Early Childhood Science Teachers' Epistemic Orientations: A Foundation for Enacting Relational Care Through Dialogue.

Embracing curricular reforms such as the Next Generation Science Standards poses unique challenges for early childhood science teachers who often value play and curiosity, but are challenged by the depth of scientific disciplinary practices expected by these standards. To explore possibilities for teacher growth, this research draws on Noddings' theory of relational care as being foundational to teachers' use of dialogue for the purpose of knowledge generation in science. This research relied on an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design to examine the views and practices of 33 early childhood teachers. Data sources included teachers' written reflections on a professional workshop, interviews, and responses to a survey measuring their Epistemic Orientations. Findings suggest that most early childhood teachers were oriented toward knowledge replication, not knowledge generation, which limits their ability to use dialogue as an epistemic tool. Relatedly, most teachers who were oriented toward knowledge replication expressed views consistent with the virtue of care, while teachers oriented toward knowledge generation described enacting relational care with their students as they used dialogue to support and challenge their scientific explanations. Implications of this study indicate the importance of early childhood teachers' Epistemic Orientations as a foundational component of how they engage in science teaching through dialogue and their willingness to teach in ways aligned with curricular reforms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]