Water resources are a core component of Earth Science Education, and scientific modeling can be used to enhance students’ understanding of water resources. With recent shifts internationally toward standards-based science teaching and learning, researchers have noted the need for a deeper understanding of how teachers use curricula. The purpose of this study is to examine how science teachers interact with the curriculum and help better determine the role teachers’ conceptions of the curriculum play in how they implement the curriculum in teaching water resources. The concept of ‘curriculum use’ relates to the ways in which a teacher interacts with and is influenced by material resources constructed to support instruction. Further, this study focused on teachers’ perceptions of their role within the teachercurriculum relationship, where these might range from that of an enactor of a planned curriculum to that of a collaborator with curriculum materials, to better understand how their notions influence their curriculum use. Three teachers were purposely selected for a post-curriculum implementation interview following a professional development workshop with 21 science teachers. The interviews were analyzed using thematic analysis. Finally, in the context of the implementation of the curriculum, a better understanding of teachers’ experiences and interactions with the curriculum emerged which highlighted how curriculum resource designs can be improved to take advantage of how teachers work with curriculum materials.

Abstract
Introduction
Theoretical Framework
    Conception of Curriculum Use
Method and Study Design
    Context and Participants
    Data Collection and Analysis
Results
    Conception of Teacher-Curriculum Relationship
    Conception of Teacher’s Role within Teacher-Curriculum Relationship
    Questions Teachers Ask Themselves whileCurriculum Implementation
    Benefits of Unit Implementation
    Challenges of Unit Implementation
    Connections between Teachers’ Notions ofCurriculum Use and the Benefits and Challengesof Curriculum Implementation
Discussion and Conclusion
References

• Byung-Yeol Park(Institute of Integrated Science Education, Dankook University, Yongin 16890, Korea) Corresponding author