Norman Lederman | SMEC 2008

Prof. Norman Lederman

Professor of Mathematics and Science Education, Illinois Institute of Technology, USA

Inquiry: The Common Theme that Connects Disciplines

ABSTRACT: The disjointed nature of subject areas within educational systems throughout the world has perennially been cited as a serious concern. Students typically leave their public school education without any recognition of the connections that exist among the various subjects they have been asked to learn. More concretely, students do not see how the knowledge they have “absorbed” in school relates to their daily lives or society. The purpose of this talk will be to show how inquiry can be used to provide connections among the various subject matter disciplines (specifically science and mathematics) and make the current curriculum more relevant to the concerns of all citizens. A focus on inquiry changes the focus of school curriculum from the memorization and recall of facts and algorithms to thinking skills that can be applied to personal and societal decisions. Orienting the science and mathematics curriculum to an inquiry perspective has significant implications for teacher education and professional development. The challenges that must be confronted and solved in these areas will be discussed.

Biography

Dr. Norman G. Lederman is currently Chair and Professor of Mathematics and Science Education at the Illinois Institute of Technology.  Before arriving at his present position, he was Professor of Science and Mathematics Education at Oregon State University since1985, Assistant Professor of Teacher Education, SUNY/Albany (1984-85) and Assistant Professor of Science Teaching, Syracuse University (1983-84). Dr. Lederman taught high school Biology at Eureka (IL) High School (1974-79) as well as college level biology at Onondaga Community College (1979-82) and Illinois Central College (1976-79). He has received the Illinois Outstanding Biology Teacher Award (1979), a Presidential Citation for Distinguished Service from the Association for the Education of Teachers in Science (AETS, 1986), the Burlington Resources Foundation Faculty Achievement Award for Excellence in Teaching and Research (1992), the AETS Outstanding Mentor Award (2000), and the National Association for Research in Science Teaching Award for Outstanding JRST Paper (2001). 

Dr. Lederman is internationally known for his research and scholarship on the development of students' and teachers' conceptions of nature of science and scientific inquiry. He has also studied pre-service and in-service teachers' knowledge structures of subject matter and pedagogy, pedagogical content knowledge, and teachers' concerns and beliefs. Dr. Lederman has been author or editor of 10 books, including an elementary science teaching methods textbook. He is editor of the recently published Handbook for Research on Science Education. He has written 15 book chapters and published over 200 articles in professional refereed journals. In addition, Dr. Lederman has made over 500 presentations at professional conferences and meetings around the world.