Background
To complement the release of PISA 2006: Science Competencies for Tomorrow's World in December 2007, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) commissioned the making of an international DVD in which Canada was one of the five countries involved. OECD wished to share the different teaching methodologies used across a range of participating countries in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA).
TeVau of Germany was commissioned to make the DVD with a maximum of five days available per country for the original taping. CMEC complied with this condition while recognizing the inherent limitations when the teaching of science in Canada is represented by a small sample of schools drawn from only two provinces, Ontario and Quebec.
This DVD, The Dynamics of Teaching Science in Canada, is devoted solely to the taping undertaken for Canada within the PISA 2006 context. It was developed because CMEC wishes to share with parents, educators, and interested parties, the teaching and learning of science within the total secondary school environment in a limited sample of Canadian schools. Viewers will appreciate the richness and diversity in the teaching and learning of science in the context of the administration of PISA in Canada in 2006.
General information
Since 2000, OECD through PISA has administered, in three-year cycles, assessments to 15-year-old students in 57 countries or economies. Of the three domains assessed, reading, mathematics, and science, the assessment focused on science in 2006.
Performance of Canadian students
Only students from Finland and Hong Kong–China outperformed Canadian students in the combined science scale in PISA 2006.
Synopsis
The DVD is set in five secondary schools, where the viewer sees the students learning science in class as well as in a natural setting. The director's eye looked to learning in the total secondary school environment: students before class, during breaks, and outside, as well as participating in music, art, and design classes. He also viewed learning and character development in the broader spectrum by taking into account the active involvement of principals, teachers and counsellors. The director also scans a professional development session being offered to science laboratory assistants.
A significant number of individuals were interviewed in Canada: students, professors of education, the Director General of CMEC, directors of education, school board personnel, a representative from the federal government, teachers, and PISA administrators.
CMEC very much appreciates the time and effort given to this project by the organizers from ministries and departments of education, schools, and school boards. It also wishes to thank all participants in the taping of this DVD.
Title: The Dynamics of Teaching Science in Canada
Taped by TeVau - Germany
Director: Dr. Paul Schwarz
Assistant: Dr. Gerlinde Schwarz
Commissioned by the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada
Running time: 29:25 minutes