As a teacher and learner, I believe that learning is a process. Learning is a continuous journey, on which connections are made. Those connections motivate the learner to explore, question, problem solve, and reflect. Learning is active. Therefore, I am passionate about researching ways to increase student responsibility for their own learning. Specifically, I focused my collaborative teacher action research on students’ motivation to make connections within their learning process.
I believe in developing students’ problem solving skills and challenging students to think for her/himself. Too often, science seems to be taught without discovery. Students forget that they have been involved in scientific process since birth: observing, experimenting, analyzing, and evaluating. This is a process that is a life skill; it spans all disciplines. My philosophy guides my approach to teaching and learning in the classroom. When our team decided to research student motivation, I choose to focus on one of my Chemistry/Physics Level III sections.The Chemistry/Physics Level III (Chem/Phys III) is an introductory freshmen science course. It serves students who need a modified learning pace, especially extra time to process content. Because of these learning needs, class size tends to be smaller. The class that I chose to research includes sixteen students. The curriculum exemplifies my philosophy that science should be taught in lab. Overall, the students obtain some of the best data I’ve witnessed high school students achieving. However, my students seem to struggle with organizing information, analyzing data, communicating ideas, and connecting previously learned concepts. During the year, I used a variety of strategies to teach and practice the skills that needed improvement. I observed and modified these methods in order to answer my research question.
Research Process Data Reflections