By Sean DeLauder A long while ago, a Chinese fellow hit upon an eternal constant. "I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand." This anonymous speaker leaves no record of his existence, but his words live on as the fundamental ideas behind the teaching methods used in TAPESTRIES, a program guided by scientists and educators at BGSU and the University of Toledo. TAPESTRIES (Toledo Area Partnership in Education: Support Teachers as Resources to Improve Elementary Science) steers away from previous methods of book teaching and leans toward a hands-on approach to science education. The idea stemmed from the reorganization of Toledo Public Schools’ curriculum to replace books with science kits, which present students with real-life experiments. The kits were implemented in the area in response to poor standardized science test scores.

Teachers help other teachers open their minds to new ways of thinking about science.

A large problem in United States educational systems is most students are learning something different, said Jodi Haney, an education professor at BGSU. "Other countries, such as Japan and Singapore, have a very specific national curriculum," she said.

When everyone is learning the same material, it is easier to measure knowledge with a single test, Haney said. In the U.S., teachers are allowed a great deal more freedom in choosing their curriculum. "When you live by the river and want to study the river you can do that," Haney said. Though students devote time to aquatic biology, for example, they sacrifice knowledge that could be on a comprehensive test.

Learning expectations have also changed. Haney points out students are learning more and in different ways than before, citing a movement in education from memory recall to problem solving.

"An older learning goal would have been to name and define parts of an electrical circuit," Haney said. "Now they are building circuits and using them in real world situations."

This is the sort of learning TAPESTRIES endorses.

Educating the Educators

The change in classroom format forced many teachers to give science lessons in a more concrete manner. But inadequate or improper science education is deep-rooted. Due to a lack of in-depth knowledge on the subject, many did not feel comfortable with the new approach. "A huge quantity of [Americans] don't realize plants don't require light or soil to germinate," said Deb Shelt, who is the director of the TAPESTRIES Summer Institute.

"How many of us thought to ask questions?" added Mary Rose Pickett, a TAPESTRIES support teacher, in reference to her days in school. "It was all copying definitions or passing around Mercury, which is now considered a hazardous material."

The teacher’s concerns brought about the conception of the TAPESTRIES program. Funded in April of 1998 by a $5.2 million grant, TAPESTRIES was co-written by Haney and Charlene Czerniak, a professor at the University of Toledo. The National Science Foundation funded the five-year grant.

Most of the grant, Haney said, is used to hire substitutes for full-time teachers who function as support teachers for TAPESTRIES. This allows them to leave their classroom for a school year and support other teachers in the classroom.

In the summer, Haney said, teachers and support teachers spend eight hours a day for two weeks in what is called the summer institute phase. Sessions are divided into morning investigations of the science kits, followed by a lunch on campus and concluded with a discussion of teaching methods.

During this discussion, teachers and advisers talk about how science lends itself to critical thinking, questioning strategies and higher levels of thinking, none of which were possible with book learning.

Discussion of strategies continues through the school year and comprises the second phase of the TAPESTRIES program. Teachers meet monthly during the school year to decide what is and what is not working to improve student learning.

Numerous members contribute services to the program throughout the year. "We weave lots of different people together for a common purpose," Haney said. "We have scientists, teachers, students, administrators and community partners."

Teaching students

Because of the limited variables and experiences each individual human mind undergoes, it is difficult to find a single, successful method for teaching. This makes it necessary to build a foundation of experience from which to draw. Thus the shared experience of hands-on teaching.

"Students are taught to create their own knowledge rather than being fed it," said Connie Black-Postl, a program coordinator at BGSU.

For example, a student may grow three separate plants, watering each with a different substance: a caffeinated beverage, vinegar and water. One possible result may be the caffeinated plant will grow faster than the vinegar and the water. Students will be compelled to ask "why?" Does the caffeine in pop make the plant grow faster, or is it something in vinegar that inhibits growth?

This is where learning begins—when students begin to think for themselves and draw conclusions that can either be corrected or congratulated.

Creating positive experiences

Teachers in the program are determined to make it work. One way they do this is by attending all sessions, which are equivalent to a recommended number of hours as under the grant’s guidelines. If a teacher misses one, they have to compensate for the time in some other fashion.

"The agreement we made according to National Science Foundation requirements was that teachers need 104 hours [recently raised to 120] of the same message in order to keep them from returning to their old mannerisms," Black-Postl said.

A teacher that misses time may be sent to attend a conference in another area, or asked to facilitate a science night for students and parents, or work with a support teacher one-on-one.
"We have high expectations in every respect. Including attendance," Black-Postl said.

Besides attendance, supervisors evaluate progress and report back to the NSF through a series of surveys, observations and interviews.

Observations consist of watching teachers carry out lesson plans and scoring them according to NSF criteria. Supervisors determine whether teachers set tones for success in multicultural classrooms. They also evaluate how well teachers follow lesson plans and engage their students.

Do teachers think TAPESTRIES is having an effect?

Responses collected through interviews with teachers were mostly upbeat, Black-Postl said. "Teachers are definitely more comfortable," said Karen Mitchell, a teacher at Hawkins Elementary School in Toledo. "And if the teacher is more comfortable with the material, the students are more comfortable."

Teacher’s concerns did not deal with the goals or methods of TAPESTRIES, but with what happens after the program is finished. "[Teachers] are afraid of the lack of support after the program is gone," Black-Postl said. "The most frequent request is for refresher courses."
Pickett, a support teacher whose direct contact has exposed her to similar input, said teachers expressed panic at the program’s imminent departure.

Since TAPESTRIES is only a piloting idea for the National Science Foundation, the grant expires in 2003. Teacher leaders are in place and will continue to model and teach science. Inspired by the success of TAPESTRIES, Haney and her colleagues are crafting numerous spin-off programs.

But where the administrators and instructors deserve credit for their ambition and helpfulness, the teachers involved require an equal amount of respect for their compulsion to do their jobs better.

During a TAPESTRIES science session this past summer, sixth grade teachers were curious and enthusiastic as they investigated their science kits. Teachers performed experiments they would later use in the classroom, looking for ways to improve their teaching methods and strengthen their understanding of science through interaction. At the time, they were conducting experiments involving phototropism, bee dissection and pollination of plants.
When approached, they were eager to share what they were learning. "We're learning about phototropism," explained one teacher. A cluster of plants was positioned so they faced away from a nearby light source. "It's the tendency of plants to grow towards the strongest light source," he said.

Sure enough, several of the plants were slowly curving back around their styrofoam pots towards a glowing bulb in a box lined with tinfoil.

"I see this as a seed," Black-Postl said. "Everything is growing as expected, and there are residual effects." Such as offspring programs.

"The TAPESTRIES grant will expire," Mitchell said, "[but] it showed the need in the classroom. Now it's up to the school system to continue."

A seed. To a tree of knowledge? Possibly. If it is allowed to grow.