Context Of Socioscientific Issues Research Articles

Implementation of the Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning With Socioscientific Issues of Environmental Pollution to Improve Student Scientific Literacy

This study aimed to analyze the implementation of the Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL) model with the Socioscientific Issues (SSI) of environmental pollution in an effort to improve students’ scientific knowledge. The population in this research was 53 grade VII students at a junior high school in Bandung. The research used a quasi-experimental design with 24 multiple choice questions as the research instrument. The experimental group was taught through the POGIL model with the SSI context, while the control group was taught through a scientific approach. Based on data analysis, the n-gain category of scientific knowledge of the experimental class in content knowledge, procedural, and epistemic domains were dominant in the medium category of 50%, high of 46%, and high of 73%. The n-gain category of the control class in content knowledge, procedural, and epistemic domains was dominant in the low category of 52%, low of 41% and high of 67%. The result obtained from the t-test on normal and homogenous data showed that there was a significant difference. Based on the data analysis, the scientific literacy skill of students who received POGIL with SSI was better than students who received the scientific approach, and the attainment of students’ scientific knowledge domains was in the high category. Keywords: implementation, inquiry learning, socioscientific issues, environmental pollution, student Literacy

Reconstruction of digital teaching materials with Socio-Scientific Issues (SSI) context on newton’s gravity-tidal flood content

This research is motivated by the frequent emergence of news regarding the issue of tidal floods that occur due to a lunar eclipse, which is related to Newton’s law of gravity. On the other hand, it is known from the 2018 PISA results that, in general, students’ scientific literacy in Indonesia is low. One of the efforts to increase students’ scientific literacy is to provide teaching materials in the context of socio-scientific issues (SSI). This study aimed to determine the results of the reconstruction, assessment, and students’ responses to teaching materials with the SSI context on Newton’s Gravity-Tidal Flood content. This research was conducted by Research and Development (R&D) method, by design is ADDIE. This research has succeeded in reconstructing digital teaching materials with the SSI context on Newtonian gravity-tidal floods, which consists of four sub-chapters. Teaching materials are evaluated in 2 ways: validity based on general criteria and validity based on Badan Nasional Standarisasi Pendidikan (BNSP) criteria. The assessment score is 89.50%, showing that the material teaching materials are feasible and meet the requirements for the physics learning process. Student response score of 87.79% indicates that the teaching materials with the SSI context on Newton’s gravity-tidal flood material have been understood and meet student learning expectations. The book “Newton’s Gravity & Tidal Flood Based on Socioscitific Issue” can be accessed at https://online.fliphtml5.com/mcvyo/tvnu/#p=1.

From Ideal to Practical—A Design of Teacher Professional Development on Socioscientific Issues

As consensus towards teaching science for citizenship grows, so grows the need to prepare science teachers to pursue this goal. Implementation of socioscientific issues (SSI) is one of the most prominent theoretical and practical frameworks developed to support scientific literacy and preparing students as informed citizens. However, implementation of SSI holds great challenges for science teachers. Longitudinal professional development (PD) programs were designed to overcome these barriers, yet at the same time many educational systems lack the resources, both in terms of budget and time to meet such intense programs. In this paper, we introduce a design of a short-term PD course that was conducted in Israel. The PD was specifically tailored for secondary school science teachers, with the goal to support them in implementing SSI. Employing an educational design research framework, we tested our PD design over a span of three consecutive years. Through an iterative design process, we were able to make modifications to the program based on data collected and analyzed from the previous year. The structure of the PD is based on four SSI aspects: (a) introduction to SSI, (b) argumentation in SSI context, (c) SSI operationalization, and (d) science communication. In this paper, we provide detailed explanations for each of these aspects, justify the changes made to the PD design, and highlight both promising and less effective strategies for engaging teachers in SSI. Ultimately, we propose a comprehensive SSI PD model that can effectively prepare teachers to take their initial steps in implementing SSI, while remaining adaptable to diverse educational systems.

The decision is in the details: Justifying decisions about socioscientific issues

AbstractControversial scientific issues, or socioscientific issues (SSIs), demand the consideration of more than scientific content when constructing decisions. The Justification for Knowing framework (JFK) was developed to categorize the information sources drawn upon when making SSI decisions within the academic domain of natural sciences. These information sources stem from personal sources (JPS), authoritative sources (JAS), or multiple sources (JMS). However, these sources may not explain the array of knowledge claims reflected upon during SSI decision making. This qualitative study aims to explore each JFK belief dimension across two SSIs and asks how contextual features are contributing to the selection of these beliefs. College students (N = 199) from various disciplines at a research‐intensive public institution responded to a modified Decision‐Making Questionnaire consisting of two SSI context scenarios. Participants responded to open‐ended prompts asking them if they support the proposed SSI decision and to explain their decision. Through two rounds of thematic coding, we found several subdimensions of JAS and found how students are utilizing JPS. Although the frequency of these broad sources did not differ between contexts, we saw differences within the types of sources reflected upon within each context. We also found that SSI context may ignite specific identity commitments that operate as a vehicle to the selection of knowledge sources when an individual is supporting their SSI decisions. The results of this study provide insight into specific information sources students rely upon when justifying their knowledge. Furthermore, this work emphasizes how identity commitments may be contributing to the selection of these information sources during SSI decision‐making tasks.

IMPACT OF EXPLICIT SCIENTIFIC INQUIRY INSTRUCTION HYBRID MODE WITH SOCIOSCIENTIFIC ISSUE CONTEXT ON STUDENTS’ CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS IN CHEMICAL KINETICS

This study aimed to explore whether Explicit Scientific Inquiry Instruction (ESII) Hybrid Mode in the context of Socioscientific Issues could improve the students' critical thinking skills. The research design was a one group pretest-posttest design. The research sample was 31 science eleventh graders at SMA Mojosari for the academic year 2021/2022. The data was collected using a critical thinking skills test on Chemical Kinetics which consists of 27 valid questions with a Cronbach Alpha reliability of 0.756. A paired-samples t-test showed that the Explicit Scientific Inquiry Instruction (ESII) Hybrid Mode in the Socioscientific Issues context improved students’ critical thinking skills (p = 0.00 < 0.05). The improvement was strong as its N-gain score was 0.58 (upper–medium category) and d-effect size was 1.40 (much larger than typical category). This shows that statistically ESII hybrid mode in the context of SSI can improve students' critical thinking skills. Therefore, this strategy can improve students' critical thinking skills in the instruction that allows students to interpret, analyze, explain, evaluate, and draw conclusions

The way teacher roles preferred by science teachers reflect on the lessons they teach in terms of their discourse: COVID-19 vaccine

ABSTRACT Purpose Teacher roles and classroom discourses have great influence on classroom discussions within the context of socio-scientific issues. Investigation of teacher roles and classroom discourses is of great importance in the construction of the classroom environment in which students can support their views and the reasons underlying their views through scientific data in cases such as Covid-19 requiring decision-making at community level. The purpose of the current study is to investigate the roles adopted by science teachers in bringing the socio-scientific issue of Covid-19 vaccine into their classrooms and whether the communicative approach they employed and the teacher roles they adopted complied with the discourses they drew on in their classes. Methods The study employed the case study design, one of the qualitative research methods and the study group was comprised of three science teachers and the students in their classes. As the data sources, video-recordings of the teachers’ lessons and the vignettes related to the roles adopted by the teachers in addressing socio-scientific issues were used. The similarities and differences between the roles adopted by the teachers and the discourses used by them were examined and the communicative approach used by the teachers in their lessons was analyzed through discourse analysis. Results and conclusions It was found that the reasons proposed by the three science teachers to explain why they adopted these roles complied with their discourses used in the classes. It was observed that the more experienced teachers offered more opportunities for their students to talk in their classes (used dialogical discourse) and that the roles adopted by all the teachers and the discourses used by them in their classes were consistent with each other. Students are required to speak scientifically and actively participate in science lessons. However, the teacher’s role in the classroom environment, classroom interactions, and the quality of this interaction are very important for this.

Measuring changes in hydrolysis concept of students taught by inquiry model: stacking and racking analysis techniques in Rasch model

This research aimed to employ stacking and racking analysis techniques in the Rasch model to measure the hydrolysis conceptual changes of students taught by the process-oriented guided inquiry learning (POGIL) model in the context of socio-scientific issues (SSI) with the pretest-posttest control group design. Such techniques were based on a person- and item-centered statistic to determine how students and items changed during interventions. Eleventh-grade students in one of the top-ranked senior high schools in the eastern part of Indonesia were involved as the participants. They provided written responses (pre- and post-test) to 15 three-tier multiple-choice items. Their responses were assessed through a rubric that combines diagnostic measurement and certainty of response index. Moreover, the data were analyzed following the Rasch Partial Credit Model, using the WINSTEPS 4.5.5 software. The results suggested that students in the experimental group taught by the POGIL approach in the SSI context had better positive conceptual changes than those in the control class learning with a conventional approach. Along with the intervention effect, in certain cases, it was found that positive conceptual changes were possibly due to student guessing, which happened to be correct (lucky guess), and cheating. In other cases, students who experienced negative conceptual changes may respond incorrectly due to carelessness, the boredom of problem-solving, or misconception. Such findings have also proven that some students tend to give specific responses after the intervention in certain items, indicating that not all students fit the intervention. Besides, stacking and racking analyses are highly significant in detailing every change in students’ abilities, item difficulty levels, and learning progress.

Students’ use of Justifications in Socioscientific Argumentation

Research focusing on students’ argumentation in socioscientific issues (SSI) shows that students tend to base their arguments on values rather than knowledge. This study explores Swedish upper secondary chemistry students’ written argumentation. The data consists of student texts written at the end of an intervention designed to develop skills related to high quality argumentation. The results show that after being taught about argumentation and the context of SSI, students mainly base their arguments on content knowledge. Value justifications are present in students’ texts, but constitute a smaller proportion. Beside content knowledge- and value justifications, we found a third category – “reasoning” – in which students draw conclusions, or make predictions of future events, to support or refute a claim. The justifications in the argumentative texts include a breadth of subject areas in which chemistry knowledge plays an important role. This study suggests that content knowledge constitutes an important part in student argumentation.

Implementation of the use of textbooks with the context of socio scientific issues on climate change materials and its impact on life to improve students' scientific literacy

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of implementing the use of teaching materials in the context of Socio-Scientific Issues (SSI) on students' scientific literacy on climate change material and its impact on life. The research method used is a weak experiment with a one-group pretest-posttest design. The number of samples used is 60 students who are contracting Earth and Space Sciences (IPBA) courses. The research instrument used is a multiple-choice scientific literacy test instrument. The results showed that the use of teaching materials with the SSI context affected students' scientific literacy. This can be seen from the effects of statistical tests, which showed the arithmetic significance value (0.002) < 0.05. The use of teaching materials in the SSI context can also improve students' scientific literacy, which can be seen in the n-gain value of 0.54, which is in the medium category.

Teachers’ experience of inquiry into socioscientific issues in the Irish lower secondary science curriculum

The Irish lower secondary science curriculum emphasises the development of scientific literacy through the use of inquiry teaching and learning approaches. The Science in Society Investigation assessment in this curriculum requires students to carry out inquiry into socioscientific issues (SSI). This research presents two case studies exploring how teachers used inquiry in the context of SSI for the development of students’ skills and knowledge. There were differences in the pedagogical approach adopted by the two teachers, including the level and type of inquiry and the SSI context chosen. In Clover Field School, the teacher facilitated open, experimental and discussion-based inquiry. The students developed skills of experimentation, with little focus on scientific knowledge in SSI contexts. In Daisy Park School, the teacher facilitated guided, research and discussion-based inquiry, placing a central focus on authentic SSI contexts. Students developed skills relating to research and critical evaluation of scientific evidence and scientific knowledge was demonstrated while considering societal implications. The two different pedagogical approaches led to the development of a range of skills and knowledge. Open and guided inquiry pedagogical approaches, experimental, discussion and research-based inquiry, were shown to complement each other in achieving the outcomes of the Irish lower secondary science curriculum.

Promoting Students’ Scientific Habits of Mind and Chemical Literacy Using the Context of Socio-Scientific Issues on the Inquiry Learning

This quasi-experimental study used a pre-/posttest design to investigate student’s scientific habits of mind (SHOM) and chemical literacy. There were 32 students of the 11th grade selected for the experimental and control class. They were taken by random sampling. The experimental class applied inquiry learning via Predict-Observe-Explain-Extend (POEEd) using the socio-scientific issue (SSI) context, while the control class used a scientific approach that addressed the Indonesian national curriculum. The Acid-Base Chemical Literacy Test (A-BCLT) consisted of 19 items that used four contexts. Argumentative question added on each context. The other instrument was the SHOM scale in the SSI context. The scale consisted of 20 items in seven factors of SHOM. A group of experts looked at both instruments to ensure content validity. Then, the empirical test showed that both instruments have good reliability. MANOVA as the inferential statistic technique was used to analyze the differences among the group. The results showed that there was a significant difference in SHOM and students’ chemical literacy simultaneously. However, there was only a significant difference in students’ chemical literacy on separate analyses. Students have a better scientific argument in the case of acid rain as SSI, but it was less good for consumption of ulcer medicine for fasting people. Meanwhile, for SHOM, students have better thinking in open-mindedness and objectivity factors but less on curiosity. Some of the interesting findings and their implications are discussed in this study. The integration of SSI in chemistry learning is important. It is meaningful in promoting students’ thinking skills to become responsible citizens in the future.

Improving students’ NOS understanding through explicit-reflective learning with socio-scientific issues context

As part of the scientific literacy component, the nature of science (NOS) contributes to the process of forming students with scientific literacy. This study aims to develop students’ NOS understanding through explicit-reflective learning with socio-scientific issues (SSI) context. The quasi-experimental research method with the non-equivalent pretest-posttest control-group design was used in this study. A total of 45 students in seventh grade from a private junior high school in Prabumulih participated in this study and were grouped into 24 students in experimental class and 21 students in comparison class. Essay questions are used as the instruments in pre- and post-learning to measure students’ understanding five aspects of NOS, which are subjective, tentative, empirical, observation, and social and cultural. The results show that the percentage of students in the experimental class who display an increase in NOS understanding is greater than the students in the comparison class. This study shows that explicit-reflective learning with the SSI context could be used to develop students’ understanding of NOS.

Explicit Instruction and Student Learning of Argumentation and Nature of Science

ABSTRACT The study investigated how explicit instruction of argumentation-in the context of socioscientific issues (SSI)- and explicit instruction of NOS, compared with explicit instruction of argumentation only, can develop grade 10 students’ argumentation skills and NOS conceptions. Participants were 36 grade 10 students enrolled in two sections that were randomly assigned into two groups: Treatment and Comparison. The treatment lasted for 4 months and involved two units about autotrophy and the nervous system. Both the Treatment and Comparison group participants received explicit instruction of argumentation -in the context of SSI. Yet, the Treatment group participants experienced explicit instruction of NOS. To assess participants’ argumentation skills and NOS conceptions, they were pre- and post-tested using two open-ended questionnaires as well as individual semi-structured interviews. Results indicated that there were improvements related to the learning of argumentation skills for participants in both the Treatment and Comparison groups, who experienced explicit argumentation instruction. Yet, the degree of improvement varied between the two groups, favoring the Treatment group. Results also showed developments in the NOS conceptions of the Treatment group participants who experienced explicit instruction of NOS and argumentation. These results were interpreted along the following themes: instruction of argumentation, instruction of NOS, and coupling of instruction for argumentation and NOS.

Reconstruction of Teaching Materials with Socio-Scientific Issues Context on Source of Energy Content

One innovation that can be done to improve the quality of science learning is through the development of teaching materials. In this study teaching material was developed through a reconstruction process, where regard to educational goals, carefully described, and related to the context in real life. One of the science contents that is very close to the context in real life is a source of energy. Source of energy content can be used in science learning as a controversial Socio-Scientific Issues (SSI). This study used a modified R&D in two mains steps, research and initial information collection, as well as planning and development of products that adopt model of educational reconstruction (MER). Teaching material with SSI context on source of energy content that had been developed has several characteristics including, designed based on SSI learning, each description in theme is packaged by context, consisting of a cover page, introduction structure, end section, and additional reading lists. The teaching materials are validated and given an evaluation by experts to determine the feasibility of the teaching materials. In addition, students collected responses to determine the level of understanding and expectations of students towards teaching material that had been produced.

지역사회 연계 모의의회 참여 고등학생의 SSI(Socio-Scientific Issues) 논증활동 분석

The Socio-Scientific Issues (SSI) education is a process centered on controversial topics that reveal the social and ethical aspects of science, and aims to cultivate the knowledge as a citizen through the recognition and moral development of students. This study sought the possibility of using SSI education based on the agenda submitted by high school students who participated in the high school simulated assembly contest held by the Jeju Special Selfgoverning Council and the discussion data. The simulated council contest is held from the first convention in 2013 to the 6th convention in 2018, and a total of 132 agendas were submitted during this period. Among them, 40 SSI-related items accounted for 30% of the total, and a wide range of items such as the activation of electric vehicles for carbonfree islands, the protection of Jeju intertidal zone and the regulation of landfill of shared waterfront, the installation of companion animal crematoriums, and the ordinance on the acceptance of refugees in Jeju were submitted. In particular, 23 SSI-related issues were extracted from 2016 to 2018 in the last three years, and the argumentation activities on these agendas were analyzed through discourse elements and discourse cluster analysis framework focusing on how the argumentation activities in the SSI context unfolded. In the analysis of discourse elements, students were exchanging opinions on agenda through reasoning based on evidence in the structure of approval and opposition, and they were arguing in the direction of collecting opinions from each other and strengthening opinions so that agendas could be passed in a better direction. High school students’ argumentation about social issues related to science in the actual community is meaningful in that they have the experience of understanding the problems of the community themselves and deriving a plan for solving the problems. If the program related to the community is used more actively in connection with SSI education in the future, students will be able to directly experience the process of understanding various issues of the region and collecting opinions through discussions.

Using Socioscientific Issues to Enhance Students’ Emotional Competence

The premise of our study is that emotional competence (EC) serves as a foundational contributor to the achievement of science education goals in the context of socioscientific issues (SSIs). EC is a set of abilities necessary to accomplish adaptive goals in emotionally arousing situations. We contend that the development of EC is conducive to learning and character development in the SSI context. Therefore, we set out to develop and implement an EC intervention SSI program (called EC-SSI) and to verify the program’s effect on students’ EC, and “character and values.” We developed a nine-lesson program using two SSI scenarios: the Coltan mining problem and a designer baby dilemma. We collected data using questionnaires and student worksheets from 26 tenth graders and applied a mixed method approach to data gathering and analysis. We found that the program significantly improved students’ EC and “character and values.” From these results, we conclude that instructional strategies to improve students’ EC can be applied in SSI instruction and can positively affect student’s empathy and emotion regulation. We suggested that SSIs can provide an appropriate context for the improvement of students’ EC in science education and educators consider EC training integration at appropriate stages of science learning. We also recommend follow-up research to examine how students’ EC development impacts their SSI decision-making.

Quality of preservice teachers argumentation in socioscientific issues context

This study aimed to explore preservice teachers’ (PTs) argumentation quality during socioscientific issues (SSI) based classroom discussions. The participants of the study were 20 PTs from the Department of Elementary Education at a large, research oriented public university in Turkey. Qualitative case study method was used in this study. The study covered four socioscientific issues (food additives, alternative energy sources, climate change, and the industrial revolution). Each issue was discussed in the classroom and each discussion was video recorded. Video recordings were transcribed verbatim and used as data source. Classroom discussions verbatim transcribes were analyzed by using a modified version of Toulmin’s argumentation pattern (TAP) model. The modified approach was found to be more conducive to informal argumentation patterns, in order to analyze preservice teachers’ use of claims, grounds, warrants, backings, and rebuttals that support their debate positions, as well as their ability to use evidence-based reasoning, form coherent lines of reasoning, and use of correct (appropriate) evidence. Results of the study revealed that preservice teachers’ use of evidence to support conflicting ideas tended to increase as their use of incorrect or insufficient use of evidence decreased through the present study.

과학관련 사회쟁점(SSI) 맥락에서의 소집단 논증활동 분석틀 개발: 담화클러스터와 담화요소의 분석

과학관련 사회쟁점(SSI) 맥락에서의 소집단 논증활동 분석틀 개발: 담화클러스터와 담화요소의 분석

Students’ Participation in an Interdisciplinary, Socioscientific Issues Based Undergraduate Human Biology Major and Their Understanding of Scientific Inquiry

The purpose of this study was to examine whether Socioscientific Issues (SSI) based learning environments affect university students’ epistemological understanding of scientific inquiry differently from traditional science educational contexts. We identify and compare conceptions of scientific inquiry of students participating in an interdisciplinary, SSI-focused undergraduate human biology major (SSI) and those participating in a traditional biology major (BIO). Forty-five SSI students and 50 BIO students completed an open-ended questionnaire examining their understanding of scientific inquiry. Eight general themes including approximately 60 subthemes emerged from questionnaire responses, and the numbers of students including each subtheme in their responses were statistically compared between groups. A subset of students participated in interviews, which were used to validate and triangulate questionnaire data and probe students’ understanding of scientific inquiry in relation to their majors. We found that both groups provided very similar responses, differing significantly in only five subthemes. Results indicated that both groups held generally adequate understandings of inquiry, but also a number of misconceptions. Small differences between groups supported by both questionnaires and interviews suggest that the SSI context contributed to nuanced understandings, such as a more interdisciplinary and problem-centered conception of scientific inquiry. Implications for teaching and research are discussed.