Understanding Of Scientific Inquiry Research Articles

Children’s understanding of scientific inquiry: The role of instructional support and comparison making.

Children’s understanding of scientific inquiry: The role of instructional support and comparison making.

Reconciling Teachers’ Views and Practices with Early Graders’ Ability to Engage in Scientific Inquiry

This study used a three-phase design to explore how teachers’ views and practices of scientific inquiry can be reconciled with early graders’ ability to engage in scientific inquiry. First, 19 early years teachers were interviewed to explore their views and practices of scientific inquiry. Second, six standard two students were exposed to a problem-solving situation so that their ability to engage in scientific inquiry could be assessed. Finally, six standard two teachers who involved in designing the problem and who also observed students solving the problem were interviewed to explore any changes in their views. The six teachers also participated during the first phase. The findings indicated that teachers had distrust in early graders’ ability to engage in scientific inquiry, which corresponded to their rare practice of it. They also perceived large class sizes and unsupportive curriculum as barriers to engaging children in scientific inquiry. Further, the findings indicated that, under specific conditions, early graders are able to engage in some inquiry activities such as framing questions, designing and conducting investigations. Furthermore, changes in teachers’ beliefs and understanding of scientific inquiry were noted. Creating supportive curriculum and classroom environments for nurturing children’s inquiry are highly recommended.

Pre-service Primary Teachers’ Views about Scientific Inquiry

While scientific inquiry is a critical goal in science education reform, worldwide research indicates that students and educators misunderstand it. The present study investigates the scientific inquiry views of 170 senior-year pre-service primary school teachers using the VASI (Views About Scientific Inquiry) questionnaire. This standardized tool assesses learners’ understanding of scientific inquiry. The analysis of student responses demonstrates that the sampled pre-service primary education teachers hold naïve views on several aspects of scientific inquiry. Findings show that participants seem to have difficulty understanding that scientific inquiry begins with a question and are unclear on whether a single procedure generates the same results or if scientific data is equivalent to scientific evidence. The inability of pre-service teachers to understand scientific inquiry confirms a lack of general consideration of its process, raising doubt over the opportunities for learners to adopt and engage in scientific inquiry. Consequently, the implications of curriculum reform are discussed.

Correction to: Middle School Graduates’ Understandings of Scientific Inquiry and Its Relation to Academic Achievement

Correction to: Middle School Graduates’ Understandings of Scientific Inquiry and Its Relation to Academic Achievement

Middle School Graduates' Understandings of Scientific Inquiry and Its Relation to Academic Achievement.

There are conflicting reports not only on the effect of scientific inquiry on academic achievement but also insufficient evidence on the relationship between understanding the nature of scientific inquiry and academic achievement; more generalizable studies are needed. The purpose of this large sampled study was to investigate the middle school graduates' understandings of scientific inquiry (SI) and the relationship between students' understandings of SI and academic achievement. The sample of the study (X = 3067) was selected by purposeful and layered-sampling techniques among ninth grade students studying at high schools with different orientations in Istanbul. Descriptive and inferential statistical approaches were used in the data analysis procedure. The students' academic achievement was operationally defined as the scores they received in the High School Entrance Exam (HEE). Views about scientific inquiry scale was applied to determine the participants' understandings about scientific inquiry. The data were collected in the first 2weeks of the first semester of high school in accordance with the purpose of the study. The results of the study revealed that middle school graduates generally do not have adequate understandings of SI. Furthermore, according to the findings except for the "conclusion data conformity" aspect, there are statistically significant correlations between students' academic achievement and understandings in all aspects of SI.

Hedging and Boosting Strategies in Linguistics and Geography – A Case Study of Student Perception

This paper examines the use of hedging and boosting strategies in written academic discourse, specifically in scientific/research monographs in Linguistics and Geography. In particular, hedging and boosting strategies in academia are analysed within the corpora of monographs written in the two abovementioned disciplines in English and in Serbian, in order to investigate the possible differences in the interactional discipline-specific practices. Moreover, the paper explores student perceptions of the hedging and boosting used in the written scientific discourse in both Linguistics and Geography. This pilot study, conducted at the University of Novi Sad, focuses on the student reception of the hedging and boosting used in the scientific monograph corpora in the field of Linguistics and Geography in English and Serbian. Our findings show that focusing on hedging and boosting strategies in academic discourse in the English and in the Serbian corpora helps students achieve a better understanding of the discourse. We propose that exposing students to various samples of scientific writing and guiding them through the examination of the discipline-specific usage of hedges and boosters could benefit both students and language instructors. Students would better understand the intentions and implications of the authors’ scientific discourses if they were given a comparison of the English and Serbian discipline-specific hedging and boosting strategies. If language instructors were to focus students’ attention on the language-specific features used in scientific discourse, it would improve students’ understanding of scientific inquiry and scientific methodologies. Guiding students through the rules of hedging and boosting would most likely enable them to better locate hedging and boosting within the existing body of literature, to reflect upon the credibility of scientific findings, and to integrate such strategies into their future academic and professional writing.

Investigating the immersion of inquiry in lecture in improving students’ understanding about scientific inquiry

This study aimed to examine the extent to which scientific inquiry procedures during a lecture improvelead to an improvement in students’ understanding of scientific inquiry. The study implemented a one-group pretest-posttest design. Participants were 53 first-year students from the Chemistry Department atin a public university in Malang Ccity. Students’ understandings of scientific inquiry were assessed before and after the instruction using the Views About Scientific Inquiry (VASI) questionnaire. TThe participants’ responses were analysed descriptively and classified into three categories: informed, partially informed, and naïve, with Cohen’s inter-rater reliability value of 0.81.he participants’ responses were analysed descriptively and classified into three categories, namely informed, partially informed, and naïve views with Cohen’s inter-rater reliability value of 0.81. The results showed that (1) before treatment, students' understanding of scientific inquiry was at the level of partially informed and naïve, and (2) the immersion of scientific inquiry procedures in lectures improved students' understanding of scientific inquiry with the improved strength of Cohen's d-effect size was 1.10 (much larger than the typical category) or average normalized gain was 0.3 (medium category).

Assessing science teachers’ understanding about the nature of scientific inquiry and its reflection in students’ responses using the VASI questionnaire

ABSTRACT This study assessed teachers’ understanding about the nature of scientific inquiry (NOSI) and whether this understanding was reflected in their students’ responses. The data were collected through the ‘Views About Scientific Inquiry’ (VASI) questionnaire, a reliable tool for assessing understanding about the NOSI. The sample included science teachers and students of grade X purposively selected from five ‘schools affiliated with the local board’ (SALB) and five ‘schools affiliated with the international board’ (SAIB) for external examinations in Pakistan. The responses on the VASI were graded for quality to find the means, frequency count, percentage, and t-test values. The findings revealed no significant difference in teachers’ understanding of scientific inquiry (SI) in both school systems. Generally, the teachers had informed views while students held naïve views. The VASI also identified participants’ understanding on eight aspects of SI. The SAIB teachers understanding of SI was reflected in their students’ responses in some aspects of SI, unlike the SALB teachers. The study recommends incorporating NOSI aspects in teacher education programs and helping science teachers integrate NOSI aspects in their science instruction.

The Self-Study Process of a Scientist as She Delineated the Meaning of Scientific Inquiry and Developed a New Professional Identity as a Science Teacher Educator

With this article, we describe and analyze the experience of a scientist as she delineated the meaning of scientific inquiry and developed a new professional identity as a science teacher educator. Our inquiry adopted a self-study methodology with a variety of data sources, including sixteen-weeks of journal entries, critical friends’ meetings and reflections, video and audio-taped lessons and students’ artifacts. The self-study process captured her conflict between scientific inquiry in the classroom and her chemistry research. We captured three stages of her understanding of scientific inquiry. The idea of “authentic scientific novice research” finally resolved her conflicts. This study also revealed three factors that influenced the formation of her professional identity (i.e., competing identities, contextual influences, and personal struggles). This finding and resulting conclusions not only report the evolution of personal understanding, but also bring out the discussion of teacher educator development, especially for those transitioning to science education from natural sciences.

Exploring Pre-service Science Teachers' Understanding of Scientific Inquiry and Scientific Practices Through a Laboratory Course.

The intervention study presented in this paper explored pre-service science teachers’ (PSSTs) understanding of scientific inquiry (SI) and scientific practices (SPs) during a laboratory application in science education course. Thirty-nine secondary school PSSTs, who study in the Science Education Department in a public university in Turkey, enrolled in a 14-week-long course and volunteered to participate in the study. The participants were exposed to a method is called the 4-phase implementation that includes laboratory-based inquiry activities addressing SI and SPs and they completed microteaching presentations. Their understanding of SI and SPs was examined through the course period. The main data sources included Views about Scientific Inquiry (VASI) Instrument and concept maps were used to track the changes in these understandings. The findings indicated that PSSTs had inadequate understanding of inquiry on some aspects even after the treatment. Yet, the method had positive impact in PSSTs’ understanding inquiry especially in terms of facilitating the comprehension that scientific investigations begin with questions, there is no single method in investigations, and explanations are derived from collected data. The concept maps created by some of the participants also supported these results and revealed a more coherent and holistic understanding of SPs by integrating both epistemic and social components into their maps. However, PSSTs did not seem to have totally understood other aspects of inquiry including the inquiry procedures, the research conclusions, and the difference between data and evidence. Further implications are critically discussed in terms of designing future laboratory applications for science education courses.

South African Grade 12 Science Students’ Understandings of Scientific Inquiry

South African Grade 12 Science Students’ Understandings of Scientific Inquiry

International collaborative follow-up investigation of graduating high school students’ understandings of the nature of scientific inquiry: is progress Being made?

ABSTRACT Understandings of the nature of scientific inquiry (NOSI), as opposed to engaging students in inquiry learning experiences, are included in science education reform documents around the world. However, little is known about what students have learned about NOSI during their pre-college school years. The purpose of this large-scale follow-up international project (i.e. 32 countries and regions, spanning six continents and including 3917 students for the high school sample) was to collect data on what exiting high school students have learned about NOSI. Additionally, the study investigated changes in 12th grade students’ NOSI understandings compared to seventh grade (i.e. 20 countries and regions) students’ understandings from a prior investigation [Lederman et al. (2019). An international collaborative investigation of beginning seventh grade students’ understandings of scientific inquiry: Establishing a baseline. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 56(4), 486–515. https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.21512]. This study documents and discusses graduating high school students’ understandings and compares their understandings to seventh grade students’ understandings of the same aspects of scientific inquiry for each country. It is important to note that collecting data from each of the 130+ countries globally was not feasible. Similarly, it was not possible to collect data from every region of each country. A concerted effort was made, however, to provide a relatively representative picture of each country and the world.

Views About Scientific Inquiry: A Study of Students’ Understanding of Scientific Inquiry in Grade 7 and 12 in Sweden

ABSTRACT This paper analyses data from the Swedish sample of the international VASI (Views about scientific inquiry) study (Lederman et al. [2019]. An international collaborative investigation of beginning seventh grade students’ understandings of scientific inquiry: Establishing a baseline. Journal of Research in Science Teaching. Published online. https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.21512). Understandings about scientific inquiry involve knowledge about the processes of inquiry, and are not the same as being able to do inquiry although these are related domains. This paper focuses on what students know about scientific inquiry and what impact school science may have on this knowledge. Data were collected using the VASI instrument developed previously and was administered to 126 students at the beginning of year seven and 145 students at the end of year 12 in a cross-sectional design. Results indicate that the majority of students do not have an informed understanding of key aspects of scientific inquiry in either grade. Although students in year 12 are more informed, the average is still less than 50% as measured by the VASI and with a large spread.

Ortaokul Öğrencilerinin Bilimsel Sorgulama Görüşleri: Cinsiyet, Sınıf Düzeyi ve Okul Türü Değişkenlerinin İncelenmesi

Bilimsel sorgulama (BS), bilim okuryazarı öğrencilerin hedefine ulaşmada en önemli bileşenlerden birisidir. Öğretim programında ‘anlayış’ ve ‘beceri’ olarak farklı ifade edilmiş olsa da BS hakkında bilinçli düzeyde görüşlere sahip olan öğrencilerin bu konudaki becerilerinin de daha fazla gelişeceği açıktır. Sorgulama becerilerinin ve anlayışının geliştirilmesi, sorgulamaya dayalı stratejilerin ve sınıf içi uygulamalarının dikkatli bir şekilde planlanmasını ve uygulanmasını gerektirir. Ancak, sorgulamaya dayalı stratejileri planlama ve uygulama öncesinde, uygulamaların kalitesini ve içeriğini planlama adına öğrencilerin bu konudaki hazırbulunuşluluklarını ve görüşlerini inceleyen betimleyici çalışmalara ihtiyaç vardır. Bu nedenle bu çalışmanın amacı, sosyo ekonomik düzeyleri farklı beş okulda öğrenim gören toplam n = 599 5, 6 ve 7. sınıf öğrencilerinin bilimsel sorgulama hakkındaki görüşlerinin betimsel olarak ortaya konulmasıdır. Çalışmanın birincil veri kaynağı, Lederman vd. (2014) tarafından geliştirilen, açık uçlu Bilimsel Sorgulama Hakkında Görüşler Anketi’ne (VASI) verilen öğrencileri yanıtlarıdır. Çalışma sonuçları, ortaokul öğrencilerinin bilimsel sorgulamanın tüm bileşenleri hakkında görüşlerinin yetersiz düzeyde olduğunu göstermiştir. Çalışmanın s onuçları derinlemesine incelendiğinde ise, bilinçli düzeyde görüşlere sahip olan ortaokul öğrencilerinin büyük bir kısmını, özellikle üst-orta sosyoekonomik düzey okulların 6. sınıflarında öğrenim gören öğrencilerin oluşturduğu görülmüştür.

VASI Questionnaire in the context of Brazilian Secondary Education: an Analysis of the Students' Understanding of Scientific Inquiry

Abstract: Science education researchers agree that a better understanding of Scientific Inquiry (SI) is one of the main objectives of Scientific Literacy. Considering the Brazilian scenario in which SI is being implemented as a proposal for science education based on Base Nacional Comum Curricular (BNCC), the aim of this study was to assess the notions of 169 elementary school students regarding SI by administering the VASI questionnaire. This study had a qualitative approach, we categorized the answers in Naïve, Mixed and Informed according to the 8 aspects of SI proposed on the original questionnaire. A low percentage of answers were classified as Mixed or Informed. The results corroborate to the argument that activities that prioritize the doing inquiry do not necessarily lead the students knowing inquiry. We consider that the VASI questionnaire can be applied by teachers now that different curricula based on investigation are been adopted in Brazil.

Indonesian High School Students’ Perception of Scientific Experiment Using Network Analysis: Differences between Science and Humanities Group

Understanding what students know about the scientific experiment is essential for their metacognition and their understanding of scientific inquiry. A total of 425 Indonesian high school students participated in this study. Using an open-ended question, this study examined science and humanities group students’ perception of a scientific experiment by their narrative explanations. Language network analysis method was used to measure and visualize their perception by examining the relationship between each word of response and its patterns underlying the network. After the process of network analysis, nodes “prove”, “observation”, “problem” “hypothesis” only found in science students group while nodes “new” “object” “try” “test” found in humanities students group. This result also perceived that science students group considered a scientific experiment as an inquiry process while humanities students were more likely into the discovery process. The result of this study could support how scientific experiment as a learning activity was taken differently in science and humanities class in high school.

Chemistry Teachers’ Views about Scientific Inquiry: A Study in East Java Province of Indonesia

Scientific inquiry is a part of scientific literacy which is probably one of the main goals of science education. This paper reports a preliminary study on chemistry teachers’ understanding about scientific inquiry carried out using a Questionnaire of Views about Scientific Inquiry (VASI) with background of chemistry knowledge. Sample of the study is 32 chemistry teachers of senior and vocational high schools. Results showed that (1) the chemistry teachers held more informed views than science teachers reported in the previous study and (2) the pattern of chemistry teachers’ understanding about aspects of scientific inquiry is the same as senior high school students’ understanding. These indicate that (1) the complexity of leraning material people learned may be influences their inference ability and (2) the first year university chemistry students’ understanding of scientific inquiry are the strengthening of the perception they get from their teachers when they were school students.

Science in Silence: How Educators of the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Teach Science

Science learning is inextricably tied to two aspects of students’ lives: literacy and culture. While English Learners (ELs) who speak a non-English native language are typically the focus in this line of scholarly inquiry, deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) students occupy a distinct space in this conversation. For DHH learners, literacy levels can be hindered by an early dependence on a more survival-based language learning model that postpones basic scientific inquiry. The vocabulary for curiosity is limited, which in turn affects the educational culture. DHH learners have a unique culture that demands an appropriate science curriculum, which thus far has not been explored or attempted for either DHH learners or their educators. Data collected consisted of interviews with teachers of DHH students, as well as observational data collected from a high-minority urban K-8 school for DHH students. The analysis revealed that, first, many of the teachers had limited preparation to teach science content. Second, DHH teachers used inconsistent instructional strategies ranging from drawing pictures to building models. Third, the modifications provided to DHH science learners were mostly limited to visual support and repetition. Implications for teacher education programs include instruction focused on specific supports for DHH students and co-teaching methods, and deeper investigation of inquiry-based science practices. Implications for classroom practices include providing hands-on, inquiry-based instruction, working closely with parents, and developing students’ and teachers’ understanding of scientific inquiry.

An international collaborative investigation of beginning seventh grade students' understandings of scientific inquiry: Establishing a baseline

Although understandings of scientific inquiry (as opposed to conducting inquiry) are included in science education reform documents around the world, little is known about what students have learned about inquiry during their elementary school years. This is partially due to the lack of any assessment instrument to measure understandings about scientific inquiry. However, a valid and reliable assessment has recently been developed and published, Views About Scientific Inquiry (VASI; Lederman et al. [2014], Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 51, 65–83). The purpose of this large‐scale international project was to collect the first baseline data on what beginning middle school students have learned about scientific inquiry during their elementary school years. Eighteen countries/regions spanning six continents including 2,634 students participated in the study. The participating countries/regions were: Australia, Brazil, Chile, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Germany, Israel, Mainland China, New Zealand, Nigeria, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, Turkey, and the United States. In many countries, science is not formally taught until middle school, which is the rationale for choosing seventh grade students for this investigation. This baseline data will simultaneously provide information on what, if anything, students learn about inquiry in elementary school, as well as their beginning knowledge as they enter secondary school. It is important to note that collecting data from all of the approximately 200 countries globally was not humanly possible, and it was also not possible to collect data from every region of each country. The results overwhelmingly show that students around the world at the beginning of grade seven have very little understandings about scientific inquiry. Some countries do show reasonable understandings in certain aspects but the overall picture of understandings of scientific inquiry is not what is hoped for after completing 6 years of elementary education in any country.

Students’ investigations of torque

Students come to class with little understanding about torque, angular velocity, and angular acceleration despite the fact that these physical science concepts are frequently observed. For example, torque occurs when car and bicycle tires rotate, the movement of fishing pole when hooking a fish, and when a person uses a hammer to drive in a nail. Interestingly, students also have a plethora of misunderstandings about scientific inquiry. For example, many students believe that all scientific investigations contain an experiment, and that they are all consist of very specific steps comprising the scientific method. In this week long lesson, 9–12 grade students engage in scientific and engineering practices to examine factors that affect the amount of angular acceleration of a catapult arm. Students also reflect on their own understandings of scientific inquiry within the context of the lesson and address misconceptions they might have. Throughout the activities of this lesson, students to engage in discourse, critical thinking, problem solving, reflection, and modification of ideas to design a catapult that will effectively launch a projectile.