From northern china to hazelwood wetlands: Navigating place and identity through science education

Abstract

This chapter highlights an emergent self-study or professional inquiry that sits within wider longitudinal research examining the impact of a science teacher education university-school partnership in Latrobe Valley Gippsland. Partnership stakeholders in this particular study included the two authors (Hongming and Monica-Federation University Gippsland Education (FUGuE) researchers and science teacher educators), pre-service teachers and teachers/students from a local primary school. The chapter explores a number of complexities pertaining to our redesign of a science education course in the Bachelor of Education (primary) teaching programme. Central to the changes we made was a transition from universitybased lectures to place-based science lessons conducted by pre-service teachers in a local wetland. As part of the self-study, we met regularly throughout the semesterlong science education course to discuss course preparation, implementation, design and delivery. These recorded and later transcribed conversations became the main data collection source of the study.We also generated personal autobiographies as a way of reflecting on our personal, professional and collective learning journey within the science education course.Our analysis of this overall process brings to light emergent levels of complexity and uncertainty in our attempt to reshape science education through a partnership model. While we each had and shared very different experiences of the science education course, the chapter pays attention to the strengths of our differences, and in particular, its contribution to our collaboration. The impact and implications of the self-study are discussed, and in conclusion, we highlight the contributions of place-oriented approaches and collegiality that supported us to undertake science differently.