Elementary Teachers: Concerns About Implementing a Science Program

The purpose of this study was to examine elementary teachers' science teaching concerns after participating in a two-year extensive and sustained science professional development intervention. The intervention consisted of two types of teacher professional development across two years including: (a) summer institutes (60 hours across two years) which provided training on curriculum units, inquiry-based instructional strategies, problem-based learning, classroom management, and technology use in the classroom; and (b) coaching (60 hours across two years) which provided teachers support in establishing an investigative classroom and assistance in the implementation of inquiry/ problem-based science units. Teacher data were collected across four different time points: prior to the intervention, after one year of intervention, after two years of intervention, and one year after completion of the intervention. Results from quantitative data supported with qualitative interviews indicated concerns among teachers changed but they were not eliminated. The findings of this study provide evidence that teachers' concerns may not be eliminated, but with extensive support-concerns become less focused on self and more focused on students.