The theory of Pragmatism naturally gives way to the concept of integrated and hands-on teaching methodologies. Teacher training programs grounded in the liberal arts are prime spaces for pre-service elementary teachers to learn about curricular integration. Pedagogy surrounding the integration of science and English language arts is particularly pertinent for today's classrooms. This chapter provides a description of how an elementary education science methods course was revised to include teaching methods for instructing teacher licensure candidates to teach their future students using an integrated and hands-on approach. Instructor lecture outlines and lab packets which include interactive class activities, instructions for teaching essential Science content, instructions for utilizing effective English Language Arts strategies for facilitating student comprehension and concept development, and inclusion of high-quality texts from the Common Core Exemplary Text list are provided.
TopIntroduction
It was the year 1897, and McKinley, a former teacher, was serving as president of the United States. Schools were beginning to teach English as a second language, and Booker T. Washington was advocating for educational changes to provide a foundation for students as lifelong learners. John Dewey had written a prolific and enduring piece centering on a personal pedagogical doctrine.
Written within this doctrine, Dewey (1897) outlined a statement of beliefs centering on five themes. The first theme is his definition of education. This definition suggests that both psychological and sociological facets characterize education. Dewey stated:
I believe that the individual who is to be educated is a social individual and that society is an organic union of individuals. If we eliminate the social factor from the child we are left only with an abstraction; if we eliminate the individual factor from society, we are left only with an inert and lifeless mass. Education, therefore, must begin with a psychological insight into the child's capacities, interests, and habits. (para. 6)
Next, Dewey defined school. Dewey’s definition centers on school as a product of the student’s present life, and how what occurs at school should serve as a continuation of what is occurring in the student’s home life. Dewey justified this by saying:
Existing life is so complex that the child cannot be brought into contact with it without either confusion or distraction; he is either overwhelmed by multiplicity of activities which are going on, so that he loses his own power of orderly reaction, or he is so stimulated by these various activities that his powers are prematurely called into play and he becomes either unduly specialized or else disintegrated. (para. 11)
The third aspect of Dewey’s philosophy defines the subject matter of education. Dewey’s ideas centered on his belief that what is taught in schools should be a product of what occurs in society, and the development of students within that society. To summarize these notions, Dewey declared:
I believe, therefore, in the so-called expressive or constructive activities as the centre of correlation. I believe that this gives the standard for the place of cooking, sewing, manual training, etc., in the school. I believe that they are not special studies which are to be introduced over and above a lot of others in the way of relaxation or relief, or as additional accomplishments. I believe rather that they represent, as types, fundamental forms of social activity; and that it is possible and desirable that the child's introduction into the more formal subjects of the curriculum be through the medium of these activities. (para. 33-35)
Dewey went on to define the nature of method in education. Dewey’s thoughts were that students should be active participants in their learning, and that teaching is best accomplished through the development of images for the student. Dewey also claimed, “I believe that only through the continual and sympathetic observation of childhood's interests can the adult enter into the child's life and see what it is ready for, and upon what material it could work most readily and fruitfully” (para 52) and, “I believe that the emotions are the reflex of actions. I believe that to endeavor to stimulate or arouse the emotions apart from their corresponding activities, is to introduce an unhealthy and morbid state of mind” (para. 54-55).
Finally, Dewey defined the school and social progress. Dewey’s belief was that social progress and reform occur through education. Dewey asserted:
I believe it is the business of every one interested in education to insist upon the school as the primary and most effective instrument of social progress and reform in order that society may be awakened to realize what the school stands for, and aroused to the necessity of endowing the educator with sufficient equipment properly to perform his task. (para. 66)
Current educational leaders and researchers support these seminal ideas proposed by Dewey. As one such example, Darling-Hammond et al. (2020) discuss effective classroom practices as being those which:
…are grounded in the science of learning and development which supports strong, trusting relationships; collaboration in the learning process; connections to prior experience; inquiry interspersed with explicit instruction where appropriate;…support for individualized learning strategies as well as collective learning…(and) authentic, engaging tasks with real-world connections. (p. 101)
These authors’ ideas mirror Dewey’s themes.