (IPoSM). It also presents the classifcation of PSTs’ level of integration in each phase of a problem-based learning (PBL) activity, within the pro posed framework, and evidence of their work. The framework is organized in three levels of integration, based on current research, and detailed with specifc integration indicators about an exemplary PBL activity, named STEM Bees. This PBL activity was structured as a research problem divided into two integrated problems. A qualitative methodology was used, focused on the application of the framework to the work of PSTs in that PBL activity. The fnal participants were 13 PSTs, organized in four working groups. In general, results show that PSTs’ integration performance was higher with the second problem than with the frst problem. However, full integration with meaningful connections between science and mathematics ideas was achieved by almost all PST at the conclusion of the research problem. The IPoSM framework indicators proved to be useful for identifying the level of integration of science and mathematics in PSTs’ work in each phase of the PBL activity. Keeping the IPoSM framework in mind, teacher educators could elaborate more efective problem-based integrated approaches of science and mathematics in initial teacher education