Abstract
In the last three years we (with other Monash staff) have been involved in developing for the Department of Education in the state of Victoria a web-based resource to support prep-Grade 10 (ages 4–16) science teachers. The resource has been structured around “focus ideas” (e.g. “friction is a force”, “melting and dissolving”, “internal body organs”, “doing science authentically”). For each focus idea the website gives a brief account of the relevant ideas and beliefs students will bring to the study of the idea, an acceptable (age-appropriate) account of the science idea, our view of the critical teaching ideas and some pedagogical approaches for developing students’ understanding of these critical teaching ideas. The website also contains a number of other features. In the process of developing the resource, we (the chapter authors) have had to examine our own understanding of selected focus ideas in science. This experience has also meant that we have had to combine ideas and beliefs from research, practice and personal experiences in coming to an agreed position about these aspects of knowledge associated with each focus idea. The process provides an informative model for the elaboration of aspects of a knowledge base for expert science teaching, as we elaborate in the chapter.
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Corrigan, D., Gunstone, R. (2011). An Approach to Elaborating Aspects of a Knowledge Base for Expert Science Teaching. In: Corrigan, D., Dillon, J., Gunstone, R. (eds) The Professional Knowledge Base of Science Teaching. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-3927-9_6
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