Professional Development for Socioscientific Issue Teaching: Exploring the Discourse of In-Service Teachers in Community Activities through Epistemic Network Analysis.

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Title: Professional Development for Socioscientific Issue Teaching: Exploring the Discourse of In-Service Teachers in Community Activities through Epistemic Network Analysis.
Authors: Zhang, Wen-Xin1 (AUTHOR) haha1788@gmail.com, Hsu, Ying-Shao1 (AUTHOR) yshsu@ntnu.edu.tw
Source: Research in Science Education. Aug2025, Vol. 55 Issue 4, p961-987. 27p.
Subject Terms: *In-service training of teachers, *Community involvement, *Education research methodology, *Critical thinking, *Career development, *Ethical problems, Scientific literacy
Abstract: In recent years, there has been an increase in the integration of socioscientific issues (SSI) into educational practices, which are recognized for enhancing higher-order thinking, scientific literacy, ethical considerations, and civic engagement. SSI teaching equips students to tackle global challenges, although they are complex challenges for in-service teachers. Addressing the need for professional knowledge and skills in SSI teaching is vital for meeting future societal demands. Studies have shown that engaging teachers in co-design practices within teaching communities enhances their SSI teaching proficiency, yet empirical evidence supporting these collaborative interactions is limited. This study investigates the professional learning of five in-service teachers involved in community activities, focusing on their development of SSI-based lesson plans. Through convenience sampling, participants' lesson plans and discourse relevant to SSI teaching were analyzed using descriptive analysis, epistemic network analysis (ENA), and context analysis. Results indicated that these plans incorporated essential SSI teaching elements, and discourse during community activities fostered epistemic frames conducive to SSI teaching. Reflective discourse notably enhanced both implicit and explicit aspects of these frames, with teachers' identity development significantly shaped by practical experiences. These findings suggest that practical engagement in professional communities may effectively foster teachers' SSI teaching skills, offering insights for crafting professional development programs in SSI education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Research in Science Education is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Education Research Complete
Full text is not displayed to guests.
FullText Links:
  – Type: pdflink
Text:
  Availability: 1
Header DbId: ehh
DbLabel: Education Research Complete
An: 186910569
AccessLevel: 6
PubType: Academic Journal
PubTypeId: academicJournal
PreciseRelevancyScore: 0
IllustrationInfo
Items – Name: Title
  Label: Title
  Group: Ti
  Data: Professional Development for Socioscientific Issue Teaching: Exploring the Discourse of In-Service Teachers in Community Activities through Epistemic Network Analysis.
– Name: Author
  Label: Authors
  Group: Au
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Zhang%2C+Wen-Xin%22">Zhang, Wen-Xin</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> haha1788@gmail.com</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Hsu%2C+Ying-Shao%22">Hsu, Ying-Shao</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> yshsu@ntnu.edu.tw</i>
– Name: TitleSource
  Label: Source
  Group: Src
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Research+in+Science+Education%22">Research in Science Education</searchLink>. Aug2025, Vol. 55 Issue 4, p961-987. 27p.
– Name: Subject
  Label: Subject Terms
  Group: Su
  Data: *<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22In-service+training+of+teachers%22">In-service training of teachers</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Community+involvement%22">Community involvement</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Education+research+methodology%22">Education research methodology</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Critical+thinking%22">Critical thinking</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Career+development%22">Career development</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Ethical+problems%22">Ethical problems</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Scientific+literacy%22">Scientific literacy</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: In recent years, there has been an increase in the integration of socioscientific issues (SSI) into educational practices, which are recognized for enhancing higher-order thinking, scientific literacy, ethical considerations, and civic engagement. SSI teaching equips students to tackle global challenges, although they are complex challenges for in-service teachers. Addressing the need for professional knowledge and skills in SSI teaching is vital for meeting future societal demands. Studies have shown that engaging teachers in co-design practices within teaching communities enhances their SSI teaching proficiency, yet empirical evidence supporting these collaborative interactions is limited. This study investigates the professional learning of five in-service teachers involved in community activities, focusing on their development of SSI-based lesson plans. Through convenience sampling, participants' lesson plans and discourse relevant to SSI teaching were analyzed using descriptive analysis, epistemic network analysis (ENA), and context analysis. Results indicated that these plans incorporated essential SSI teaching elements, and discourse during community activities fostered epistemic frames conducive to SSI teaching. Reflective discourse notably enhanced both implicit and explicit aspects of these frames, with teachers' identity development significantly shaped by practical experiences. These findings suggest that practical engagement in professional communities may effectively foster teachers' SSI teaching skills, offering insights for crafting professional development programs in SSI education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
  Label:
  Group: Ab
  Data: <i>Copyright of Research in Science Education is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
PLink https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=ehh&AN=186910569
RecordInfo BibRecord:
  BibEntity:
    Identifiers:
      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1007/s11165-025-10237-1
    Languages:
      – Code: eng
        Text: English
    PhysicalDescription:
      Pagination:
        PageCount: 27
        StartPage: 961
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: In-service training of teachers
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Community involvement
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Education research methodology
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Critical thinking
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Career development
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Ethical problems
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Scientific literacy
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: Professional Development for Socioscientific Issue Teaching: Exploring the Discourse of In-Service Teachers in Community Activities through Epistemic Network Analysis.
        Type: main
  BibRelationships:
    HasContributorRelationships:
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Zhang, Wen-Xin
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Hsu, Ying-Shao
    IsPartOfRelationships:
      – BibEntity:
          Dates:
            – D: 01
              M: 08
              Text: Aug2025
              Type: published
              Y: 2025
          Identifiers:
            – Type: issn-print
              Value: 0157244X
          Numbering:
            – Type: volume
              Value: 55
            – Type: issue
              Value: 4
          Titles:
            – TitleFull: Research in Science Education
              Type: main
ResultId 1