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Ambitious Science Teaching
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Adult Education reviewed by Tara O’Neill & Kirsten Mawyer —
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Counseling Title: Ambitious Science Related Articles
Curriculum Teaching Students, In Print
Diversity Author(s): Mark Windschitl, Classrooms,
Jessica Thompson, & Teachers, and
Early Childhood Education
Melissa Braaten Schools: Competing
Higher Education Publisher: Harvard Effects on Science
International Education Education Press, Boston Achievement
Learning ISBN: 1682531627, Pages: Whiteness as
Policy 312, Year: 2018 Property in Science
Research Methods Search for book at Amazon.com Teacher Education
Teacher Education A Technology-
Enhanced
Teaching
Ambitious Science Teaching by Mark Windschitl, Intervention for Self-
Technology Regulated Learning
Jessica Thompson, and Melissa Braaten presents This Month's Issue
Intersections in Science
K-12 science educators with practical ideas and Back Issues:
tools for effective and meaningful science Who Wants to Learn
Discussion More Science? The 2018
instruction. The authors introduce a framework
Technology - Good for for Ambitious Science Teaching, grounded in Role of Elementary
Students AND Teachers extensive educational research and tested in a School Science
Fiddling with Indicators variety of classrooms over several years, that Experiences and
while using Toxic Tests when used consistently in the classroom will Science Self-
Ode to Dewey help “students of all backgrounds to deeply Perceptions
Clearly Articulated understand fundamental science ideas,
Proposal--Thank You! participate in the practices of science, solve
VAM Sham BAM authentic problems together, and learn how to Related Discussion
continue learning on their own” (p. 3). However,  
more >> it is important to note that this book is not Post a Comment | Read
Announcements designed for “plug and chug” implementation. All
TESOL Journal Special Issue The authors’ make clear that educators are
2019_Call for Proposals meant to engage with this text as a handbook of About the Author
Call for book chapter tools, ideas, and strategies to be modified as Tara O’Neill
proposal: Diverse Leadership best fits the specific teaching and learning University of Hawaii
Landscapes, Exploring the context rather than as a strict manual to be at Manoa
Terrain utilized in exactly the same way across all E-mail Author
Call for Manuscripts contexts. Moreover, they note that the TARA O’NEILL is a
CALL FOR PAPERS implementation of Ambitious Science Teaching professor of science
IMMIGRATION, BEING practices is an iterative process with significant and STEMS^2
IMMIGRANT OR REFUGEE IN opportunities to be enhanced over time. education at the
THE CONTEXT OF EDUCATION   University of Hawaii -
POLICIES IN THE WORLD- IJEP Ambitious Science Teaching provides Manoa. She is the
2018 ISSUES wonderfully coherent and accessible pathways designer and Director
Call for Papers- for meeting current science teaching of the STEMS^2
International Journal of expectations by framing the act of science (Science, Technology,
Management, Economics and teaching around four core practices: (1) planning Engineering,
Social Sciences for engagement with big science ideas, (2) Mathematics, Social
eliciting students’ ideas, (3) supporting ongoing Sciences and Sense of
make a post | more >> changes in thinking, and (4) drawing together Place) masters
evidence-based explanations. The concentration and the
implementation of each practice is explained in past Director of the
thoughtful detail with the use of a diverse Institute for Teacher
selection of classroom-based vignettes and Education - Secondary
narrative. The result is a clearly articulated program. Her scholarly

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vision for what teachers can do in the classroom activities focus around
to recenter student thinking in their practice, three primary areas:
along with practice tools and strategies that (1) science identity
educators can leverage to make this vision their development of
own. While individual context is emphasized, middle school girls
the volume and its approach offer a common from non-dominate
language for engaging with and talking about backgrounds; (2) the
teaching practice in collaborative settings. role of place-based
  education in building
The four-part iterative Ambitious Science culturally integrated
Teaching framework, along with comprehensive STEMS^2 learning
conceptual and practical planning tools, face-to- experiences; and (3)
face tools, and scaffolding tools, has been effective professional
publicly available online for a number of years development models
(https://ambitiousscienceteaching.org/). We for science and
have been using these resources in our STEMS^2 educators
secondary preservice science teacher that integrate
preparation coursework and field-based indigenous, ancestral,
experiences for the last three years. As such, and Western
when provided an opportunity to review a book knowledge, skills, and
version of the web-based text, we were excited practices. Dr. O'Neill
and curious, and we wondered, what could this current serves as the
book provide us that the online resources do not PI of an NSF Noyce
already provide? As science teacher educators grant focused on
familiar with the framework, we found building pathways to
particularly useful the book’s sequencing of the STEM Education. She
core practices, explanations of types of tasks has published on
and activities that engage students in sense- science and STEM
making, and the integration of the various tools. education in multiple
  journals, including the
The book begins by outlining conditions for American Education
instruction that support ambitious science Research Journal,
teaching and briefly touches on the importance Journal of Research in
of being mindful of equity issues in the practice Science Teaching, and
of science instruction. Notions of issues related Equity and Excellence
to equity and access are woven throughout in Education.
chapters and sections with a particular attention Kirsten Mawyer
to English Language Learning (ELL) students and University of Hawaii
their ability to participate in various forms of at Manoa
science discourse, especially “science talk.” E-mail Author
Another focus is on valuing the ideas, prior KIRSTEN MAWYER is an
experiences, and funds of knowledge that assistant professor of
students bring to the classroom. The authors science education in
argue that these can be an entry point for all the Institute for
students, especially students who have been Teacher Education at
traditionally marginalized, to engage in the University of
meaningful science discourse. Hawaii - Manoa. She is
the designer and
The authors clearly value equity-minded instructor of the
education, and seek to support space for all secondary science
learners. It is important to note, however, that methods and practical
the end goal of the Ambitious Science Teaching courses. Dr. Mawyer’s
process is built from a Western framework of scholarly activities
what knowledge counts and whose knowledge focused around four
matters. When using the Ambitious Science main areas: (1)
Teaching framework, there is not necessarily preservice science
one right answer, and students can come up teacher education, (2)
with their own arguments so long as they are literacy in the context
supported by evidence. However, while there of science, (3) teacher
are many ways to express understanding of a professional
science phenomenon within the Ambitious development in
Science Teaching framework, ultimately science, and (4)
students are guided to develop evidence-based teacher thinking and
explanations firmly situated in the dominant learning. Currently,
Western science culture. That said, non-Western Dr. Mawyer serves as
and/or non-traditional perspectives are the co-PI of an NSF
welcomed as entry points to discourse. Noyce grant focused

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on building pathways
Another important note is that there could be to STEM Education.
significant development of the depth and breath She has published on
of examples for how to use Ambitious Science science education in
Teaching in special education and ELL settings. multiple journals
However, by explicitly discussing the need for including Innovations
science educators to be mindful of equity early in Science Education
in the text, as readers digest the content of and The Science
each chapter, they are primed to be mindful of Teacher. Dr. Mawyer
implementing Ambitious Science Teaching with recently presented her
equity in mind. research on the use of
  the Ambitious Science
The first two chapters introduce the core Teaching framework
practice of planning for engagement with big with preservice
science ideas. They suggest that unit planning teachers at the
can be organized around big ideas, anchoring American Education
events, and essential questions. Chapters Three Research Association
and Four highlight the importance of discourse, and National
the role of productive talk, specific talk moves, Association for
and the importance of creating an intellectual Research in Science
safe space for students to engage in meaningful Teaching annual
science talk. The authors stress that discourse meetings.
plays a fundamental role in eliciting students’
ideas, supporting ongoing changes in thinking,
and drawing together evidence-based
explanations. This stance is threaded throughout
the rest of the book, along with pragmatic tools
and suggestions for supporting discourse during
instruction. As science teacher educators, we
appreciated the attention to discourse given the
importance of “Obtaining, Evaluating and
Communicating Information” in the new science
standards, especially given that many teachers,
especially at the secondary level, are ill-
equipped to support this type of learning (NGSS
Lead States, 2013).
 
Chapter Five provides an overview of the second
core set of teaching practices, eliciting student
ideas, which a teacher would employ to get
students thinking and talking about their existing
understandings of real-world phenomena using
an anchoring event. The content of Chapter Five
transitions nicely into Chapters Six and Seven,
which focus on the knowledge-building scientific
practice of modeling. The authors articulate how
research demonstrates the value of modeling as
a tool to help students “understand science
concepts and learn how ideas evolve, using
evidence and new information” (p. 13). The
authors also note that, like discourse, modeling
is a classroom activity with which few teachers
are familiar. The step-by-step suggestions for
how modeling might be incorporated into
ambitious instruction will prove tremendously
valuable to practitioners.
 
The third set of core teaching practices,
supporting ongoing changes in thinking, is
addressed in Chapters Eight, Nine, and Ten, and
connects familiar activities with talk as a vehicle
for students to foster ideas in ways that are less
familiar in the science classroom. These
chapters lead seamlessly into Chapter Eleven,
which demystifies another less familiar scientific
activity: scientific argumentation. As with the
introduction of other core teaching practices

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and connected ways of engaging students, the

book supplies the reader with pragmatic tools
and tips generated by the authors’ working in
collaboration with classroom teachers who have
implemented ambitious instruction with actual
students over many years. Again, the
longitudinal nature of work presented and the
robust examples of classroom implementation
are real strengths of this book.
 
Chapter Twelve draws together evidence-based
explanations to introduce the fourth and final
set of teaching practices. This set of practices
challenges the teacher to scaffold students
working within a discursive science community
to draw on their learning experiences in order to
revise and finalize models and explanations. The
authors stress that while this is presented as the
final set, it is important to engage students in
the practice midway through a unit in order to
help students synthesize across their learning
activities. Chapter Twelve offers a
straightforward visual representation of where
to use core practices over the trajectory of a
unit.
 
Among the authors’ most powerful points is that,
as educators, it is exceptionally hard to be
ambitious on our own. It takes an organized
team of teachers to build truly ambitious
science teaching in schools. Chapter Thirteen
provides strategies, suggestions, and examples
of ways to organize educators within and across
school communities to build collaborative teams
that engage in “Plan-Do-Study-Act” (PDSA)
cycles for educational change. Not only does this
chapter provide practice strategies for engaging
educators in collaborative work, it also
recognizes teaching as a thoughtful and
professional practice, and recognizes teachers as
change agents.
 
Chapter Fourteen addresses the frequently
asked question, “Can we be ambitious
everyday?” The answer is yes. The how is up to
the reader. In this chapter, the reader is
provided with helpful guidelines for
understanding which parts of the ambitious
science teaching framework can be used
multiple times a year, each week, or everyday.
There is also a helpful description of how
Ambitious Science Teaching interacts with other
education pedagogies such as project-based
instruction, citizen science, and content
integration.
 
The Ambitious Science Teaching framework and
practices outlined in this book provide an
accessible and practical how-to guide for science
educators across career trajectories. As the
authors point out, the volume and its approach
provide a shared language for science educators
to collaboratively and critically share, examine,
and transform science instruction. It is easy to
imagine how science teacher educators could
use this book, coupled with educational research
and theoretical writings referenced in the notes

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section, in their work with preservice science

teachers or inservice teachers pursuing national
board certification. In fact, we intend to use this
text in both a preservice science education
program and a masters level STEM education
program. Similarly, this book could be used by
science coordinators and lead teachers to
structure professional development for inservice
teachers. Perhaps most importantly, it could be
used by K-12 science educators working in
professional learning communities at the school
level who are committed to innovative science
teaching and learning as a tool to study and
learn from their own teaching practice.

Reference
 
NGSS Lead States. (2013). Next Generation
Science Standards: For States, By States.
Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.

Cite This Article as: Teachers College Record,

Date Published: August 10, 2018
http://www.tcrecord.org ID Number: 22464,
Date Accessed: 8/14/2018 6:58:37 PM

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