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Full-Text Articles in Education
Enhancing Teachers' Knowledge For Using Multiple Representations In Teaching Chemistry In Nigerian Senior Secondary Schools, Bolanle Omotoke Olaleye
Enhancing Teachers' Knowledge For Using Multiple Representations In Teaching Chemistry In Nigerian Senior Secondary Schools, Bolanle Omotoke Olaleye
Theses: Doctorates and Masters
The quality of the teaching and learning of chemistry in Nigeria is of great concern to parents, teachers, and students and has been tied to various factors such as a lack of teaching resources, learning materials and well qualified teachers, large class sizes and poor funding. This resulted in poor student performance and lack of interest in chemistry. Also, learning chemistry concepts tends to be by rote and memorising of content, and as such, students do not perceive learning chemistry as relevant to their lives. These issues motivated the Researcher to explore how teaching and learning of chemistry could be …
Alignment Of Intended Learning Outcomes, Curriculum And Assessment In A Middle School Science Program, Reid J. Smith
Alignment Of Intended Learning Outcomes, Curriculum And Assessment In A Middle School Science Program, Reid J. Smith
Theses: Doctorates and Masters
This study focused on the intended learning outcomes, curriculum and assessment in the science curriculum offered at a regional independent Middle School in the state of Victoria, Australia. In-school assessment has indicated that the current science curriculum of this Middle School may not develop students' skills in scientific literacy as effectively as intended. One hypothesis to explain this deficit is that there is a misalignment of intended outcomes, curriculum materials and assessment. This study aimed to determine the extent to which the intended curriculum and assessment in this Victorian middle years' science program is aligned to its stated goals and …
An Investigation Of The Factors That Influence The Career Aspirations Of Year 12 Science Students, Christina R. Holly
An Investigation Of The Factors That Influence The Career Aspirations Of Year 12 Science Students, Christina R. Holly
Theses: Doctorates and Masters
What has become apparent in recent years is the lack of upper secondary students choosing science related subjects in their final years of schooling. Even of those students who choose science subjects to study in Years 11 and 12 in Australia, many tend to choose non-science pathways for tertiary education options (department of Education, Science and Training, 2003). This is worrying trend, given the numbers of science professionals and teachers required in the new age of technology. By investigating a sample of Western Australian Year 12 students that study any science related subjects, it is expected that there may be …
Student Beliefs About Learning In Religion And Science In Catholic Schools, Philip F. Cox
Student Beliefs About Learning In Religion And Science In Catholic Schools, Philip F. Cox
Theses: Doctorates and Masters
The focus of this study is the impact of student perception of the validity of content on student learning. It is proposed that, if the content of a subject is perceived by students as being different to the content of another subject, a result of this perceived difference is that students will treat their learning in these subjects differently. To test this proposal, student beliefs about items from the content of the religious education course are compared with student responses to items of content of their science course. A sample of 1418, year 11 students from nine co-educational Catholic secondary …
Facilitating Teacher Professional Learning : Analysing The Impact Of An Australian Professional Learning Model In Secondary Science, Rachel Sheffield
Facilitating Teacher Professional Learning : Analysing The Impact Of An Australian Professional Learning Model In Secondary Science, Rachel Sheffield
Theses: Doctorates and Masters
In education, innovations are frequently introduced to promote changes to the curriculum, teachers' practice, and the classroom environment, however, these initiatives are often implemented without sufficient evaluation to monitor their impact and effectiveness in bringing about the desired changes. This thesis analyses the impact of a teacher professional learning program on lower secondary science teachers' practice. It examines the relationship between teachers' concerns about the strategies incorporated in the Collaborative Australian Secondary Science Program (CASSP) and teachers' ability to understand the strategies, on their ability to utilise those strategies in the classroom. It also seeks to determine teachers' beliefs about …
Nigerian Science Teachers' Beliefs About Effective Science Teaching, Their Pedagogical Content Knowledge, And How These Influence Science Teaching, Morris A. Benjamin
Nigerian Science Teachers' Beliefs About Effective Science Teaching, Their Pedagogical Content Knowledge, And How These Influence Science Teaching, Morris A. Benjamin
Theses: Doctorates and Masters
This study investigated Nigerian junior secondary science teachers' beliefs about effective science teaching, their pedagogical content knowledge and how these influence their classroom teaching behaviour. The research is underpinned by a conceptual framework, which establishes a strong relationship between teachers' beliefs about teaching, teachers' pedagogical content knowledge and classroom teaching practices. The study was carried out in two phases. The first phase involved a survey of all junior secondary science teachers (N=70) from the 30 secondary schools in two Local Education Districts of Lagos State, Nigeria. The second phase involved in-depth case studies of three science teachers who were purposively …
Secondary Students Beliefs About, Understandings Of, And Intentions To Act Regarding The Greenhouse Effect, Premnadh M. Kurup
Secondary Students Beliefs About, Understandings Of, And Intentions To Act Regarding The Greenhouse Effect, Premnadh M. Kurup
Theses: Doctorates and Masters
The greenhouse effect (GHE) is a concern to everyone on this planet. To understand the GHE, students and citizens need an understanding of the chemical processes underlying this environmental phenomenon. Citizens need to be scientifically literate in relation to this phenomenon in order to participate in democratic decision-making and to take appropriate actions in their daily lives. As the GHE is a global issue it will require collective and individual actions to prepare for the likely climatic changes and to reduce the further impact of the GHE. This study focused on high school students' beliefs about, understandings of the GHE …
Teacher-Class, Teacher-Group And Student Interactions : Opportunities For Learning In Primary Science Classrooms, Christine A. Coulstock
Teacher-Class, Teacher-Group And Student Interactions : Opportunities For Learning In Primary Science Classrooms, Christine A. Coulstock
Theses: Doctorates and Masters
Many studies have investigated learning in science classes, examining various influences on the understandings that students develop. The purpose of this study was to investigate the interactions that took place in upper primary science lessons, and the teacher and student behaviours affected these interactions and the opportunities for learning. The three classes that were selected for the study were similar and the teachers were all experienced primary teachers. The teachers were supplied with a set of science lessons on the topic of electric circuits. The resources included background information for the teachers and suggested activities, demonstrations, analogies and focus questions …
Secondary Students' Skills Of Measuring Liquid Volume And Understanding Of Uncertainty Of Data, Wayne M. Keady
Secondary Students' Skills Of Measuring Liquid Volume And Understanding Of Uncertainty Of Data, Wayne M. Keady
Theses: Doctorates and Masters
This research is a detailed study of students' skills of measuring liquid volume, the decisions they make when planning to collect data and whilst collecting data, and the extent to which they understand the uncertainty associated with the data they collected. These skills and understandings are at the heart of scientific literacy (Duggan & Gall, 1996a). The introduction of the Working Scientifically strand in the Australian national curriculum framework and profile of learning outcome statements for science (Australian Education Council, 1994) illustrates the increased emphasis placed in curriculum documents on investigation skills and scientific literacy. The profile of outcome statements …
Development And Evaluation Of A Scaffolding Guide To Help Lower Secondary Science Students Use The Internet To Search For, Select And Organise Information For The Construction Of Personal Text, Andrea Tunks
Theses: Doctorates and Masters
The purpose of this study was to develop and evaluate a scaffolding guide to help lower secondary students use the internet to search for and organise information for the construction of personal text. An intact Year 10 science class participated in the study. Data were collected using the scaffolding guide completed by students, work samples, a questionnaire designed to elicit from students their perceptions about the research guide, observational notes made by the researcher and debriefing interviews conducted with the teacher and with a group of students. The study identified the skills needed by students to search for and select …
Science Laboratory Investigations In Year 9: Instruction And Assessment, Pamela J. Garnett
Science Laboratory Investigations In Year 9: Instruction And Assessment, Pamela J. Garnett
Theses: Doctorates and Masters
The purpose of this research was to develop, implement and evaluate science investigation work based on a cognitive apprenticeship model of instruction and 'linked' to different assessment procedures. Data were gathered to evaluate the effects of the instruction and approaches to assessment on teachers and students, and on the development of students' investigation competency. Year 9 students performed six science investigations in which they examined a relationship between variables. Groups of three students worked together to choose the independent variable, plan their investigation, collect and analyse their data, and to evaluate their findings. The cognitive apprenticeship model of instruction included …
Teaching For Conceptual Change And Conceptual Discrimination With Year 8 Science Students: An Exploratory Study Of The Topic 'Respiration', S. Morgillo
Theses : Honours
Research has shown that despite formal education, secondary and tertiary students hold a host of misconceptions about respiration. This exploratory study investigated whether a four phase conceptual change teaching strategy could overcome conceptual problems typically associated with respiration, in a Year 8 science class from a school in Perth, Western Australia. The strategy consisted of a Conceptual Awareness Phase, an Exposition Phase, a Misconception Awareness Phase and an Application Phase. Two-tier multiple choice test items used in previous studies to identify misconceptions about respiration were also used in this study, together with interviews. The encouraging results suggest that the implemented …
What Do Primary Students Know About Light?: An Investigation Into Misconceptions Held By Year 7 Students In Western Australia, Christine Ann Coulstock
What Do Primary Students Know About Light?: An Investigation Into Misconceptions Held By Year 7 Students In Western Australia, Christine Ann Coulstock
Theses : Honours
This research examines misconceptions about light held by Year 7 primary school students. The subjects (n = 37) were selected from six schools in the northeastern area of Perth, Western Australia. An Interview About Instances approach was used in this research using instance cards specifically designed for this study. Misconceptions were ascertained and those held by 25% or more of the students were considered significant. Misconceptions were found in the understanding of the physical and the physiological process of sight, the relationship of light to colour, night vision in animals and the distance light travels under different circumstances. The misconceptions …
Characteristics That Determine The Holding Power Of Computer-Based Exhibits At Scitech Discovery Centre, Victoria Dodds
Characteristics That Determine The Holding Power Of Computer-Based Exhibits At Scitech Discovery Centre, Victoria Dodds
Theses : Honours
Scitech Discovery Centre is a hands-on science and technology centre located in the city West Complex, West Perth. The centre contains over 160 interactive exhibits including a number of computer-based exhibits that cover topics not easily incorporated in standard interactive exhibits. The problem considered in this study was the observed low percentage of visitors completing the programmes at seven of these computer-based exhibits. The author used unobtrusive observation and survey methods of data collection, for 245 visitors, on sundays over a three month period. The study was to determine two things, firstly the holding power of the exhibits, and secondly, …
The Effect Of A Vee-Mapping Strategy On Students' Perceptions Of Laboratory Activities, Sonia J. Hueppauff
The Effect Of A Vee-Mapping Strategy On Students' Perceptions Of Laboratory Activities, Sonia J. Hueppauff
Theses : Honours
Practical work is considered important for learning science, by teachers and science educators. This acceptance though, has been reported as based on intuition rather than evidence (Atkinson & White, 1961). A significant proportion of class time is occupied with doing practical work. It is evident that in a majority of situations, students commence laboratory activities unsure of their aim, the procedure they are going to carry out, or that experimentation is a way of forming knowledge (Moreira, I 960; Novak & Gowin, I 964). Vee-maps (Novak & Gowin, 1 964) are one way of making laboratory work more meaningful. That …
Secondary Students' Difficulties With Designing A Controlled Experiment, Bradley E. Watson
Secondary Students' Difficulties With Designing A Controlled Experiment, Bradley E. Watson
Theses : Honours
This research investigation was conducted to identify the difficulties encountered by secondary science students in the design of a controlled experiment. These difficulties were illuminated by studying the combination of knowledge, skills and strategies employed by experts. Three categories of individuals were used in the study, Year 10 science students, Year 12 science students and science lecturers who had completed doctoral studies in their fields. There were six subjects interviewed in each category. Each of the subjects were given a task which involved thinking aloud while planning a controlled experiment. When the subjects had completed the task, they were asked …