Attitude towards Science and Process Skills of Junior High School Students

Abstract

This study evaluated the attitude towards science and the science process skills of grade 10 students including the prevailing conditions in terms of teaching approaches and school resources of selected secondary schools in the Philippines. It involved 256 students and 19 teachers from 4 schools categorized into; big school, small school, laboratory school and a private school. The results revealed that students have overwhelmingly highly positive attitude towards science but not well-developed science process skills. A highly positive attitude on the social context of science but not on the context of a school science. Analysis of the teaching approaches employed and the resources available provide evidence to why the science process skills were not properly acquired. Findings from this study also show that teachers must provide interesting lessons in science to develop science process skills which are the foundations of critical thinking and higher order thinking skills necessary for the technology-based society of today and the future. Moreover, teachers’ mind set on how science teaching be implemented must be properly reconsidered.