Pre-service Teachers’ Conceptions of the Nature of Science

Abstract

Learning science without having the correct conceptions of the Nature of science (NOS) is a flaw in science education which warrants attention. This concern extends to the science educators as they are the front-line advocates in parting the right conceptions of NOS. This is a much larger issue as these teachers might induce misconceptions in NOS to the science students under their care at the receiving end, either direct or indirectly. This paper shares the findings of an entrance survey of the course SCE500-Nature of Science on eighteen science education undergraduate students, majoring in biology. The survey was based on the eight common misconceptions of science students as reported in the various recent researches. The purpose of identifying the misconceptions in the entrance study is because the instructional method is based on the paradigm of constructivism. The constructivist paradigm demands that the classroom instruction needs to be guided by students’ preconception of the content area especially the misconceptions and teach them accordingly as suggested by Ausubel, Driver, Cosgrove and Osborne, to name a few among the pioneers in the science constructivist movement. One of the many findings from this entrance study is these eighteen students are very much realists; they perceived science as about truth and scientific ideas are proven facts with certainty. This paper also highlights the innovative design of the course materials which is termed “set inductions”. The material targets at explicitly addressing the misconceptions of these students regarding NOS.