Investigation of Preservice Teachers’ Model-Evidence Link Evaluation Levels Related to GDO

Abstract

Although genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are scientific issues, their disadvantages as well as advantages are often asserted in society. In other words, they are controversial issues in society. In this context, individuals need to make informed decisions about GMOs which are part of socio-scientific issues. Making informed decisions by critically evaluating on controversial issues is a significant skill. Therefore this study aims to detect pre-service science teachers’ evaluation level of model-evidence links. The study was a descriptive survey that uses a qualitative data source and research group consisted of junior students of Science Education Department in a public university in Turkey. The Model-Evidence Link (MEL) diagram developed by the high school science teachers who attended a workshop organized Lombardi, Sibley and Carroll (2013) and adapted to GMO by the same teachers was used as the data collection tool. A rubric developed by Lombardi, Bickel, Brandt and Burg (2016) and adapted to this study by the authors of the present paper was used for analyzing the data. The analyses indicated that pre-service teachers evaluated model-evidence links on the topic of GMOs generally in descriptive and relational level, however, rarely in critical level.