Science Teacher Education Partnerships with Schools (STEPS) - Partnerships in science teacher education

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Jasmine

Paper on the STEPS project addressing international concerns about primary teachers’ lack of confidence to teach science and persistent questions about teacher education effectiveness. Five universities each created science education programs that used school-based partnerships between universities and local schools to support primary pre-service teachers teaching science. Comparative analysis of literature and participant data, grounded in case studies and PST feedback, identifies key features and success factors. Results indicate authentic teaching experiences strengthen PST confidence, and future work will validate an interpretive framework using feedback from educators in Australia and overseas.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages25

Reading Time1 h 3 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

STEPS project purpose and collaboration

Background concerns in science education

Building pre-service teacher confidence through authentic opportunities

Australian Journal of Teacher Education | Volume 39 | Issue 12 | Article 4 | | --- | --- | 2014 Science Teacher Education Partnerships with Schools (STEPS): Partnerships in science teacher education John Daniel Kenny University of Tasmania, [John.Kenny@utas.edu.au](John.Kenny@utas.edu.au) Linda Hobbs Deakin University Sandra Herbert Deakin University Mellita Jones Australian Catholic University Gail Chittleborough Deakin University See next page for additional authors Recommended Citation Kenny, J. D., Hobbs, L., Herbert, S., Jones, M., Chittleborough, G., Campbell, C., Gilbert, A., & Redman, C. (2014). Science Teacher Education Partnerships with Schools (STEPS): Partnerships in science teacher education. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 39 (12). Retrieved from [http://ro.ecu.edu.au/ajte/vol39/iss12/4](http://ro.ecu.edu.au/ajte/vol39/iss12/4) This Journal Article is posted at Research Online. [http://ro.ecu.edu.au/ajte/vol39/iss12/4](http://ro.ecu.edu.au/ajte/vol39/iss12/4) Science Teacher Education Partnerships with Schools (STEPS): Partnerships in science teacher education Authors John Daniel Kenny, Linda Hobbs, Sandra Herbert, Mellita Jones, Gail Chittleborough, Coral Campbell, Andrew Gilbert, and Christine Redman This journal article is available in Australian Journal of Teacher Education: http://ro.ecu.edu.au/ajte/vol39/iss12/4 Australian Journal of Teacher Education Science Teacher Education Partnerships with Schools (STEPS): Partnerships in Science Teacher Education John Daniel Kenny University of Tasmania Linda Hobbs Sandra Herbert Gail Chittleborough Coral Campbell Deakin University Mellita Jones Australian Catholic University Andrew Gilbert RMIT University Christine Redman Melbourne University Abstract: This paper reports on the STEPS project which addressed international concerns about primary teachers’ lack of confidence to teach science, and on-going questions about the effectiveness of teacher education. The five universities involved had each independently established a science education program incorporating school-based partnerships between the university and local schools to enable primary pre-service teachers (PSTs) to teach science. The diversity of the programs enabled an examination of the relevant literature underpinning the approaches and comparison of data from participants to identify key features and success factors for establishing and maintaining working relationships with schools. This preliminary analysis of learning from STEPS uses case studies and feedback from PSTs who participated. These findings indicate that authentic teaching experiences build the confidence of PSTs to teach science. Ultimately, the project will develop an Interpretive Framework which will articulate the characteristics of partnerships to be validated through feedback from other science educators from Australia and overseas. Vol 39, 12, December 2014 43 Australian Journal of Teacher Education Introduction This paper introduces and reports on preliminary findings of a significant curriculum renewal project, the Science Teacher Education Partnerships with Schools (STEPS) project1. The Project began which began in 2013 and will conclude at the end of 2014, explores the use of partnerships between schools and universities to make links between theory and practice in primary science teacher education in Australia. STEPS was formed as a collaboration between five universities, each of which had independently developed science education programs based on pre-service teachers (PSTs) teaching science in schools. The five programs had evolved in response to specific opportunities needs and constraints within each context. Concerns about the state of science education and its importance to national prosperity have been expressed in a number of reports both within Australia and internationally (Dobson, 2003) .

FAQs

What problem does the STEPS project target in science teacher education?

STEPS addresses international concerns about primary teachers’ lack of confidence to teach science and ongoing questions about how effective teacher education is.

How were science education programs structured in STEPS?

Five universities independently established programs that incorporated school-based partnerships, enabling primary pre-service teachers to teach science in local schools.

What evidence does the paper use to evaluate STEPS?

The preliminary analysis draws on case studies and feedback from pre-service teachers who participated in the program.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Jasmine