Teacher education variables as correlates of primary science ratings in thirteen TIMSS systems

Abstract

This paper presents a comparative overview of teacher education variables associated with primary science in 13 TIMSS educational systems. While using TIMSS mean cohort performances at the Year 4 level to rank the sample systems, the study went beyond TIMSS in that it was at the whole-system level and took into account developments since those tests. The study reinforced the view that primary teacher training ideally occurs in a university, and involves a 4-year degree programme that preferably adheres to common standards across institutions. Teachers’ attainment at high school emerged as a principal correlate with TIMSS rankings. Better rankings were also associated with the existence of mandatory science ‘content’ studies as part of teacher training. These observations are consistent with the axiom that teachers’ competence in primary science arises largely from their own mastery of scientific concepts. The authors propose that candidates for primary teacher training programmes should have been awarded passes in science, including physical science, at minimally the middle secondary level, and urge primary teacher training institutions to include compulsory science ‘content’ as well as science pedagogy courses in their programmes.

Introduction

Primary school science, once an almost incidental aspect of elementary education, has received growing attention over the past two decades (Taylor and Vlaardingerbroek, 2000). Primary science education enables young pupils, to begin to understand themselves and their environment in a systematic manner that is consistent with the scientific approach. It aims to do so through investigation, practical problem solving and the clarification of fundamental concepts pertaining to the material world.

The Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) raised widespread concerns about the quality of school science education in general in several western countries, including the USA and Germany, where the State television declared a state of ‘education emergency in Germany’ in reaction to the perceived weak performance of German students on the TIMSS test instrument (Drori, 2000).

The performance of primary cohorts on international standardised tests has been shown to correlate well with that at the secondary level, suggesting that investments in primary science education bear dividends later in the schooling epicycle (Postlethwaite, 1991, Martin et al., 1997). Keeves (1994), in his analysis of the second International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) study, reported that home background factors such as parental education and socioeconomic status were major determinants of performance in both industrialised and developing nations. However, ‘teacher factors’ such as competence in science and the adoption of practical-oriented teaching strategies were also important. Contrary to popular belief, class sizes and specialist teaching facilities were not, although there was a reported benefit of specialist science teachers. These findings were generally confirmed by the TIMSS (Martin et al., 1997).

The TIMSS indicated that higher pupil cohort performances on the test instruments were associated with an increase in the duration of teacher training¹ and with a move from colleges to universities as the site of initial teacher education. The principal objective of this paper is to elaborate on teacher education as a complex variable that has a determinative effect on learning outcomes. Teacher education in this context includes the science educational background of entrants from high school to primary teacher training programmes, as well as the training in both science and science pedagogy that they then receive. The second of these invokes the institutional structure of the education system that prospective teachers are being prepared for, and the place of science in the primary school curriculum. Teacher education is, moreover, an ongoing process that continues beyond initial training.

However, we have gone beyond simply adding to the information that may explain the comparative outcomes of tests carried out five years earlier. While we have referred to the cohort performances in the TIMSS tests to furnish a ranking, we recognise that such rankings are fluid and have furthermore included developments that have occurred in the selected education systems since TIMSS. We, have not, moreover, confined ourselves to the year levels that were involved in the TIMSS but adopted a whole-system approach in our study. Our findings relating teacher education to learning outcomes are presented as correlates rather than as necessarily causal factors.