Science as an "out class"?

Science as an “Out” Class

By: Rachel Gray

This past school year my first born child entered Kindergarten. Boy was I shocked when he came home and said he had gone to science for his "out class". I am an advocate for all content knowledge; no one subject is any better or more important than the next, they all play a necessary part in a child’s lifelong development. Keep in mind the other out classes are art, music, P.E., and library. Does science really belong with these other electives?

According to the No Child Left Behind Act, by 2005 (four years ago), the law requires  that classrooms throughout the nation have teachers who are “knowledgeable and experienced in science”. Beginning in 2007 the law requires each state to measure students’ progress in science at least once per year in each of three grade spans (3-5, 6-9, 10-12), and federal funding decisions will be based on these results. As accountability filters down to school districts there has been a push to teach students the importance of science. This push has revealed that many elementary school teachers were using outdated science textbooks or, in some cases, no textbooks at all. In response to these oversights, teachers are being provided with new books and materials to teach science. However, without proper training, teachers feel overwhelmed with these new materials. A survey conducted in a study of 65 elementary school teachers confirms that many teachers do not have enough time within the school day to carry out experiments. Additionally, many teachers feel uncomfortable teaching science due to their own lack of subject knowledge. Does that give teachers a valid excuse not to teach the subject daily? I think not. There is enough time in the day to do something pertaining to science. Set up an experiment on Monday and watch it over the course of the week, it won’t take more than five minutes a day. The students in our classroom pick up on our enthusiasm, or lack thereof, for any given subject. I for one don’t want to short change them children in my classroom because I may not “like” reading. Does that give them the proper picture of the realities of life? You teach them to respect all of the subjects and find something to enjoy in each one. Maybe it’s the simple experiments that draw them in, maybe its chemistry, or geology, or physics that make them interested. Find whatever it is and a way to teach it to them. It is not only your job, but your duty.

Comments

[Norma Walch]

Rachel, I am surprised at the science being an "out" class. I wonder what school district you belong to. In Cy-Fair we only have three classes like that: P.E., music and art. After thinking about this for a few moments I think I really like the idea in the elementary setting. You might get a science lesson only once a week, but the teacher(s) may have inquiry as their motivation. I would rather see it offered daily on a 2 days/3 days schedule. With the inclusion of library plus the other three it sounds as if the district may be offering this specialized class only once a week.

I agree with you. Setting up the experiment won't take that long. Teachers who have teaching for some time are scared; they don't have the training we just received. Maybe its up to us to provide books that can improve their teaching. We use specialized books all the time for phonemic awareness, spelling patterns, geography and such, why not Science Inquiry? What do you think?

[Leticia Suarez]

I belive that science should be part of the curriculum and should be addressed in your classroom. I will teach science in my class, especially with all the experiments that we have done in Dr. Hoge class and Dr. Aoki.

[Tammy Rollin]

At my daughter's elementary school science is an "out class" as well, but it does not take the place of science being taught in the classroom. The administration put science in the rotation to reinforce the topics covered in the classroom. The students go to the science lab once a week to conduct experiments and as I stated the sceince lab teacher chooses experiements to support what the teachers per grade level are teaching the students during the week. They decided to include science in the specials rotation because science scores have not been as high as they should be and this extra emphasis on science is helping increase science scores at this school.