Improving Pre-service Elementary Teachers’ Education via a Laboratory Course on Air Pollution: One University’s Experience

Mandrikas, Αchilleas; Parkosidis, Ioannis; Psomiadis, Ploutarchos; Stoumpa, Artemisia; Chalkidis, Anthimos; Mavrikaki, Evangelia; Skordoulis, Constantine

doi:10.1007/s10956-012-9380-1

Cited by 5 publications

(1 citation statement)

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“…Then, they used a specially developed educational software to calculate the concentration of primary atmospheric pollutants, observed the balance conditions in bio-geochemical cycles, studied chemical reactions in order to understand the creation of secondary pollutants, and recorded chemical alterations as a function of time and weather conditions. Lastly, IET observed maps and discussed the effects of acid rain on the forests, on lake and river ecosystems and the erosion of monuments (Mandrikas et al, 2013).…”

Section: Journal Of Studies In Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

In-Service Teachers’ Views towards an Environmental Science Education Course Designed around Inquiry Principles

Mandrikas

Asimopoulos

Skordoulis

2015

JSE

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This paper illustrates a 5-year case study (2007-2012) of a course in Environmental Science Education designed for the training of practicing Greek in-service elementary teachers. The aim of the study was to reveal teachers' views towards the course they attended, which was designed on the basis of inquiry principles. This was achieved through an assessment of the course by the 82 participants. The responses of the teachers to 4 open-ended questions were analyzed using content analysis. Results revealed that in-service elementary teachers found the course well-organized and commented favorably for their active participation and group working, the field study, the hands-on experiments and the software used. They would prefer to have more time available for their activities, smaller range of topics and simpler equipment. In general, favorable comments indicate a positive attitude for the course and a successful implementation on behalf of the lecturers while critical comments and suggestions for improvement constitute essential guidelines for the development of similar teacher training courses in the future. Challenges in developing similar courses include the teachers' lack of knowledge in Environmental Science and teachers' need for practical work.

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Section: Journal Of Studies In Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%