Confronting Teacher Candidates' Conceptions of the Nature of Science

Hammrich, Penny L.

doi:10.1023/a:1009470424752

Cited by 25 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…After a week's worth of preparation for the activity, participants were actively engaged in a controversy between two opposing sides. The pedagogical purpose of the controversy was partly to expose and challenge participants' alternative conceptions of the NOS (Hammrich 1997). Participants' views of the scientific status of astrology and the rationales behind these views were recorded before and after this controversy.…”

Section: Participants and Course Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Context of Demarcation in Nature of Science Teaching: The Case of Astrology

Turgut

2010

Sci & Educ

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The aim of developing students' understanding of the nature of science [NOS] has been considered an important aspect of science education. However, the results of previous research indicate that students of various ages and even teachers possess both inaccurate and inappropriate views of the NOS. Such a failure has been explained by the view that perceptions about the NOS are well assimilated into mental structures and resistant to change. Further, the popularization of pseudoscience by the media and the assimilation of pseudoscience into previously established scientific fields have been presented as possible reasons for erroneous popular perceptions of science. Any teaching intervention designed to teach the NOS should first provoke individuals to expose their current ideas in order to provide them the chance to revise or replace these conceptual frameworks. Based on these assumptions, the aim of this study was to determine whether a teaching context based on the issue of demarcation would provide a suitable opportunity for exposing and further developing the NOS understandings of individuals enrolled in a teacher education course. Results indicate that a learning intervention based on the issue of demarcation of science from pseudoscience (in the specific case of astrology) proved an effective instructional strategy, which a majority of teacher candidates claimed to plan to use in their future teachings.

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Section: Participants and Course Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Context of Demarcation in Nature of Science Teaching: The Case of Astrology

Turgut

2010

Sci & Educ

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“…Packard and Wong (1999) found this stereotype to impact girls’ career choice negatively when images of themselves clashed with their gender‐stereotypical image of scientists. Therefore, individuals who hold negative perceptions of science or scientists, and do not personally identify with scientists are unlikely to pursue science courses or select science as a career (Hammrich, 1997).…”

Section: Females’ Images Of Scientistsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring Middle School Girls’ Science Identities: Examining Attitudes and Perceptions of Scientists when Working “Side‐by‐Side” with Scientists

Farland-Smith

2009

School Sci & Mathematics

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This article is the culmination of an extensive inquiry‐focused interactive experience involving female middle school students and five university scientists, which demonstrated that middle school girls ‘perception of science and scientists can be successfully improved. The study exposed students to adult professional scientists over a period of a few days in laboratory and field exercises. Based on student journal entries and pictorial illustrations, as well as attitude surveys, the experience resulted in a keen appreciation of the sciences among the majority of participants and both a heightened and broadened awareness of Science as a Human Endeavor. The students’ resulting perceptions reinforce the importance for science educators to expose their students to adult professional scientists in order for students, especially female students, to develop a better understanding of science and the role of scientists. Engaging scientists in helping promote science as a positive, exciting and satisfying career goal will help debunk common myths in the minds of young students about science and drive students, especially female students, to consider science careers.

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“…There has been a rebirth of interest in the views of preservice and practicing teachers (e.g., Lederman, 1999), including studies of making explicit instructional intent relating to the nature of science (e.g., MacDonald, 1996) and descriptions of approaches to seeking to change student ± teacher ideas about the nature of science (e.g. Hammrich, 1997).…”

Section: Laboratory Work and Learning About The Nature Of Sciencementioning

confidence: 99%