• Journal of Science Education
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.389-404
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• 2013

This study aimed to explore elementary teachers' beliefs about science teaching, science learning and the nature of science and consistency among these beliefs. Data was collected by using an open questionnaire and semi-structured individual interview. Teachers' beliefs were classified as traditional beliefs and constructivist beliefs. Traditional beliefs were further divided into content knowledge-centered beliefs and procedural knowledge-centered beliefs. The result showed that a relatively large number of teachers among the total 30 teachers had traditional beliefs about science teaching, science learning, and the nature of science(respectively 60.0%, 66.7%, 83.3%). Most of traditional beliefs were identified as content knowledge-centered beliefs. The proportion of teachers with consistent beliefs for all three aspects was 40.0%, the proportion of those with consistent beliefs for two of them (those with related beliefs) was 53.3%, the proportion of those with different beliefs for them (those with divergent belief) was 6.7%. Most of the teachers with the consistent beliefs had the content knowledge-centered beliefs of traditional beliefs. Although constructivism has been widely emphasized in science education from the 1980's, the rate of the teachers with the consistent beliefs in constructivism was as low as 6.7%.

• Journal of Science Education
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.240-249
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• 2011

The purposes of this study is to compare the beliefs in the nature of science, science teaching and learning of the elementary teachers in charge of the gifted and the general teachers. For this study, a survey on beliefs of the nature of science, science teaching and learning was conducted to 88 elementary teachers for the gifted and 90 elementary general teachers. Data was analyzed by their academic career and major. The results of this study were as follows: There were no significant differences in beliefs in the nature of science and science teaching between the elementary science teachers in charge of the gifted and the general elementary teachers, but the former has a more constructivism in science learning than the latter. In the some sub-domains of the beliefs of the nature of science, science teaching and learning, there were statistically significant differences according to their academic career and major. Implications from findings of this study were suggested, such as recruiting and in-service training system for teachers in charge of the gifted.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.41 no.2
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• pp.147-154
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• 2020

The purpose of this study was to analyze epistemological beliefs in science as perceived by elementary school students and to examine the purpose of science, the nature of scientific knowledge, the source of scientific knowledge, and the role of experimentation. The subjects of this study were 99 elementary school students. As a tool for examining epistemological beliefs in science, we used adapted questionnaires comprising elements constituting epistemological beliefs, as proposed by Elder (1999). The results of the analysis are as follows: First, in terms of the purpose of science, sixth graders had the most modern beliefs compared to other grades. Second, a statistical significance was found between fourth graders and students in other grades based on the analysis of the nature of scientific knowledge. Third, there was no significant difference in each grade's beliefs concerning the source of scientific knowledge or the role of the experiment.

• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.259-265
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• 2015

This study examined high school students' acceptance of evolutionary theory, evolutionary knowledge, and epistemological belief. The Christian and non-Christian students' acceptance of evolutionary theory and evolution content knowledge were compared in relation to their 'scientific epistemological views' (domain-specific) and 'evolution in relation to nature of science' (context-specific). The Christian students' evolutionary knowledge was most predicted by the theory-laden exploration of science, while the non-Christian students' scores on evolutionary knowledge were most predicted by the scientific epistemological views. In addition, the Christian students' scores on scientific epistemological views and evolution in relation to evolution were not significantly related to each other, while the non-Christian students' scores on both variables were significantly related. Furthermore, 'evolution in relation to nature of science' is the strongest predictor of both Christian and non-Christian students' acceptance of evolution.

• Journal of Science Education
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.396-404
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• 2010

This study aimed to investigate a perception of teachers engaged in special education for scientifically gifted regarding nature of science and identify attitudes toward teaching nature of science. The sample of this study consists of 122 science teachers who are teaching or taught students attending gifted classes of any primary school in Korea and any gifted education center of every District Office of Education. We made a partial amendment of a VOSE that was developed by Chen(2006) and then used. We tested their perception and attitudes in regard to nature of science. In terms of nature of science, we devide it into 7 sub-areas to analyse. For attitudes toward teaching nature of science, we investigate and analyse following 5 sub-areas; tentativeness of scientific knowledge, nature of observation, scientific methods, theories and laws and subjectivity and objectivity. The result showed that the generally teachers have a desirable recognitions about a nature of science. For attitudes toward teaching nature of science, the teachers showed that they have positive attitudes. However between degrees of teachers' recognition about a nature of science and attitudes toward teaching nature of science showed a low correlation. To increase their understanding of nature of science and develop attitudes toward teaching nature of science, there should be more training time for the teachers and training contents also should be changed. In addition, we hope that this study contribute to develop contents and direction of training for the teachers as a basic reference.

• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.147-158
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• 2016

This study examined the changes of preservice biology teachers' NOS pedagogical content knowledge through two consecutive science methods courses: NOS understandings; attitudes toward teaching science; difficulties of NOS teaching; NOS teaching strategies; and views of orientation of NOS teaching. During the science methods course I, the preservice teachers engaged in discussions and reflections on what science is and how scientific knowledge has produced, drawing NOS aspects from episodes of history of science, and planning the lessons cooperating NOS instructional objectives. Then the next semester, through the science methods course II, the preservice teachers had a chance of the simulated teaching by adopting NOS teaching and learning activities in the context of the secondary biology context. The preservice teachers, further, reflected on their NOS teaching. The results showed that the preservice teachers constructed the NOS pedagogical content knowledge. They significantly improved their views of NOS and its teaching(p<.05) after the science methods course I, and retained their understanding after the science methods course II(p>.05). The preservice teachers mentioned the difficulties of teaching NOS in the secondary biology context, and further suggested effective NOS teaching methods in their reflective journals.

• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.374-382
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• 2006

This study investigated the effect of the 'Chemistry in everyday life' course for 234 pre-service elementary teachers on their beliefs regarding science teaching efficacy and the nature of science. This study also examined the effect of this particular course by their field (natural science, humanities & social science, and fine arts). The results show that after the semester the pre-service teachers' science teaching efficacy beliefs were enhanced. In particular, their personal science teaching efficacy beliefs were improved across all fields. However, their beliefs regarding the nature of science remained largely unchanged. This study discussed the implications surrounding science courses for pre-service teachers.

• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.539-556
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• 2011

The purpose of this study was to examine preservice secondary science teachers' understanding of the nature of science, by using nature of science (NOS) questionnaire on the basis of atomic model, and compare this to pre-studies. 'Understanding of nature of scientific model,' 'Tentativeness of scientific knowledge,' 'Subjectivity in science,' 'Use of inference and imagination,' 'Myths of the scientific method,' and 'Comparison between science and art.' were examined. Preservice teachers showed great comprehension of the tentativeness of scientific knowledge (the orbital model) and the subjectivity in science (the different interpretation about the experiment of particle scattering), but displayed the lowest comprehension of the scientific method. For understanding of nature of scientific model (the atomic model) and the comparison between science (Bohr's atomic model) and art (Picasso's work), preservice teachers brought out a combination of ontological and constructivist perspective and showed the contradictory thought about imagination in science research. In the result of comparison to pre-studies using the NOS instruments contains general terms, represented high levels of agreement about the tentativeness of scientific knowledge by using concrete examples of 'atomic model'. When concrete scientists such as Thomson, Rutherford, Bohr were presented, respondents revealed more informed views about the scientists' research method.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.221-233
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• 2002

This study investigated preservice science teachers' understandings of philosophical foundations(i.e., ontological and epistemological beliefs) underlying constructivist notions of learning. The teacher education program these subjects participated in explicitly addressed philosophical notions consistent with different views of constructivism. For these preservice science teachers, the program provided them with the opportunity to reflect upon the implications that their ontological and epistemological commitments had for their role as a science teacher. Data from four in-depth interviews were used to explore changes in each preservice science teacher's ontological beliefs, epistemological commitments, and pedagogical preferences. Results indicated that ontological beliefs and epistemological commitments were not necessarily consistent with conceptions of science teaching and learning for these preservice teachers. While some students internalized idealist and relativist perspectives, they did not integrate these relativist epistemological views into their preferred instructional practices. Also, regarding the fallible and tentative nature of knowledge, data in this study indicated that participants' epistemological beliefs about scientific Knowledge did influence how they were thinking about their roles as science teachers. Implications for teacher education programs and research on preservice science teacher's philosophical beliefs are discussed.

• Journal of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.48 no.6
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• pp.638-644
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• 2004

The purpose of this study was to investigate students' views on the scientific model and to compare their views by grade, gender, and achievement. Relationships between students' views on the scientific model and epistemological beliefs were also investigated. Participants were 137 8th- and 112 11th-graders in Seoul. The results indicated that the students' views on the scientific model, on the whole, were adequate except the items concerning the 'models as exact replicas'. Male students or high-achieving students had more adequate views on the scientific model than female students or low-achieving students. However, there was no significant difference between 8th- and 11th-graders. In correlation analysis, students with inappropriate views on the scientific model were found to have traditional epistemological beliefs.