Campbell & Fulton Science Notebooks, Signs of Student Progress

Campbell, B., & Fulton, L. (2003). Science notebooks: Writing about inquiry. Portsmouth, NH: Heineman.

Chapter 3: Signs of Student Progress
    •    Great chapter for developing a checklist to assess intern notebooks and model the process for interns.

•    Predicting
    o    What evidence of progress is there in students’ predictions?
        •    “Students struggle with the purpose of predictions and with recording them in their notebooks (p. 48).”
        •    Because students do not want to be wrong in their predictions, they will often correct their predictions to match the outcome of the experiment.
        •    Progress is made when “they (students) no longer equate information that does not agree with their prediction with being wrong, but rather look at it as a learning opportunity (p. 49).”

•    Recording and Organizing Data
    o    What evidence of progress is there in students’ recording and organizing of data?
        •    Initially “data collection may not be focused and it is often entered randomly rather than in an organized manner (p. 50).”
        •    Eventually the realization occurs that “organization helps make sense of data, so students strive to organize their entries in a meaningful manner (p. 50).”
        •    Sometimes teacher modeling different organizational strategies is beneficial.

•    Drawing
    o    What evidence of progress is there in students’ drawings?
        •    “Students are usually familiar with drawing for enjoyment but often do not understand the significance of drawing for understanding (p. 51).”

•    Questioning
    o    What evidence of progress is there in students’ questioning?
        •    “With more experiences, students progress by beginning to recognize valuable questions. They record these in a manner that sets them apart from other elements of their notebooks (p. 54).”

•    Reflecting
    o    What evidence of progress is there in students’ reflection upon their work?

•    Using Notebooks as a Resource
    o    What evidence of progress is there in students’ use of notebooks as a resource?
        •    “Science notebooks do not serve their true purpose unless students utilize them as resources (p. 55).”
        •    “Just as scientists present their ideas to others, students need to be encouraged to present their findings beyond their casual conversations (p. 55).”

•    Self-Assessing
    o    What evidence of progress is there in students’ self-assessment?
        •    “It is important that students recognize the uniqueness of their notebooks and view other students’ notebooks as models rather than as means of comparison (p. 56).”
        •    Great questions for interns p. 56 – How will you gather evidence of how your students are progressing within each of the areas discussed in this chapter? What opportunities will you provide to allow students to improve in each of these areas so that their notebooks support learning in science?