Doctoral Faculty and Research Activities

Doctoral faculty and their duties

　Akita Prefecture began recruiting doctoral degree holders from the 20 academic year as part of a framework for professional doctoral degree holders*1. Currently, seven of these teachers are stationed at major high schools in the prefecture, where they provide subject instruction as well as "visiting classes."　

　At the beginning of the academic year, we submit an introductory document for the outreach class, and the content of the outreach class, or the content discussed with each doctoral teacher, is used in the classes of the requesting school. The content is left to the discretion of the doctoral teacher, so each doctoral teacher has their own unique style, and the themes are interesting, ranging from science related to each teacher's specialty, to specialized fields such as industry and agriculture, to the environment and interdisciplinary areas. Requests come from all types of schools. The track record of outreach classes by doctoral teachers varies depending on the year and teacher, but in 30, doctoral teachers in total gave 68 outreach classes, and I personally have been making about 20 to 30 outreach trips as a doctoral teacher per year recently.

※1 Tadao Usami, 2009, A Study on New Waves of the Teacher Adoption: 21–35p. Utilizing Doctoral Degree Teachers (May 21, 5), Akita Prefectural Board of Education
Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology website:https://www.mext.go.jp/b_menu/shingi/chukyo/chukyo4/004/gijiroku/attach/1288749.htm

Doctoral Education Research Association

　The most distinctive activity of doctoral teachers in Akita Prefecture is their work as the "Doctoral Teacher Education Research Group." When they were first hired, there were no other doctoral teachers in the prefecture, and many of them were from other prefectures, so they created a mailing list to exchange information. In the few years since they were hired, each doctoral teacher has tried to revitalize science education in Akita Prefecture through visiting classes, but they felt that there was a limit to what they could do individually. Therefore, they came together to plan and manage more effective projects, and to work together to promote science education in Akita Prefecture, so they organized a research group in August 23.　

　Since the beginning, we have been holding research presentations every year. We are organizing this event with the support of the Prefectural Board of Education and companies. The distinctive feature of this event is that all high school students in Akita Prefecture, including those in general, science and mathematics, industrial, and agricultural courses, can participate. Presenters are issued a chart by a doctoral teacher detailing the good points of their research activities and areas for improvement.

　However, what we are most particular about is to make it a meeting where all presenters can exchange opinions as researchers. It is a meeting where each student can teach other students what they usually learn, thereby increasing their motivation for research activities. In fact, there have been cases where students from vocational high schools asked questions to students from general education departments, and students from science and mathematics departments asked students from other departments based on the knowledge they gained in class, and many students and teachers who participated have commented that the Q&A was lively and meaningful. During the COVID-13 pandemic, it was held online, and has been held without a single miss for the past XNUMX years. In addition, we have implemented things that we think can revitalize science education, such as holding experimental courses for high school students and high-level classes. This activity is an original and proactive activity by us doctoral teachers that is not found in other prefectures.　

　In addition to the aforementioned outreach classes, which are individual class introductions, the school also provides guidance on research activities in which all doctoral faculty members are involved, guidance and critiques at presentations held at each school, and courses on how to teach research activities for teachers. As a result, research-based learning activities in Akita Prefecture, both in the regular curriculum and extracurricular activities, are evaluated as being lively.*2

*2 Expectations for doctoral faculty members to develop human resources who can contribute to the local community　
JREC-IN Portal:https://jrecin.jst.go.jp/html/app/seek/html/yomimono/interview1/akita/index.html　　

　However, we feel that there is still a lack of progress in raising the bottom line and lifting the top level. Inquiry classes require interdisciplinary thinking skills and are a form of teaching that fosters futuristic thinking that leads to new ideas, but the challenge is that they are not being fully utilized. We also feel that it is necessary to expand our efforts to revitalize inquiry activities to elementary and junior high schools. Below are some specific issues that we believe to be particularly problematic.

How to conduct research activities

　Even in high school students' research activities, a series of research procedures are essential, such as setting a theme, formulating an experimental plan based on a hypothesis, conducting the experiment, analyzing the results, considering the results, and verifying the hypothesis, and are no different from those of researchers. Therefore, it is a high hurdle for high school students who have no experience in research activities, and the teachers who supervise them also need research skills. In fact, many teachers say that they were involved in research for their university graduation thesis, but feel burdened by the task of supervising. As a doctoral teacher in Akita Prefecture, I have the opportunity to supervise research presentations in the prefecture, and I am often consulted by teachers involved in these events about supervising research. Among them, the most common questions are how to set students' research themes and how to supervise experimental plans and experiments.

Setting a research topic

　This is the first and biggest point, and many students and teachers hesitate here. There are two main ways to set a theme. One is for the teacher to give the student a theme, and the other is for the student to find it. Both have advantages and disadvantages, and it depends on the learning achievement level of the students being taught, so the teacher needs to choose carefully. In my case, it takes time, but no matter what the theme proposed by the student, I discuss it and find out what the student is really wondering about. Then, I try to narrow down the conditions as much as possible and modify it into a simplified experiment. This is the same even if it was something I brought from the Internet. First, I have them do it as a preliminary experiment, verify the reproducibility, review the condition settings, and have them verify the results. Then, the students may ask questions, so I have them tackle it as the real theme. For students who cannot find a theme, I have them start with a preliminary experiment on a theme that seems to interest them from the discussion. I try to pick up as much as possible from the students' stories.

Experimental Guidance

　The key to teaching experiments is not to get the right answer, but to encourage students to carry out the experiment safely. Even if you notice a mistake, don't point it out right away, but ask, "Isn't that strange?" If the student insists that it's not wrong, leave it as it is. If it doesn't work, the student will notice. If the student himself notices it, the experiment may be a failure, but the lesson will be a success. When it seems that the student is about to give up without noticing, I sometimes point out, "Isn't this wrong?", but I teach in a style that makes the student realize through discussion. If you teach in a way that requires results, there is a danger that you will leave out this and force the answer that you think is correct, so please listen carefully to the students' thoughts as much as time allows. Sometimes the teacher will not notice because the student's expressiveness is lacking, but there are times when the teacher realizes something so important that it takes me by surprise.

　The important point in setting the theme, guiding the experiment, judging the results, and considering them is not to leave it all up to the students, but to always understand the content of the students' experiment and discuss it with them while talking to them. Then listen to the students' thoughts and give them the advice they need to move in the direction they are aiming for. In exploratory activities, the most important thing is to guide students in a way that helps them find problems and notice things. If a student notices something during an experiment, share that surprise and excitement with them. It's more fun and engrossing for both students and teachers than any other subject.