Students' annotated drawings as a mediating artefact in science teachers' professional development

This paper presents a case study of a teacher examining her 4th graders’ conceptual understanding of
factors causing day and night, seasons, and the phases of the Moon both pre- and post-teaching, as
a part of participating in the continuous professional development (CPD) project QUEST. The study is
framed in reference to the extant research in the two fields of CPD and students’ alternative conceptions
in science. The findings pertain to both the 4th graders’ conceptual understanding and the
teacher’s meaning-making when examining the students’ annotated drawings and discussing them
with colleagues. The teaching in general seems to be efficient concerning challenging students’ alternative
conceptions; however not in relation to the phases of the Moon. The teacher re-designed her
teaching and emphasized the insight gained from looking into a structured analysis. Nonetheless, she
questioned whether teachers would find time for such analyses. While there are promising indications
that this teacher will continue using pre- and post-assessment based on the insights gained, the
collaborative analysis seemed rather superficial. The spreading to colleagues is discussed referring to
this inquiry as supporting individual but probably not collaborative agency.