The dimensions and impact of informal science learning experiences on middle schoolers’ attitudes and abilities in science

Lin, Pei-Yi; Schunn, Christian D.

doi:10.1080/09500693.2016.1251631

Cited by 68 publications

(66 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“…Similarly, a measure of scientific reasoning (in this paper, we refer to this construct as scientific sensemaking) should be able to predict how well a person performs in a science test. This aspect of for some of our scales is reflected in the analyses presented in the results section (e.g., in Table , for additional predictive validity information; see Dorph et al, ; Lin & Schunn, ; Sha, Schunn, Bathgate, & Eliyahu, ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 87%

The increasingly important role of science competency beliefs for science learning in girls

Vincent‐Ruz

Schunn

2017

J Res Sci Teach

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The number of women studying STEM careers and pursuing graduate degrees has not changed in the last decade (National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, 2015; Science & Engineering Degree Attainment: 2004-2014. Most prior research to explain this problem has focused on the topics of identity, access, pedagogy, and choice (Brotman & Moore, 2008; Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 45, 971-1002). Additional research is needed on how internal and external factors interact with one another to demotivate girls and young women from pursuing science careers. Here, we show how girls' competency beliefs are an essential foundation for science content learning during middle school and how these effects of competency beliefs are mediated by in and out-of-school factors. We recruited over 2,900 6th and 8th grade students from two different regions in the United States. At two different time points, students completed surveys asking about their stance toward science such as competency beliefs in science, willingness to engage in argumentation, and choice preferences toward optional science experiences. We also collected a reasoning ability measure, and pre-and post-tests on science content knowledge. Moreover, students also reported on their cognitive behavioral engagement during a sampled science class on two separate occasions. Multiple regression and mediation analyses show that as boys grow older, their willingness to engage in argumentation and to participate in science experiences suppresses the role of competency beliefs on their learning science content. By contrast, as girls grew older, they showed an increasing need to have high competency beliefs to achieve strong content learning gains. Our results demonstrate that despite girls' willingness to participate in scientific argumentation and to take part in science experiences, they probably do not receive enough support in their environment to access the benefits of these experiences, and hence they have a stronger need to have high competency beliefs in order to achieve significant growth in science learning. #

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 87%

The increasingly important role of science competency beliefs for science learning in girls

Vincent‐Ruz

Schunn

2017

J Res Sci Teach

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“…Other possibility how to improve students' attitudes toward biology is to incorporate the elements of informal learning. Informal science learning experiences such as doing science activities at home or going to out-of school programmes/clubs, visiting a science museum, and playing in nature are essential to advance students' science abilities and attitude (Henriksen, Jensen & Sjaastad 2015;Lin & Schunn 2016). On the other side, the application of informal learning activities should not be oversized, as Yoon et al (2013) mentioned the excessive incorporation of informal learning activities could lead into decreasing of attitudes toward subject, where informal learning was applicate.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Perception of Biology by Czech Lower Secondary School Students

Vlčková

Kubiatko

Uşak

2019

EURASIA J MATH SCI T

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Attitudes toward science are more frequently explored than attitudes toward particular science subjects, such as biology. In many countries, however, biology is taught separately from other science subjects. The main aim of this investigation was to detect students' attitudes towards biology, by using a questionnaire as a research tool. Moreover, the partial aims were revelation of influence of gender, residence and grade level on the students' attitudes towards biology. The sample size was created by 363 students from lower secondary schools. The questionnaire (BAQ) consisted of 31 items of Likert type, divided into four dimensions (1. Biology as a school subject; 2. Informal education; 3. Difficulty and 4. Interest in Biology). In addition, the influence of independent variables was observed in the four dimensions mentioned above. Furthermore, the correlation among dimensions was analyzed as well. Overall score in attitudes toward biology gained by lower secondary school students was neutral. Girls had more positive attitudes toward biology than boys. Mean score according to classes was decreasing with raising of grade level, but without statistically significant effect. More positive attitudes toward biology were revealed among rural students.

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“…Meanwhile Lin and Schunn [2016], who studied various types of informal science activity among American middle-schoolers, found that home-based activities such as science toys and consumption of science media were more strongly correlated with various dimensions of science capital than semiformal activities such as clubs, or than visits to museums. As home-based activities tend to be mediated by parents, this suggests that by influencing parents we may in turn influence their children.…”

Section: Informal Science Learningmentioning

confidence: 99%

“Going to these events truly opens your eyes”. Perceptions of science and science careers following a family visit to a science festival

Canovan¹

2019

JCOM

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Young people's decisions to study post-compulsory science are strongly influenced by the attitude of their parents, but many families, especially those from deprived backgrounds, see science as ‘narrow’ and ‘not for us’. We asked whether family attendance at a science festival — a growing but under-studied activity — could shift attitudes. Our mixed-methods study found parents from more deprived areas were disproportionately likely to say attendance had improved their perception of science. Parents from the most deprived areas were significantly more likely to feel increased positivity about their children pursuing science careers. Participants also reported learning about the breadth of careers in science. However we found no evidence that attendance boosted informal science activity in low-SES families.

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The dimensions and impact of informal science learning experiences on middle schoolers’ attitudes and abilities in science

Cited by 68 publications

References 44 publications

The increasingly important role of science competency beliefs for science learning in girls

The increasingly important role of science competency beliefs for science learning in girls

The Perception of Biology by Czech Lower Secondary School Students

“Going to these events truly opens your eyes”. Perceptions of science and science careers following a family visit to a science festival

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