EVERY TEACHER A RESEARCHER: A KEY TO REFORM Trish Yourst Koontz Kent State University,Kent,Ohio USA Teacher Development & Curriculum Studies Abstract In 1984, the National Science Teachers AssociationÔs (NSTA) Research Committee conducted a survey of research interests of high school science teachers to find out what teachers saw as research priorities in the United States. NSTA hoped that by helping teachers learn how to conduct action research that the gap between theory and practice would be narrowed. Twenty three research topics were surveyed. Of the 23 topics, 'research on sex differences on learning and achievement' was ranked lowest by all groups of high school teachers. According to this national survey, only 19% of the 370 teachers responded positively to the need for research on gender issues. The 1984 study was again replicated in 1995, during the NSTA national convention in Philadelphia. The results show a 10 percent increase in the number of teachers interested in research on gender equity issues but again the topic fell near the bottom of the list as compared to other research areas of interest. High school teachers, elementary and middle school teachers were surveyed. It was very surprising to find that only 13.3% of the middle grade (grades 4.8) teachers felt gender equity research was valuable to them. This study analyzed education research interest of science teachers by sex, number of years teaching, grade level, and ethnography of the school population. In 1984, the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) Research Committee conducted a survey of research interests of high school science teachers to find out what teachers saw as research priorities in the United States. NSTA hoped that by helping teachers learn how to conduct action research that the gap between theory and practice would be narrowed. Twenty three research topics were surveyed. Of the 23 topics, 'research on sex differences on learning and achievement' was ranked lowest by all groups of high school teachers. According to this national survey, only 19% of the 370 teachers responded positively to the need for research on gender issues (Butzow & Gabel, 1986). The 1984 study was replicated during the 1995 NSTA national convention in Philadelphia. Teachers were invited to rate 23 research topics on a scale of (1) very important to (5) no importance as a research priority for themselves as a science educator. The research topics included in the 1995 survey and the percents of teachers who rated each topic 1 or 2 on a 5-point scale are listed in Table 1. The teachers were asked to think of the following scenario when completing the survey. If you had time in your classroom, which of the following topics would you personally want to study through action research? A few changes were made to the original design of the instrument and to the selection of participants. Instead of sending a questionnaire to a random sample of high school science teachers throughout the United States, the 1995 study was distributed at the NSTA conference registration area to any science teacher (K-12) willing to participate. Surveys were filled out anonymously and returned to a designated table. Self addressed stamped envelopes were available for those teachers who wanted to take more time to complete the survey. This distribution of forms differed from the 1984 study in that all levels of science teachers were survey instead of only high school teachers. Distribution to all grade levels may be an added strength to this survey if we are trying to understand what changes need to occur in our educational system to create long term improvements. Table 1. Percentage of teachers ratting each research topic as 1 or 2 in priority. 1. Effectiveness of journaling in science class 38.2% 2. Interdisciplinary teaching of science 61.3% 3. Effectiveness of laboratory experiences 77.8% 4. How language difficulty affect science achievement 19.8% 5. Gender differences and science achievement 29.2% 6. Meaningful versus rote learning in science 53.7% 7. Cultural/race differences & science achievement 25.9% 8. Research on teacher's science questioning skills 52.3% 9. Influence of science courses on college success 38.2% 10. Influence of teacher characteristics on learning 51.8% 11. Motivational techniques on learning & continued science involvement 58.4% 12. Effectiveness of supplemental experiences(field trips) 41.5% 13. Valid & reliable tests/grading procedures 39.1% 14. Research on problem solving in science 63.6% 15. Research on selection and sequencing of content 30.6% 16. Research on cooperative learning in science class 53.3% 17. Research on computers as a tool in science class 58.9% 18. Relationship between student self-concept & science achievement 37.2% 19. Gifted science students (alternative classes etc.) 25.8% 20. Research on misconceptions of science concepts 33.5% 21. Students' beliefs regarding the nature of science 36.3% 22. Research on alternative assessment in science 48.6% 23. Research on learning disabled students in science 28.3% A few participants had questions dealing with clarity of a single topic. These questions were answered by verbally giving examples to further explain the topic. The original 1984 survey included examples for each topic. However, it was felt that if the survey were more than one page, front and back, then fewer teachers would be willing to complete the survey. Therefore examples of the research topics were not included on the paper-pencil survey. The 23 questions were randomly listed in five different forms to further insure that the order of the questions did not influence the results. Both the original survey and the 1995 survey contained 23 topics. However, the wording on 2 were altered to better reflect the new educational jargon and changes. For example, evaluation practices was changed to alternative/authentic assessment. Four other original topics were eliminated and replaced with more current concerns of science teachers. For example, 'effectiveness of individualized learning activities' was replaced with 'effectiveness of cooperative learning in the science classroom.' The 1984 study received 370 completed surveys as compared to the 424 completed surveys in 1995. Primary teachers, grades K-4 comprised 18.4% (78) of the participants; middle school teachers, grades 5-8, included 35.3%(150);and 196 high school science teachers added the remaining 46.2% of the participants. Thirty-four states are represented including some from Hawaii. Almost two-thirds of the participants were females (65.1%). Most of the participants were experienced teachers. Twenty- eight percent have been teaching more than 20 years. One-third of the teachers had taught in the 11-20 year range and 16.5% of the teachers had less than 5 years teaching experience. The type of schools the teachers taught in were fairly well represented with 38.2% teaching in suburban schools, 35.9% teaching in urban schools and 25.9% teaching in rural school settings. Listed in Table 2 are the research topics selected as most important and the 5 last important topics by the total group of teachers. Table 2 also lists the ranking of the most and least important research preferences of teachers by grade level. The five most important research topics are listed in descending order : * Effectiveness of laboratory experiences * Research on problem solving in science * Interdisciplinary teaching of science * Effectiveness of using computers as a tool in science * Motivational techniques on learning and continued science involvement. Analyzing the top 5 priority topics reveals that teachers are most concerned with pedagogical issues. How to best instruct students for effective teaching is foremost in the minds of the teachers. It seems that teachers are reflecting on how they can become better teachers by improving laboratory work, stressing problem solving, and using technology. Teachers also want to know how to better motivate students and what extent does an interdisciplinary approach to teaching increase students understanding of science. The interest in laboratory experiences, problem solving and motivational techniques has not changed since the original 1884 study. However, interest in interdisciplinary teaching and the use of technology has increase among science teachers in the 1995 survey compared to 11 years ago. The 5 research topics indicated as least important by the teachers were the following : * Gender differences and science achievement * Learning disabled students in the science classroom * Cultural/Race differences and science achievement * Gifted science students (alternative classrooms etc.) * Language difficulties and science achievement Examining the 5 least important research topics sheds some interesting light on needed changes in science education in the united States. All five of the research topics ranked as last important by the teachers deals with equity issues. Teachers seem to be reflecting on themselves to improve instruction as indicated by the most important five topics. Perhaps more emphasis ought to be place on student characteristics to further improve student success in understanding science. If problem solving is so important to learning then teachers should also be concerned about variables that help ALL students become better problem solvers. What similarities and differences in understanding problem solving do females, minority students learning disabled students possess that would create a more equitable learning environment? What strengths do gifted and learning disabled students bring to the classroom? These are the types of questions that research about equity issues could answer. If teachers themselves conduct action research on these topics it is even more likely that they will put theory into practice. Of specific interest is the changes in teacher attitudes about the importance of gender research. The results of this study show a slight overall increase in the percent of teachers interested in research on gender equity issues but again the topic fell near the bottom of the list as compared to other research areas of interest. Of more concern is the fact that in the United States most of the gender intervention programs have been placed in the middle school years. Yet only 13.3% of the middle grade teachers felt the topic was important to them. Do middle school teachers feel enough is already being done? Are middle school teachers feeling resentment that too much of the intervention programs are being instituted during the middle years? These feelings were expressed as comments on the survey. We certainly need to address these feelings. Teachers who read about research findings are less likely to incorporate the findings in their classroom practices than teachers who do the research themselves. Reading about gender inequities is not enough. By encouraging action research we can influence teachers to examine their belief systems about delivering a more gender inclusive curriculum. Perhaps we have focused too long on the teachers' behaviors in the classroom rather than the nature of the student being our priority. When how students think and learn becomes equally or more important than how teachers teach, then perhaps more positive results will be seen in our science education reform. References Butzow. J.W. and Gabel. D, "We all should be researchers." Science Teacher. January, 1986.