Exploring teachers’ conceptions and experiences of curriculum and professional development: Implications for policy making
Dr. Michelle Tan
Research Fellow, National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
Date: May 13, 2014
Time: 12:30 – 2:00 pm
Venue: Scarfe room 1107
Abstract:
This presentation focuses on research studies I have undertaken over the last two years, exploring teachers’ conceptions and experiences of curriculum and professional development. Framed within the Singaporean context, the studies are aimed at addressing challenges teachers face within curricular and professional development reform efforts. These exploratory studies are designed to surface nuanced understandings that have practical implications for teacher and science education and policy-making. Drawing from my teaching experiences and work at the National Institute of Education (Singapore), the presentation concludes with implications for my work in teacher education in Singapore, Canada and elsewhere.
Bio:
Since 2012, Yuen Sze Michelle TAN is a research fellow in the Office of Education Research at the National Institute of Education (NIE), Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. Her articles have recently appeared or are forthcoming in Teaching and Teacher Education, Educational Action Research, Journal of Research in Science Education, and Journal of Adventure Education & Outdoor Learning. Teaching at the graduate level as well as in school leadership programmes, her teaching and research interests include curriculum reform and development, science education, and teacher professional development. She was the co-convener of the NIE Science Education task force, which charged with developing a 10-year research programme for Science Education in Singapore. Supported by the Education Research Funding programme at NIE, she is currently completing a research project on teachers’ perceptions of Outdoor Education (OE) which works closely with the Ministry of Education, Singapore teachers, and researchers from Scotland and the United States to support the development and implementation of a new OE curriculum. Working with a research team from Singapore and Korea, she has also been exploring the beliefs and practices of beginning and experienced Physics teachers. In collaboration with the Academy of Singapore Teachers (MOE), she recently participated in a research project that sought to understand teacher dialogues and discourses in professional learning communities in Singapore schools.
See Special Hire Seminar 2014 May 13 for details.