Teaching the Next Generation

When we think about preparing teachers, we should think about their future students. Students who are earning elementary teaching credentials this year will start teaching in the Fall of 2013. They will teach children as young as 5 years old - children who will graduate from college in 2030. What do those students (the little ones) need to be prepared for their future?
We have no idea. Today’s children will solve problems that don’t yet exist and use technology haven’t yet imagined. People already have more information literally at their fingertips than any teacher or school full of teachers could hope to acquire in a lifetime. In my teaching and research, I contribute to preparing teachers to teach children the skills they need to not only critically consume information, but to be create tomorrow’s ideas, to innovate. I do this through the discipline of science.  
Engaging students in inquiry, particularly by having them develop scientific models to explain phenomenon seems to be a powerful instructional method, yet is rarely observed. Teaching in this way is intellectually challenging and requires improvisation and creativity on the part of the teacher. I investigate how teachers develop the skills to teach science in ways that allow for children to participate in authentic inquiry and how new technology facilitates learning for children and teachers.