Culturally Relevant Science Teaching in Middle School

Bibliographic Data

ID10856286
AuthorsJudson C Laughter (0000-0002-2903-7929, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, USA), Amelia D Adams (Knox County Schools, Knoxville, TN, USA)
Year2012
Volume47
Issue6
Pages1106-1134
Publication date2012-11-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueUrban Education (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0042-0859 • E-ISSN: 1552-8340
PublisherSAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/0042085912454443
OpenAlexW2151831536
LanguageEN
Citations received35
References cited26

To respond to calls for more research on culturally relevant science teaching, we present findings from one middle school science teacher’s practices in an effort to contribute to this research. We describe how a discussion lab centered on Derrick Bell’s (1992) short story The Space Traders was purposively included in a lesson on scientific bias to engage middle school students in thinking about bias in larger societal contexts and in their own lives. We review literature in the growing field of culturally relevant science teaching as building on Ladson-Billings’s (1995a, 1995b, 2006) conception of culturally relevant pedagogy. We then describe the context and method of our study and present findings drawn from multiple data sources. We close with a discussion aimed at both practicing teachers and teacher educators

Context (archaeology) · Mathematics education · Pedagogy · Science education · Sociology · Teacher education · Diverse Educational Innovations Studies · Educator Training and Historical Pedagogy · Psychology · Teacher Education and Leadership Studies