Science Ed Receives Fulbright Partnership Grant To Expand Work in Philippines

The UGA science education department has received a two-year, Fulbright Educational Partnership Grant to work with teacher educators, science teachers, student teachers and community members halfway around the world in the Philippines.

The Fulbright Partnership is an expansion of the work of Deborah Tippins, a professor of science and elementary education, whose research into community-based science education over the past few years led her to the island of Panay.
 
Tippins began a collaboration with science teacher educators at West Visayas State University (WVSU) in Iloilo, Philippines, as well as classroom teachers and student teachers in rural barangay (community) elementary schools. During the 2001-02 academic year, she resided at WVSU as a Fulbright Scholar.

The new Fulbright Partnership, an initiative of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, supports a three-way collaboration and exchange involving the UGA science education department, the Regional Science Teaching Center and College of Education at WVSU and the Regional Science Teaching Center of Western Mindanao State University (WMSU) in Zamboanga, Philippines.

The first of several planned exchanges began in February when a small group of UGA science education professors spent several days living, learning and teaching in a variety of rural, coastal and mountain communities in the southern Philippines. They made presentations on science teaching strategies and qualitative research methodologies to the Filipino teachers and teacher educators. They also participated in field experiences designed to enrich their understanding of coral reef and mangrove ecology in the Philippines.

The researchers are focusing on the development of science education based on local needs, including environmental and health issues. In recent years, educators in the Philippines and other Southeast Asian countries have emphasized using local knowledge and resources in the barangays to develop relevant science curriculum.

Because of the rapid economic and cultural change taking place in the Philippines, teachers face many dilemmas related to the environment and health, according to Tippins.

“For instance, in the elementary schools with which we work, science educators are teaching children about the problems of deforestation and how that relates to the ozone layer,” said Tippins. “Yet, after school, children go home and accompany their parents on the farms to cut down trees. These trees are burned to make charcoal which is then sold to buy food for the next day. So there’s an issue of short-term versus long-term benefits. This issue is a challenge for the science teacher as it creates tension between home and school values.”

One outcome of Tippins’ earlier collaboration was the development of the Casay Environmental Education and Indigenous Studies Center in Anini-y, Antique, Philippines. This center serves as a hub for professional development of science teachers and provides an opportunity for science education faculty and students, K-12 classroom teachers and students, and community members to jointly explore ways to address pressing community environmental issues such as deforestation and erosion, water quality, dynamite blasting of coral reefs and waste disposal.

Tippins said the purpose of the new, two-year project is to create an alternative science teacher preparation model which: 1) includes a science education community immersion experience; 2) prepares science teachers as reflective practitioners and generators of knowledge well-versed in qualitative/action research; 3) develops culturally relevant pedagogy/practices for science teacher preparation; 4) facilitates the professional preparation of science teachers who have the skills and conceptual knowledge needed to effectively engage learners, and 5) internationalizes university-based science education curriculum.

“Faculty exchange visits are an important aspect of the partnership,” said Tippins. “Over the next two years, nine faculty members from the UGA science education department will visit WVSU and eight Filipino science teacher educators will visit UGA.”

The first group of Filipino exchange faculty will visit UGA during the last two weeks of March. Besides theme discussions on campus, their itenarary includes visits to the Stone Mountain Environmental Interpretive Center, the Chattahoochee Environmental Center, Sea World and Zoo Atlanta. They will also observe science classrooms at Barrow Elementary in Clarke County, Russell Middle School in Barrow County and Madison County High School.

During these visits  faculty will examine, compare and document models of science teacher preparation, share ideas through collaborative research and practice, and strengthen cross-cultural understandings of issues of diversity impacting preparation of science teachers.

In addition, more than 500 P-12 teachers and students in partnership schools in Visayas, western Mindanao and northeast Georgia will participate in project activities.

“Both WVSU and WMSU are located in provinces on separate islands far from the resources of metro Manila,” said Tippins. “Both are located in seaport cities, surrounded by rural rice, mango and coconut farms. WVSU has a rich tradition of preparing public school teachers and its College of Education is designated as a Center of Excellence. As the oldest educational institution in the region, WMSU is strategically located where the Visayan and Muslim cultures meet. Education is carried out amidst a variety of beliefs and tradition.”

Tuesday, March 16, 2004
WRITER: Michael Childs, 706/542-5889, mchilds@coe.uga.edu
CONTACT: Deborah Tippins, 706/542-1763, dtippins@coe.uga.edu