Tentative Nature Of Science Research Articles

In-Service Science Teachers’ Views of the Empirical and Tentative Nature of Science

According to research, teachers' views about the nature of science influence their students' views, as well as how they teach science. The goal of this study was to ascertain in-service science teachers' views on the empirical and tentative nature of science. A mixed-methods approach was adopted. The sample comprised of ten in-service senior high school science teachers (7 males and 3 females) who were purposefully selected. In-service science instructors exhibited naive views of science (M = 2.81, SD = 0.33). Majority of the in-service science teachers (80%) held naive views, and 20% held informed views of the nature of science. The study revealed that in-service science instructors held a naive understanding of the empirical nature of science (M = 2.60, SD = 0.31). They did, however, held informed views about the tentative character of science (M = 3.77, SD = 0.79). The study recommends that research and professional development activities be directed toward assisting science teachers in developing a deep, comprehensive, and integrated grasp of science. Nature of science should be explicitly taught at the teacher education institutions to help prospective teachers understand the nature of science.

CAPTURING STUDENT’S PROFILE OF NATURE OF SCIENCE IN SEKOLAH INDONESIA KUALA LUMPUR

The purpose of this research is to analyze the profile of students’ Nature of Science (NOS) of 7th, 8th and 9th grade Junior High School in Sekolah Indonesia Kuala Lumpur. Descriptive method is used to describe the current condition of students’ Nature of Science (NOS) after science lesson on interaction of organisms and its environemnet topic conducted in the class. The data in this research is gained through constructed response item test that is given without any academics treatment before. The result shows that the tentative Nature of Science (NOS) aspect is the most achieved by the students, while creative and imaginative nature of scientific knowledge possess the least. This research suggested the teachers to execute learning activity that cover the entire aspects of Nature of Science (NOS).

Ptolemy’s experiments on refraction in science class

In this paper, the inclusion of history and philosophy of science in science teaching is proposed with the goal of depicting pre-service primary teachers’ perception of the role of historical experiments in learning science and the nature of science. In order to achieve this, a teaching–learning sequence was designed and conducted in the context of an Introductory Physics Laboratory Course following the integrated approach to teaching the nature of science. Ptolemy’s experiments on refraction and the combination of his advanced and erroneous views contributed to pre-service primary teachers’ conceptualization of the empirical and tentative nature of science and the relationship between mathematics and science. The majority of the pre-service primary teachers perceived the history of science as important in understanding scientific concepts and aspects of the nature of science.

Hidden in the Figures: What Students Are Telling Us About the Effectiveness of Astrobiology Outreach.

Astrobiology is an ideal context to engage students with the processes of science. However, there is a problem in measuring the effectiveness of engaging students with astrobiology where the learning outcome is aimed at improving student views of science. Most studies suggest little to no change in students' views of science, especially in short experiences of hours or days. These studies mostly use quantitative methods, such as numerical scores derived from survey rating scales and responses. We propose that hidden in those figures, the words of students in written survey responses are telling us about the effectiveness of astrobiology outreach at improving understanding of science. We sampled 483 students from multiple high schools involved in an established astrobiology outreach program in Australia, using pre- and postintervention data collected from an open- and closed-form survey to identify the impacts of the program on students' views of science. We applied both conventional quantitative score analysis methods and computer-based qualitative analysis methods-NVivo and Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC) programs. While there was little difference in postsurvey scores, there is evidence in the qualitative data that the astrobiology program creates cognitive conflict in students, a trigger to the learning process that can open students to the first steps in understanding the creative, subjective, and tentative nature of science.

Attitudes towards science and views of nature of science among elementary school students in terms of gender, cultural background and grade level variables

ABSTRACTBackground: There is a growing interest in investigating attitudes towards science and views of Nature of Science among elementary grade students in terms of gender, cultural backgrounds, and grade level variables.Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine the attitudes toward science and views of Nature of Science among Spanish students, Spanish students of gypsy ethnicity and second-generation Spanish students with east-European heritage, and to determine if their attitudes are related to their views of Nature of Science.Sample: Data for this study was gathered from seven elementary schools in Spain, forming a convenience sample of 149 students enrolled from 2nd to 5th grade.Design and Methods: The Nature of Science Instrument (NOSI) and an adaptation of the Test of Science Related Attitudes scale (TOSRA) were used. Follow-up structured interviews were performed with 15 participants.Results: Regarding gender, boys had better attitudes toward Science than girls but more naïve views of the empirical Nature of Science. In relation to cultural background, second generation Spanish students with east-European heritage reported significantly better attitudes toward Science than Spanish students and Spanish students of gypsy ethnicity. No differences in Nature of Science views were found. Concerning grade level, third graders had more positive attitudes toward Science than fifth and sixth graders and more informed views of the tentative Nature of Science. Finally, no relation between Nature of Science views and attitudes towards Science were identified.Conclusion: This study stress the need to address the steady decline in positive attitude toward Science and to improve students’ views of Nature of Science from early elementary grades, and to use gender and culturally inclusive science teaching strategies.

Development and validation of nature of science instrument for elementary school students

The purposes of this study were to develop and validate an instrument for assessing elementary students’ nature of science (NOS) views and to explain the elementary school students’ NOS views, in terms of varying grade levels and gender. The sample included 782 students enrolled in sixth, seventh, and eighth grades. Exploratory factor analysis factor structures and confirmatory factor analysis fit indices confirmed the existence of the hypothesised four dimensions in the structure of the nature of science instrument (NOSI). These dimensions and associated Cronbach α reliabilities of scores were observation and inferences (0.74), tentative NOS (0.76), imagination and creativity (0.80), and empirical NOS (0.63). Descriptive analyses revealed that the most favourable NOS views were obtained for the empirical nature of scientific knowledge. The students were uncertain about NOS views related to tentative NOS and imagination and creativity. The least favourable NOS views were obtained for observation and inferences.

중학교 과학영재들의 과학의 본성에 대한 인식 분석

The nature of science has been recognized in a great deal in the field of science education. However, only few innovative programs are offered for science-gifted students to improve their recognition of the nature of science. The current study describes and analyzes science-gifted students` understandings of the nature of science (NOS). In addition, the study looks into contradictory views among the aspects of NOS, which are fundamental data in constructing target programs on NOS for science gifted students. Data used in this study were collected from 73 middle school science-gifted students using an open-ended questionnaire, VNOS. The results of this study showed that the participants` understanding of NOS was significantly distributed on naive or transition view except for `tentative NOS`, and the results revealed inconsistent view among the aspects of NOS. This study proposes two suggestions to enhance the recognition of science-gifted on NOS of science to informed state and to have consistent perspectives with other areas. First, the role of experiment has to be changed-it should be the process in constructing scientific knowledge rather than an instrument to check scientific knowledge to transform perspective on experimental data and scientific knowledge. Second, various opportunities must be provided to science-gifted students, so they can experience the culture and community of scientists and science to gain a wider insight of science.

If We Teach Them, They Can Learn: Young Students Views of Nature of Science During an Informal Science Education Program

There have been substantial reform efforts in science education to improve students’ understandings of science and its processes and provide continual support for students becoming scientifically literate (AAAS, Benchmarks for science literacy, Oxford University Press, New York, 1993; NRC, National Academy Press, Washington, DC, 1996; NSTA, NSTA position statement: The nature of science, www.nsta.org/159#x00026;psid=22, 2000). Despite previous research, it is still unclear whether young children are actually developmentally ready to conceptualize the ideas that are recommended in the reforms (Akerson and Volrich, J Res Sci Teach 43:377–394, 2006). The purpose of this study was to explore how explicit-reflective instruction could improve young students’ understanding of NOS. During an informal education setting, the authors taught NOS aspects using explicit-reflective instruction. Overall the students participating in the program improved their understanding of the target aspects of NOS through use of explicit reflective instruction. However, the levels of improvement varied across different aspects. Students improved the most in their understanding of the tentative nature of science and the roles of observation in scientific work, although there was still some confusion regarding the distinction between observation and inference. More work needs to be done exploring these specific topics and the role explicit reflective practice can play in identifying the particular problems students have in distinguishing these constructs.

If We Teach Them, They Can Learn: Young Students Views of Nature of Science Aspects to Early Elementary Students During an Informal Science Education Program

There have been substantial reform efforts in science education to improve students’ understandings of science and its processes and provide continual support for students becoming scientifically literate (American Association for the Advancement of Science in Benchmarks for science literacy, Oxford University Press, New York, 1993; National Research Council in Mathematics and science education around the world, National Academy Press, Washington DC, 1996; National Science Teachers Association in NSTA position statement 2000). Despite previous research, it is still unclear whether young children are actually developmentally ready to conceptualize the ideas that are recommended in the reforms (Akerson V, Volrich M (2006) Journal of Research and Science Teaching, 43, 377–394). The purpose of this study was to explore how explicit-reflective instruction could improve young students’ understanding of NOS. During an informal education setting, the authors taught NOS aspects using explicit-reflective instruction. Overall the students participating in the program improved their understanding of the target aspects of NOS through use of explicit reflective instruction. However, the levels of improvement varied across different aspects. Students improved the most in their understanding of the tentative nature of science and the roles of observation in scientific work, although there was still some confusion regarding the distinction between observation and inference. More work needs to be done exploring these specific topics and the role explicit reflective practice can play in identifying the particular problems students have in distinguishing these constructs.

Teaching Nature of Science to K‐2 Students: What understandings can they attain?

This study explored the influence of a Saturday Science program that used explicit reflective instruction through contextualized and decontextualized guided and authentic inquiry on K‐2 students’ views of nature of science (NOS). The six‐week program ran for 2.5 hours weekly and emphasized NOS in a variety of science content areas, culminating in an authentic inquiry designed and carried out by the K‐2 students. The Views of Nature of Science Form D was used to interview K‐2 students pre‐ and post‐instruction. Copies of student work were retained for content analysis. Videotapes made of each week’s science instruction were reviewed to ensure that explicit reflective NOS instruction took place. Explicit NOS teaching strategies included (1) introducing NOS through decontextualized activities, (2) embedding NOS into science content through contextualized activities, (3) using children’s literature, (4) debriefings and embedded NOS assessments, and (5) guided and student‐designed inquiries. Results indicate that K‐2 students improved their NOS views over the course of the program, suggesting that they are developmentally ready for these concepts. Students developed adequate views of the distinction between observation and inference, the creative NOS, the tentative NOS, the empirical NOS, and to a lesser degree, the subjective NOS.

Teaching nature of science explicitly in a first‐grade internship setting

AbstractThis case study focused on a preservice teachers' (Morgan) efforts to explicitly emphasize nature of science (NOS) elements in her first‐grade internship classroom. The study assessed the change in first grade students' views of the inferential, tentative, and creative NOS as a result of the explicit instruction. Morgan held appropriate views of NOS, had the intention and motivation to teach NOS, and had a supporting experience explicitly emphasizing NOS embedded in physics content to peer college students. Data sources included weekly classroom observations of explicit NOS science lessons taught by Morgan, interview of Morgan to determine that her views of NOS were informed and that she would have the NOS content knowledge to teach in line with recommended reforms, and interviews of the first‐grade students pre‐ and postinstruction to determine the influence of Morgan's instruction on their views of observation and inference, the tentative NOS, and the creative and imaginative NOS. Data were analyzed to determine (a) the approaches Morgan used to emphasize NOS in her instruction, and (b) students' views of NOS pre‐ and postinstruction to track change in their views. It was found that Morgan was able to explicitly emphasize NOS using three teacher‐designed methods, and that the influence on student views of the inferential, tentative, and creative NOS was positive. Implications for teacher development are provided. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 43: 377–394, 2006

Brokering at the boundary: A prospective science teacher engages students in inquiry

Using a theoretical perspective of communities of practice, this case study examines a prospective chemistry teacher's inquiry-based teaching during his practicum. Conrad was a former student of an inquiry-oriented science course, Inquiry Empowering Technologies (IET). The research questions were (a) How did Conrad translate the IET inquiry practices during his practicum?; (b) How did the mentor teacher shape Conrad's participation?; (c) In what ways did Conrad negotiate new meanings of inquiry as a result of his practicum? Interview transcripts were the primary data source. Conrad carried many of the IET inquiry practices into his practicum. He equated inquiry with the use of evidence and had students create evidence-based explanations for how soap works. He chose not to incorporate the tentative nature of science. Although traditional in his own teaching, the mentor teacher supported Conrad by allowing him to teach through inquiry and by removing time constraints. As a result of his practicum, Conrad negotiated new meanings of inquiry teaching and developed an expanded view of technology. Conrad believed that high school students needed guidance when engaging in inquiry and that the tentative nature of science does not transfer to secondary chemistry. Implications for theory and practice are given. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Sci Ed90:522–543, 2006

Are we prepared?: An assessment of preservice science teacher educators' beliefs about nature of science

Given the important role of science teacher educators in developing sci- ence teachers' understandings of nature of science (NOS), this study explores 15 Turkish prospective science teacher educators' beliefs about NOS in the context of teacher ed- ucation reform in Turkey. A reflection-oriented qualitative approach was adopted in the investigation. Data were collected through two sets of interviews with the participants and analyzed by means of cognitive maps. The analysis of data revealed that most of the par- ticipants of the study had inadequate conceptions regarding NOS. The majority of these inadequate conceptions were concentrated under two aspects of NOS: scientific method and the tentative NOS. The participants' inadequate conceptions appeared to be linked to a lack of prior reflection about NOS. The study has implications for the preservice preparation of science teacher educators, teacher education reform, and teacher thinking at both the practical and the policy levels. C

Teachers' perceptions of HIV/AIDS in relation to understandings of the nature of science

This study investigates the perceptions of the cause of AIDS of two cohorts of in-service teachers. These teachers were registered for a part-time, in-service BEd (Science and Mathematics) programme. After completion of modules on the biology of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), social issues around acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), and the nature of science (NOS), they took part in small group discussions on the causes of AIDS within a framework of their understandings of the NOS. The teachers exhibited awareness of the current debate in South Africa around HIV and AIDS and were able to articulate and apply their understandings of the nature of science to the context of HIV/AIDS in terms of falsification and verification of theories, the social aspects of the NOS, paradigmatic thought, the tentative nature of science and the nature of scientific knowledge production. However, many of the teachers in this study said that they did not use the NOS to frame arguments on the causes of AIDS in their classrooms because they believe the notion that scientific knowledge is tentative would detract from their primary message that ‘AIDS kills’.

The nature of science and instructional practice: Making the unnatural natural

The purpose of this study was to delineate the factors that mediate the translation of preservice teachers' conceptions of the nature of science (NOS) into instructional planning and classroom practice. Fourteen preservice secondary science teachers participated in the study. Prior to their student teaching, participants responded to an open-ended questionnaire designed to assess their conceptions of the NOS. Analysis of the questionnaires was postponed until after the completion of student teaching to avoid biasing the collection and/or analysis of other data sources. Throughout student teaching, participants' daily lesson plans, classroom videotapes, and portfolios, and supervisors' weekly clinical observation notes were collated. These data were searched for explicit references to the NOS. Following student teaching, participants were individually interviewed to validate their responses to the open-ended questionnaire and to identify the factors or constraints that mediate the translation of their conceptions of the NOS into their classroom teaching. Participants were found to possess adequate understandings of several important aspects of the NOS including the empirical and tentative nature of science, the distinction between observation and inference, and the role of subjectivity and creativity in science. Many claimed to have taught the NOS through science-based activities. However, data analyses revealed that explicit references to the NOS were rare in their planning and instruction. Participants articulated several factors for this lack of attention to the NOS. These included viewing the NOS as less significant than other instructional outcomes, preoccupation with classroom management and routine chores, discomfort with their own understandings of the NOS, the lack of resources and experience for teaching the NOS, cooperating teachers' imposed restraints, and the lack of planning time. In addition to these volunteered constraints, the data revealed others related to an intricate interaction between participants' perspectives on the NOS, pedagogy, and instructional outcomes. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Sci Ed82:417–436, 1998.

Establishing an epistemological base for science teaching in the light of contemporary notions of the nature of science and of how children learn science

AbstractThe quality of science education is a pervasive concern in educational improvement efforts. This article examines two aspects of science education that have been identified as being of concern: Is the material presented in science classrooms representative of science “as it really is” and, secondly, what is the bearing of notions of “children's science” on curriculum reform? A review of the literature in both areas shows that educational theory has, so far, had little effect on classroom practice. An attempt is made to synthesize contemporary views on the tentative nature of science with a generative model of learning in science in order to establish a common epistemological base which could be used as a template for curriculum reform efforts.