Changes to Science Curriculum Aim to Benefit Students and Teachers
November 22, 2020
Change is making its way to the science curriculum at NHS, arriving with the beginning of the 2021-’22 school year.
“I am in support of this change,” Scott Hertting, physics teacher and chair of the science department, said.
The adjustments that will take place include the replacement of the Physical Science course with a new course called Foundations of Physics, in which teachers will use the Modelling Method Instead of the traditional teaching style used in classrooms today.
Hertting, along with the NHS science department and administration, came to the consensus that making these tweaks to the curriculum and teaching style would be beneficial majorly.
Ample evidence proves the modelling method’s effectiveness in the classroom. According to the American Modelling Teachers Association, “Scientists . . . learn by doing: they construct and deploy models of the real world and test their ability to predict new phenomena . . . The Modeling Method has been intentionally developed to correct many weaknesses of the lecture-demonstration method of instruction… weaknesses include the fragmentation of knowledge, student passivity, and the persistence of naive beliefs about the physical world.” On a standard assessment, high school students “average more than two standard deviations higher” than students who were taught by the traditional teaching method. The goal of the Modelling Method is to let students use processes that scientists use to solve problems, ultimately transforming the students into scientists.
Hertting says that evidence from case studies of teachers putting the Modelling Method into practice show student improvements in both math and reasoning and ACT scores.
Students are not the only people at NHS who will benefit from the new curriculum. Teachers will also reap the benefits of the shift. Hertting explains that teachers will be able to practice the Modelling Method professionally. Additionally, students will enter future science classes with a base-knowledge of Physics, widening the teaching scope of all science teachers, who will be able to skip teaching some of the entry level information that students already understand.
Ultimately, “studying the research supporting a Physics first approach and knowing the strength of the physical science teachers indicated this change could strengthen our overall science program,” Hertting said.
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Andrew Hou • Nov 2, 2021 at 8:57 AM
I agree that students deserve a better understanding of physics at a basic level without specifically taking the physics course. I would be interested however to learn more about what exactly this “Modelling Method” entails, as it wasn’t very clearly detailed. What exactly is different about it compared to the previous method?
Daniel Zhao • Mar 12, 2021 at 10:37 AM
This is a very interesting change to the school curriculum. Although I will be graduating next year and will not experience these changes firsthand, I believe that these changes will better prepare our next generation of students to succeed in the real world. Indeed, these skills taught to me by Mr. Herrting in his regular physics classes will greatly benefit me in my college carrear.
Emma Rundquist • Mar 12, 2021 at 10:30 AM
I really enjoyed hearing some reasoning about this change. When I first heard about it I thought that it would be a very difficult move to make successful, but hearing the evidence makes it seem worth it.
Afton Congdon • Mar 12, 2021 at 10:29 AM
As a student who took physical science their 8th-grade year my class was run very hands-on. I am in support of this change because comparing my experience with physical science was far more enjoyable than students who took it their freshman year. As a student, I feel like hands-on learning in science classes enables better retention of information.
Ella Schroeder • Mar 12, 2021 at 10:26 AM
I think taking a foundation of physics class early on in high school could be super beneficial for students later on in their science classes. I am glad that you included the thoughts of Mr. Hertting because it is calming to know that the physics teachers support this change. I am curious to see how this will affect students success on their later science classes and on the ACT.
Colin McClowry • Dec 2, 2020 at 3:02 PM
I’m very interested to see how this will turn out for students. I thought physics was challenging but I can see how it would be beneficial for students earlier on.
Peyton Phelps • Dec 2, 2020 at 1:57 PM
I’m glad they’re making this change. Physics was super fun I think the earlier you start learning it the better, and I’m glad Mr. Hertting thinks so too.
Syri Brandt • Dec 2, 2020 at 11:25 AM
This story is so interesting it was nice to hear from the science department and get input from Mr. Hertting and his thoughts on the upcoming changes.
Rachel Jones • Dec 2, 2020 at 10:26 AM
I think that I am in favor of this change, but I’d like to know more of the reasoning
Jacob Lind • Dec 2, 2020 at 9:26 AM
It’s weird to see things like this changing during the pandemic. Nice to know that people are still working on this kind of thing. Hopefully it works out.
Payton McClowry • Dec 2, 2020 at 9:11 AM
It will be interesting to see how this change affects the way other science classes are taught. Hopefully, it really does become a positive change.
Grace Randall • Dec 2, 2020 at 9:06 AM
This change really will be interesting. I glad you did this piece because I thought that they were just going to put the physics class earlier in the school, which I don’t think would work, but I hope this new class will help people understand the basics of physics and enjoy and understand upcoming science classes.
Madison Gafner • Dec 2, 2020 at 9:03 AM
Knowing why they are doing this makes more sense, still not quite sure how I feel about it..
Kaiden Talayumptewa • Nov 24, 2020 at 9:31 AM
I really like the change in the way that the teachers are going to be teaching science from now on. I like that we can actually use the mindset of a real scientist.