Understanding Of Nature Of Science Research Articles

Effects of Historical Story Telling on Student Understanding of Nature of Science

Concepts related to the nature of science (NOS) have been considered an important part of scientific literacy as reflected in its inclusion in curriculum documents. A significant amount of science education research has focused on improving learners’ understanding of NOS. One approach that has often been advocated is an explicit and reflective approach. Some researchers have used the history of science to provide learners with explicit and reflective experiences with NOS concepts. Previous research on using the history of science (HOS) in science instruction has approached HOS in many different ways and consequently has led to inconsistent findings regarding its utility for improving learning. One promising method for overcoming this inconsistency and teaching NOS with more traditional science content is using stories based in the history of science. A mixed method approach was used to determine whether and how the use of science stories influences undergraduates’ understanding of NOS. Particular attention was paid to the explanations that students used for their understandings. Intervention and control groups completed the Student Understanding of Science and Scientific Inquiry (SUSSI) instrument. The intervention group was taught using two historical narratives while the control group was taught using minimal history. A subset of both groups was also interviewed regarding their SUSSI responses and their experiences in the course. Results indicated that the introduction of science stories helped participants gain a better understanding of the role of imagination and creativity in science. Participants mentioned science stories in their explanations for why they changed towards more informed views on SUSSI items related to imagination and creativity. The current study adds to a growing body of literature regarding the use of stories in the science classroom.

Teaching the teacher: exploring STEM graduate students’ nature of science conceptions in a teaching methods course

ABSTRACTGraduate students regularly teach undergraduate STEM courses and can positively impact students’ understanding of science. Yet little research examines graduate students’ knowledge about nature of science (NOS) or instructional strategies for teaching graduate students about NOS. This exploratory study sought to understand how a 1-credit Teaching in Higher Education course that utilised an explicit, reflective, and mixed-context approach to NOS instruction impacted STEM graduate students’ NOS conceptions and teaching intentions. Participants included 13 graduate students. Data sources included the Views of Nature of Science (VNOS-Form C) questionnaire administered pre- and post-instruction, semi-structured interviews with a subset of participants, and a NOS-related course project. Prior to instruction participants held many alternative NOS conceptions. Post-instruction, participants’ NOS conceptions improved substantially, particularly in their understandings of theories and laws and the tentative nature of scientific knowledge. All 12 participants planning to teach NOS intended to use explicit instructional approaches. A majority of participants also integrated novel ideas to their intended NOS instruction. These results suggest that a teaching methods course for graduate students with embedded NOS instruction can address alternative NOS conceptions and facilitate intended use of effective NOS instruction. Future research understanding graduate students' NOS understandings and actual NOS instruction is warranted.

Examining Thai biology teachers' understanding of the nature of science: Where there are various ethnic groups of the Mekhong sub-region people

This research aimed at examining Thai biology teachers' understanding of the nature of science (NoS). Participants included 118 biology teachers from 51 schools in Nakhon Phanom and Mukdahan provinces, Thailand, where there are various ethnic groups of the Mekhong sub-region people. Research methodology utilised an interpretive paradigm. Teachers' understanding of NoS was interpreted through an open-ended questionnaire about NoS that was adapted from Lederman et al. views of NoS questionnaire form-C and interviews. The results of this study shows that more than 50% of the participants had shown uninformed, ambiguous I and ambiguous II views in the questionnaire and interviews. The paper discuss the NoS understanding of teachers' in order to after this improving their understanding of NoS and preparing them for teaching. Keywords: Biology teacher, nature of science (NoS), understanding, VNOS-C, teaching.

Teaching and Learning Nature of Science in Elementary Classrooms

Our goal in this article is to provide research-based strategies for embedding Nature of Science (NOS) into science instruction at the elementary level. We thus intend to aid researchers, professional developers, and teachers in noting that not only is it important and possible to teach NOS at the elementary levels, but also that elementary students can learn ideas about NOS. The manuscript reviews research from the past two decades on what students of ages 5 to 12 understand about NOS after appropriate instruction. Research-based teaching strategies are then shared to provide methods for researchers, professional developers, and teachers to improve students’ NOS understandings. These strategies include embedding NOS into existing curricula, using classroom interactions, using visual representations, and using students’ written work.

The transfer of nature of science understandings: a question of similarity and familiarity of contexts

ABSTRACTIt is important to question the generalizability of the knowledge about the nature of science (NOS), and thus know whether the knowledge about NOS can be transferred to various contexts. As such, the purpose of this study was to investigate whether students were able to transfer their acquired NOS understandings into contexts that vary in their similarity to the context of learning. Thirty-eight 7th grade students in two intact sections participated in the study. The treatment extended over seven weeks and involved teaching a unit about plate tectonics, earthquakes, and volcanoes. Only one of the two groups was explicitly taught about NOS in relation to the topics under study. To assess the change in students’ understandings of NOS and their ability to transfer these acquired understandings, a five-topic open-ended questionnaire and individual semi-structured interviews were used. Some of the questionnaire topics focused on scientific issues and were considered similar to the context of learning, while other topics were socioscientific and were considered less similar. Results showed that the transfer of participants’ acquired NOS understandings occurred when the context was similar to the context of learning and when the context was more familiar based on prior knowledge. Interpretations related to knowledge base schema, the distance between contexts, as well as the explicit teaching about transfer were discussed.

Investigating the Nature Of Science: An Empirical Report on the Teacher Development Program in Thailand

Nature of Science (NOS) is a basic of understandings how science concerns human lives and social development. If the nature of science is a loss in science education and its implementation, the concept of science learning is failed in science education philosophy. Preservice teachers are initial key factors to introduce and implement NOS for those students. This study investigates understandings of nature of the science of preservice science teachers from bachelor study in science education program. Participants are 121 preservice science teachers who enrolled in the second semester in the academic year 2017 from a university in the northeast of Thailand. Questionnaires via Google Forms were used for data collection. Descriptive statistics and qualitative data were provided. Data were analyzed and grouped by level of understandings of NOS. A correlation was also studied for testing different understandings. The findings indicated their understandings to meet the goal of science education, understandings need to embed NOS in curriculum and instruction. Some understandings of participants seem to be not understandable. It needs more discussion and explorations for future enhancement of understandings of NOS through the teacher preparation program.

How Does Learner-Directed Scientific Investigations Influence Students’ Questioning and Their Nature of Science Conceptions?

Action research was conducted in two sections of a scientific inquiry class in a Midwestern U.S. university to identify the types of questions that students ask for their investigations, identify emerging patterns regarding students’ questioning, and determine students’ ability to transfer their nature of science (NOS) understanding to a new scientific phenomenon. Participants included 28 non-science major freshmen and sophomores. Data sources included the Earthworm Activity Field Guide, the post-reflection sheet, The Views of Nature of Science Version B Questionnaire (VNOS-B), and audio recordings of small group discussions when students were creating and selecting questions for the first and the second investigations when they were in the field. Findings showed that students improved their ability to ask more investigable and more specific questions after conducting an investigation. Also, students asked fewer descriptive and more cause-and-effect or pattern-seeking questions after the first investigation. The results showed that students were able to apply their understandings of NOS aspects to a new concept. However, some aspects were addressed more than the others. Results suggest that giving students opportunities to ask their own questions following their own interests improves their ability to generate good investigable questions. The results also suggest that reflecting on NOS aspects during content-related inquiry activities enhances students’ NOS understandings.

Authentic Inquiry through Modeling in Biology (AIM-Bio): An Introductory Laboratory Curriculum That Increases Undergraduates' Scientific Agency and Skills.

Providing opportunities for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics undergraduates to engage in authentic scientific practices is likely to influence their view of science and may impact their decision to persist through graduation. Laboratory courses provide a natural place to introduce students to scientific practices, but existing curricula often miss this opportunity by focusing on confirming science content rather than exploring authentic questions. Integrating authentic science within laboratory courses is particularly challenging at high-enrollment institutions and community colleges, where access to research-active faculty may be limiting. The Authentic Inquiry through Modeling in Biology (AIM-Bio) curriculum presented here engages students in authentic scientific practices through iterative cycles of model generation, testing, and revision. AIM-Bio university and community college students demonstrated their ability to propose diverse models for biological phenomena, formulate and address hypotheses by designing and conducting experiments, and collaborate with classmates to revise models based on experimental data. Assessments demonstrated that AIM-Bio students had an enhanced sense of project ownership and greater identification as scientists compared with students in existing laboratory courses. AIM-Bio students also experienced measurable gains in their nature of science understanding and skills for doing science. Our results suggest AIM-Bio as a potential alternative to more resource-intensive curricula with similar outcomes.

فعالیة مدخل القصص العلمی القائم على الوسائط المتعددة فی تنمیة التحصیل و فهم طبیعة العلم لدى تلامیذ المرحلة الإعدادیة

ملخص عربى : هدف البحث تحديد فعالية مدخل القصص العلمي القائم على الوسائط المتعددة في تنمية التحصيل بمستويات (التذکر- الفهم – التطبيق)، وتنمية فهم طبيعة العلم المتمثلة في الأبعاد الآتية (أهدافه – خصائصه – أخلاقياته – وعلاقته بالتکنولوجيا). ولتحقيق ذلک تم استخدام التصميم شبه التجريبي، وتم إعداد برمجية القصص العلمي باستخدام الوسائط المتعددة، کما تم إعداد أدوات البحث المتمثلة في اختبار تحصيلي، اختبار فهم طبيعة العلم وتطبيقها على عينة مکونة من (87) تلميذ وتلميذة من تلاميذ الصف الأول الإعدادي بمدرستين تابعتين لإدارة بلقاس التعليمية بمحافظة الدقهلية، حيث تم تقسيمهم إلى (43) تلميذ وتلميذة للمجموعة التجريبية، و(44) تلميذ وتلميذة للمجموعة الضابطة، وأسفرت النتائج عن وجود فرق ذات دلالة إحصائية لصالح المجموعة التجريبية في کل من التحصيل وفهم طبيعة العلم يشير إلى فعالية مدخل القصص العلمي القائم على الوسائط المتعددة في تنمية التحصيل وفهم طبيعة العلم. ملخص انجليزى : The research aimed at determining the effectiveness of multimedia-based storytelling in developing both academic achievement at levels of (Knowledge - comprehension – application), and understanding of the nature of science with dimensions: (objectives – characteristics – ethic - and its relation to technology). To achieve that, the quasi-experimental design was used, multimedia-based scientific storytelling approach; academic achievement test, and test of understanding the nature of the science were prepared, these tools were applied on a sample of (87) students of the 1st grade preparatory students distributed into two schools of the of educational Belqas district at Dakahlia governorate, however, (43) students of the experimental group and (44) Is a student and student of the control group. The results showed that there is a statistically significant difference in favor of the experimental group in both academic achievement and understanding nature of science. So, these results indicated the effectiveness of multimedia-based scientific storytelling approach in developing academic achievement and understanding nature of science.

Learning Opportunities in Biology Teacher Education Contribute to Understanding of Nature of Science

In order to educate scientifically literate children, teachers are required to include nature of science (NOS) in their classroom practice. However, as biology teachers’ own understanding of NOS is limited, promoting an initial understanding of NOS in teacher education is crucial. The aim of this study is to elucidate the importance of the first phase of teacher education for biology teachers’ understanding of NOS. More precisely, the study aims to examine the relationship between institutional determinants (e.g., the type of teacher education programme) and learning opportunities for pre-service biology teachers’ understanding of NOS. Pre-service biology teachers (N = 232) participated in a cross-sectional testing. The corresponding descriptions of N = 649 modules of biology teacher education from 20 German universities were analysed. Qualitative and quantitative methods were applied to relate the institutional determinants and the individual amount of learning opportunities to pre-service biology teachers’ understanding of NOS. Results reveal that both institutional determinants as well as the amount of learning opportunities are related to pre-service biology teachers’ understanding of NOS. This indicates that teacher education at university represents an important phase for biology teachers’ understanding of NOS. The results are discussed in terms of consequences for further research and teacher education.

Trends of the Arabic Research on the Nature of Science

The paper investigates the trends of the Arabic research with the emphasis on the nature of science. Hence, a descriptive analytical approach, both qualitative and quantitative forms, was used to explore 42 online journals and articles. The research sample was defined by online journals and articles cover the question of the Nature of Science (NOS) in the Arabic setting. The data collection tool has implemented a content analysis checklist that contains three sections the fields of study section, the subjects of each field, as well as methods and procedures. The results taken from the data analysis have shown that most Arabic researchers focus on the curriculum, teaching and learning environments and their improvement, the use of new teaching methods, students’ understanding of NOS, as well as teacher’s knowledge and teaching strategies. Also, many researchers have used descriptive methods and techniques. The research findings suggest that Arabic NOS has been done by teaching science through education. The paper provides recommendations to ensure greater government involvement in establishing science centers that attract graduating students in science learning and relevant projects.

Argumentation, critical thinking, nature of science and socioscientific issues: a dialogue between two researchers

ABSTRACTThe purpose of this paper is to compare and contrast between two theoretical frameworks for addressing nature of science (NOS) and socioscientific issues (SSI) in school science. These frameworks are critical thinking (CT) and argumentation (AR). For the past years, the first and second authors of this paper have pursued research in this area using CT and AR as theoretical frameworks, respectively. Yacoubian argues that future citizens need to develop a critical mindset as they are guided to (1) practice making judgments on what views of NOS to acquire and (2) practice making decisions on SSI through applying their NOS understandings. Khishfe asserts that AR is an important component of decision making when dealing with SSI and the practice in AR in relation to controversial issues is needed for informed decision making. She argues that AR as a framework may assist in the development of more informed understandings of NOS. In this paper, the authors delve into a dialogue for (1) elucidating strengths and potential of each framework, (2) highlighting challenges that they face in their research using the frameworks in question, (3) exploring the extent to which the frameworks can overlap, and (4) proposing directions for future research.

Authentic research in an introductory geology laboratory and student reflections: Impact on nature of science understanding and science self-efficacy

ABSTRACTThis study examines the effects of an extended authentic research experience on students’ understanding of the nature of science (NOS) and self-efficacy toward science. The curriculum of an introductory physical geology lab was transformed to include a six-week, student-driven research project focused on local groundwater and surface water issues. Students’ NOS understanding was measured by using a modified version of the Student Understanding of Science and Scientific Inquiry questionnaire (n = 181) and their science self-efficacy using a modified vocational self-efficacy survey (n = 179). Data were collected on students during four semesters. We found that the combination of having students explicitly reflect on the NOS and working on a research project improves students’ overall NOS understanding, and that the increase was higher for female students. We found that for non-STEM students the research project alone had a more positive effect on their NOS understanding. A research project alone did not significantly increase non-STEM students’ science self-efficacy, but adding explicit NOS reflections did, and more so for female students. The self-efficacy of STEM students increased more than the one of non-STEM students if they completed both a research project and reflected on NOS concepts. This complex set of results suggests that there are multiple ways to implement an authentic research experience to increase students’ NOS understanding, whereas to increase students’ self-efficacy, reflections on the NOS are a good strategy, particularly for STEM students. For female students, a promising approach is designing an experiment and reflecting on the NOS.

Changes in Pre-service Science Teachers’ Understandings After Being Involved in Explicit Nature of Science and Socioscientific Argumentation Processes

The study explored the changes in pre-service science teachers’ understanding of the nature of science and their opinions about the nature of science, science teaching and argumentation after their participation in explicit nature of science (NOS) and socioscientific argumentation processes. The participants were 56 third-grade pre-service science teachers studying in a state university in Turkey. The treatment group comprised 27 participants, and there were 29 participants in the comparison group. The comparison group participants were involved in a student-centred science-teaching process, and the participants of the treatment group were involved in explicit NOS and socioscientific argumentation processes. In the study, which lasted a total of 11 weeks, a NOS-as-argumentation questionnaire was administered to all the participants to determine their understanding of NOS at the beginning and end of the data collection process, and six random participants of the treatment group participated in semi-structured interview questions in order to further understand their views regarding NOS, science teaching and argumentation. Qualitative and quantitative data analysis revealed that the explicit NOS and socioscientific argumentation processes had a significant effect on pre-service science teachers’ NOS understandings. Furthermore, NOS, argumentation and science teaching views of the participants in the treatment group showed a positive change. The results of this study are discussed in light of the related literature, and suggestions are made within the context of contribution to science-teaching literature, improvement of education quality and education of pre-service teachers.

The Impact of a Course on Nature of Science Pedagogical Views and Rationales

This study explored changes in preservice teachers’ (PSTs) nature of science pedagogical (NOSP) views and nature of science (NOS) rationales using pre- and post-course written responses as well as interview data. Through systematic analysis, themes were generated and compared to the NOS literature. Comparisons between pre- and post-course data demonstrate improved and deepened NOS views, NOSP views that are more aligned with NOS literature, and a greater number of rationales for including NOS. All participants were enrolled in the “Inquiry and Natures of Science, Technology, and Engineering” (INSTE) course. However, six participants were enrolled in INSTE as their first course in which NOS and NOSP were addressed. The other six participants were enrolled in INSTE as their second course in which NOS and NOSP were addressed, with science methods as their first course in which NOS and NOSP were addressed. By comparing participants enrolled in INSTE as their first course to those enrolled in INSTE as their second course, we observed that NOS understanding seemed to develop in a first experience alongside some NOS rationales, but NOSP views lagged for participants in INSTE as their first course. Participants enrolled in INSTE as their second course developed more robust and literature-aligned NOSP views and more multifaceted NOS rationales. Therefore, this study bolsters arguments that teachers need to receive extended NOS and NOSP instruction.

NATURAL SCIENCES JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS’ UNDERSTANDING OF THE NATURE OF SCIENCE AND ITS IMPACT ON THEIR PLANNING OF LESSONS

An adequate understanding and classroom application of the Nature of Science (NOS) has become imperative for science teachers. Current research in senior high school science teachers’ understanding of NOS is extensive but junior high school natural sciences teachers’ understanding of NOS and planning of lessons requires further exploration. Six junior high school natural sciences teachers’ understandings of NOS, and how they translated their NOS understandings into lesson planning in South Africa were explored. The conceptual framework of the NOS used in this research is drawn from the seven NOS aspects of explicit and implicit teaching of NOS. Data were collected from teachers’ academic background questionnaires, Views of Nature of Science (VNOS(C)) questionnaires, semi-structured interviews and lesson planning documents of teachers. Data were analysed descriptively and interpretively. The findings revealed that junior high school teachers possessed inadequate understanding of NOS, and that their planning for teaching NOS was hardly influenced by their understanding of NOS aspects. The teachers’ work-schedules and lesson plans showed little explicit links of NOS aspects to lesson content. The research findings have implications for the preparation of lessons with NOS aspects linked to the curriculum content. Keywords: junior high school teachers, lesson planning, nature of science, natural sciences.

The effect of teaching the nature of science on students’ acceptance and understanding of evolution: myth or reality?

The results of studies of the nature of science (NOS) as a factor that enhances students’ understanding of evolution have been inconclusive. Therefore, the main purpose of this study was to test the role of NOS instruction in enhancing students’ learning about evolution. We used a quasi-experimental design with pre- and post-tests to investigate the impact of teaching evolution with and without NOS in two classes with 15–16-year-old students, who were randomly assigned to these two classes. To measure their understanding of NOS and their acceptance and understanding of evolution, we used three different instruments that have been shown to generate reliable and valid inferences in comparable populations. The main results of this study were that, in the class in which the teaching of evolution included NOS instruction, the students’ understanding of NOS and their acceptance of evolution significantly improved. However, irrespective of the use of NOS instruction, both classes increased their understanding of evolution. These results support the claim that NOS instruction may influence students’ acceptance of evolution but not their understanding of evolution and natural selection.

Students’ understandings of nature of science and their arguments in the context of four socio-scientific issues

ABSTRACTThe purpose of this study was to examine students understandings about nature of science (NOS) and their arguments in context of controversial socio-scientific issue (SSI). A total of 74 11th graders in six schools in Saudi Arabia participated in the study. The instrument used was a questionnaire consisting of four scenarios addressing SSI about global warming, genetically modified food, acid rain, and human cloning. The scenarios were followed by questions relating to argumentation and NOS. Quantitative and qualitative measures were employed to analyze the data related to participants understandings of three NOS aspects (subjective, tentative, and empirical) and their arguments components (argument, counterargument, and rebuttal). Results showed no significant correlations between argument components and the NOS aspects. On the other hand, qualitative data showed that participants who generated well-developed arguments across the four SSI also exhibited more informed understandings of the NOS aspects, especially for female participants. Further, the chi-square analyses did not show significant differences in participants arguments and NOS understandings across the four scenarios. Again, the qualitative data from questionnaires showed differences in participants responses to the different scenarios. The results were interpreted along contextual factors, emotional factors, and cultural factors. Implications for the teaching of NOS and arguments were discussed.

Opening the Black Box of NOS: Or Knowing How to Go On With Science Education, Wittgenstein, and STS in a Precarious World

In this response essay we offer some critical comments on the nature of science (NOS) and thereby hopefully extend Hodson and Wong’s (2017, this issue) argument concerning understanding scientific practice. Drawing on selected theorising in science and technology studies (STS), we argue that NOS needs to take much more seriously sociopolitical contexts of its own formations and embrace wider contemporary social and ecological imbalances, precarities, and injustices. Drawing on Wittgenstein’s later work, in particular notions of “family resemblances,” we are encouraged by Hodson and Wong’s desires to focus on scientific practice. However, we suggest that their analysis is incomplete because it remains undulywedded to lists of representative features prescinded from scientific practices. We conclude with three suggestions for opening up the NOS black box and extending the scope of NOS debate, by (a) more fully embracing science and education as dynamic, performative, grammatical investigations; (b) exploring ways of reconnecting scientific content (representations of nature) with NOS (scientific cultures); and (c) better understanding NOS as a successful situated curriculum movement. As such, we suggest, it might be distinctively positioned to help challenge increasingly widespread neoliberal, positivistic dreams of futurity.

Challenges and Changes: Developing Teachers’ and Initial Teacher Education Students’ Understandings of the Nature of Science

Teachers need an understanding of the nature of science (NOS) to enable them to incorporate NOS into their teaching of science. The current study examines the usefulness of a strategy for challenging or changing teachers’ understandings of NOS. The teachers who participated in this study were 10 initial teacher education chemistry students and six experienced teachers from secondary and primary schools who were introduced to an explicit and reflective activity, a dramatic reading about a historical scientific development. Concept maps were used before and after the activity to assess teachers’ knowledge of NOS. The participants also took part in a focus group interview to establish whether they perceived the activity as useful in developing their own understanding of NOS. Initial analysis led us to ask another group, comprising seven initial teacher education chemistry students, to take part in a modified study. These participants not only completed the same tasks as the previous participants but also completed a written reflection commenting on whether the activity and focus group discussion enhanced their understanding of NOS. Both Lederman et al.’s (Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 39(6), 497–521, 2002) concepts of NOS and notions of “naive” and “informed” understandings of NOS and Hay’s (Studies in Higher Education, 32(1), 39–57, 2007) notions of “surface” and “deep” learning were used as frameworks to examine the participants’ specific understandings of NOS and the depth of their learning. The ways in which participants’ understandings of NOS were broadened or changed by taking part in the dramatic reading are presented. The impact of the data-gathering tools on the participants’ professional learning is also discussed.