Kristin L. Gunckel
1711 Harding
Lansing, MI 48910
(517) 485-7914
gunckelk@msu.edu

I am doctoral candidate in the Department of Teacher Education, Michigan State University. In May, 2008, I will graduate with a Ph.D. in Curriculum, Teaching and Educational Policy, with an emphasis in science education.

My motivation and interests in science education stem from my concern for the environment and for our survival on this planet. I believe that we can no longer ignore the effects that our actions have on the environmental systems upon which we depend for our survival. The recent IPCC report underscores the importance of this situation. Concern for environmental systems should not be considered an add-on to the curriculum; it needs to be the focus of our attention. (For more information, see a commentary in Education Week September, 2006.) My contribution to addressing this situation is to focus on ways to improve science education so that all students are prepared to be responsible, scientifically literate citizens who consider the implications of individual and collective actions on the environments that sustain us.

There are many challenges that need to be addressed to improve science education to meet the goals of preparing students to be scientifically responsible citizens. Many of these challenges are related to the overall state of affairs in science education. I have identified the following areas to focus my research and teaching. For more details, please see my research statement.

1) Curriculum Materials - The problems associated with the prevalence of poor science curriculum materials must be addressed. I focus on three aspect of this situation.

A) Supporting teachers in using the curriculum materials
The curriculum materials problem is not just a problem with curriculum materials. Teachers in the classroom must use the curriculum materials they have available. I am researching approaches for preparing preservice teachers to analyze and modify curriculum materials to better support their own students in learning science.

B) Developing better curriculum frameworks
Curriculum materials are only as good as the curriculum frameworks that guide their development. Learning progressions provide a tool for developing curriculum frameworks that build connected understanding of key ideas over an extended period of time. I am involved in researching learning progressions for environmental and Earth science topics.

C) Developing better curriculum materials for all students
Not all instructional approaches work for all students. I am interested in improving curriculum materials by developing instructional approaches for Earth and environmental science topics that can better leverage the sociocultural resources that students bring to learning science.

2) Teacher Education - I am especially interested in preparing elementary teachers to be confident, competent teachers of science to all children. This includes preparing teachers to

A) Understand science and the practices of science.

B) Recognize and leverage the sociocultural resources that students bring to learning science.

C) Use the curriculum materials and resources they have available to effectively teach science to all students.

For more information, please see my teaching statement.

Dissertation Research
My dissertation research grew out of my involvement in the CCMS Elementary Teachers and Curriculum Materials project. Over the past five years, our team of researchers has conducted iterative cycles of design to develop tools and instructional approaches to prepare elementary preservice teachers to more effectively use the science curriculum materials they have available. These tools support preservice teachers in learning to analyze curriculum materials and make modifications to better support student learning and match the sociocultural resources of their own students. My research focuses on understanding the meanings that preservice teachers make of these tools as they use them to plan and teach science in their field placement classrooms. I am using a sociocultural analysis of the discourses that mediate the preservice teachers’ interactions with the tools. I am finding that the preservice teachers’ positions as student teachers in another teacher’s classroom and as college students mediate how the preservice teachers use the provided tools to meet their own needs and goals. These findings will inform my future research efforts to support preservice teachers in learning to teach science.

Background
I have a background in geology, environmental education (upper elementary students, teachers, families, and seniors), and middle school science. My B. S. and M.S. degrees are in geology, and I spent several summers doing geology field work. I also spent 10 years working in environmental education for museums ( Oregon Museum of Science & Industry and New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science). My responsibilities included developing programs and curriculum, teaching geology and ecology in the field, and conducting teacher workshops. Prior to coming to Michigan State University, I taught middle school science in New Mexico for three years. For my complete background, please see the background page or my curriculum vitae.