Опубликована Окт. 10, 2011
Research has shown that emotions play a significant role in the learning process and academic achievement. However, the fact that measurement of emotions during or after instruction usually requires written responses on lengthy research instruments has been given as a reason why researchers have tended to avoid research on this topic in classrooms. Consequently, we developed a short Likert-scale instrument which used only three items within the three factors of interest, well-being and boredom to measure adolescent emotions during instruction in science education. We present four different studies in four populations to assess the validity of the scale. In order …
Опубликована Янв. 10, 2012
During the last decade of the 20th century (the decade of the brain) large sums of money were spent in researching how the brain works in relation to our day-to-day activities. As a result, we now know to a much greater extent the roles played by various regions of the brain when we are carrying out various activities including learning. We also know that different types of rewards and instruments can stimulate specific parts of the brain which enable individuals to carry out their daily chores efficiently. These findings when applied to a classroom learning situation, which is a step …
Опубликована Апрель 10, 2011
During the last decades students‟ science-related interests, attitudes, and images of science and scientists, and their differentiations according to gender, culture, and socio-economic status have been investigated by a multitude of research studies. These aspects of students‟ voices seem to be interrelated and to also affect students‟ achievement in science and their relevant study and career aspirations. Moreover, school science and teachers, as well as popular science are considered as factors determining students‟ voices. This paper attempts a mapping of relevant literature in order to highlight crucial outcomes and draw educational and research implications. It is suggested that a comprehensive …
Опубликована Окт. 11, 2011
In Brunei, more girls are enrolled at the institutions of higher education than boys. The aim of this study was to evaluate if a constructivist teaching approach, enriched with interactive whiteboard technology could empower males to minimize gender differences in achievement in Chemistry. Two groups of students were taught for six weeks: one group using the constructivist teaching approach enriched with interactive whiteboard technology and the other group using a traditional teaching approach. The results of the study demonstrated statistically significant gender differences in pre-test mean achievement scores of both the groups. There were statistically significant gender differences in post-test …
Опубликована Окт. 10, 2010
According to environmental education scholars, most people do not use their environmental awareness to behave proenvironmentally. Scholars therefore believe that there is a gap between humans‟ cognitive and behavioural patterns. On one hand, a plethora of factors, such as religion, culture, self-efficacy, emotions, and so on, may be responsible for this gap. On the other hand, the ways we try to create environmental awareness may be problematic. The present study addresses the latter issue. Instead of conveying shallow environmental information, we foresaw that an action-oriented program would provide fruitful conclusions. To this end, the aim of this study was to …
Опубликована Окт. 10, 2010
In the Ontario publically-funded school system, there are no provincial curriculum guidelines or distinct courses for Ecological Literacy. Rather, the Ontario Ministry of Education policy is that “environmental education” should be taught in all grades and all existing subject matter. Because there are no specific Ecological Literacy courses in the provincial curriculum, few programs in Ontario Faculties of Education exist to train teachers in Ecological Literacy. Thus, in this study, we examined what incoming teachercandidates from various disciplinary backgrounds know about general concepts of Ecological Literacy, as the expectation is that all teachers should teach “environmental education” in whatever subject …
Опубликована Янв. 10, 2011
This study was conducted to determine 4th, 5th, and 6th grade primary students‟ conceptions about the particulate nature of matter in daily-life events. Five questions were asked of students and interviews were used to collect data. The interviews were conducted with 12 students, four students from each grade, after they finished the formal courses related to the particulate nature of matter. The results show that the understanding level of students in all grades about the microscopic properties of matter was quite low. They have little knowledge of or alternative conceptions about the microscopic properties of the particles such as the …
Опубликована Янв. 10, 2011
Traditional secondary science education draws on markedly different pedagogies than those made use of in contemporary environmental education, therefore, embedding environmental education within secondary science curriculum presents both epistemological and practical difficulties for teachers. This ethnographic study examines the work of six secondary science teachers in Northern Ontario, Canada, as they engage in an action research project focused on merging environmental education in their science lessons. Over the course of five months the teachers examine and discuss their views and their professional development related to the project. In the place of definitive conclusions, six propositions relating the work of secondary …
Опубликована Янв. 10, 2011
Despite inquiry-based teaching was introduced and encouraged as significant tool to develop students‘ scientific knowledge and habits of mind, its implementation has not been well established in science classrooms in Korea. To understand the challenges and difficulties of the practice of inquiry practical work, this study particularly aims to understand how pre-service teachers‘ understandings of inquiry and practical work have been shaped in educational and social contexts in Korea and later how their views and willingness could be developed through redesigning and practicing textbook activities. 25 third-year students in an elementary science methods course in Korea participated in the study. …
Опубликована Сен. 1, 2010
In this study, we investigated the relationships among cognitive conflict and situational interest induced by a discrepant event, attention and effort allocated to learning, and conceptual change in learning the concept of density. Subjects were 183 seventh graders from six middle schools in Seoul, Korea. A preconception test, a test of responses to a discrepant event, and a questionnaire of situational interest were administered as pretests. Computer-assisted instruction was then provided to the students as a conceptual change intervention. Questionnaires regarding attention and effort, and a conception test were administered as posttests. The conception test was administered once more as …