• 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 Association For Science Education
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• v.32 no.10
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• pp.1567-1579
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• 2012

This study carried a survey to investigate teacher's cognition on preference and actuality about science laboratory and class environment targeting 262 science teachers. The results of this study are as follow: First, the actuality cognition of science teachers on science laboratory and class environment was lower than preference (p<.05). Second, there were no differences between preference and actuality regardless of gender (p<.05). However, the cognition on all of subordinates of preference appeared higher in females than males (p<.05). Third, at all levels of schools, preference is higher than actuality for science laboratory and teaching environment (p<.05). In case of preference, all of the subordinates indicated the difference between elementary and high school teachers (p<.05). On the other hand, in actuality there was a difference between elementary and middle school teachers in 'science laboratory facilities condition' domain only (p<.05). Fourth, the preference was higher than actuality in all school locations (p<.05). And in case of preference, there was no difference in all subordinates regardless of school sites. Whereas the cognition of small-medium city teachers was lower than metropolitan in actuality on the three domains of 'science laboratory facilities condition,' 'teaching condition and service support,' and 'staff policy and practice' (p<.05). As a result, this study informs that upgrading is necessary to achieve inquiry activity in science class in overall teaching environment including science classroom and laboratory.

• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
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• v.32 no.10
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• pp.1599-1612
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• 2012

The purpose of this study was to examine the management status of science in senior high schools based on the 2009 Curriculum Revision and the science teachers' perception of the content and a class of science. The way of managing a class was surveyed and discovered that the percentage of more than two teachers giving lessons depending on their major was higher than that of a teacher giving all the lessons. Analysis of teachers' perceptions of the content of science showed that science textbooks reflected the revised science curriculum well. However, teachers thought that the terms and concepts introduced to describe the knowledge of frontier science were so difficult that they feel it's very hard teaching them to the students. Even though science teachers thought that science was mainly focused on cultivating scientific literacy of the students, they assess mostly understanding of science concepts on the students. It means that science teachers stay in line with old position in assessment.

• Journal of Science Education
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• v.47 no.1
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• pp.88-106
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• 2023

This study aims to investigate the disparity between the teacher's perception of student-centered inquiry classes and the actual implementation of such practices. Specifically, we compared an elementary science teacher's self-perception of her science lessons with the observers' evaluation using the Reformed Teaching Observation Protocol (RTOP) of the "Temperature and Heat" unit. Research data were collected through classroom teaching survey, interview, and science lessons video which were analyzed using the RTOP. As a result of the study, the teacher recognized that she was practicing inquiry-oriented/student-centered classes, but the results judged by the RTOP score were found to be transitional/student-affected classes by a slight difference. Teacher H planned and practiced classes based on a high understanding and content knowledge of the curriculum and created a science classroom culture that promotes active interaction among students as well as students and teachers. However, teacher-led aspects were still emphasized in teaching design and implementation, and the project theme and content were inappropriate to improve the quality of students' science inquiry experience. In the end, the slight difference between teacher's perception of inquiry-oriented/student-centered classes and actual implementation is related to how student-centered "lesson design" is and how to plan and implement classes supported by "procedural knowledge" for students' experience in the science inquiry process. These results indicate that the teacher's self-evaluation alone is not enough to determine whether the teacher's intentions and efforts are actually being implemented, and that it is necessary to conduct objective analysis, evaluation, and discuss the results of science classes by the external observers.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.28 no.6
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• pp.707-719
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• 2007

Teachers play key roles in classroom instruction. The perceptions and orientations of teachers about teaching have substantial effect on the practical context of science teaching. Analyzing science teacher's perceptions and orientations about Earth Systems Education (ESE) offers an opportunity to figure out how the goals of ESE might be dealt with. In this study, lesson plans developed by and in-depth interview results with two teachers were analyzed in terms of ESE perceptions. ESE orientations were also investigated in terms of teaching orientations and integration orientations. Research results showed that the teacher's deep understandings about 'Global Scientific Literacy (GSL)', the ultimate goal of ESE, precede the sound ESE teaching in the classroom. To enhance teachers' GSL, exemplary aspects of various integration, including networked integration, should be provided specifically to teachers. Also, the institutionalized approaches to developing ESE curriculum could help classroom teachers activate ESE teaching in their classroom.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Earth Science Education
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.224-238
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• 2019

The purpose of this study is to analyze the perception of integrated school education and education for sustainable development of secondary school science teachers, judging that the existence of a common science teacher qualification certificate is related to the expertise of the common science map. To that end, the survey was conducted for three months from June to August 2018 for secondary school science teachers, and multiple choice questions were analyzed as statistical processing and descriptive questions as topical modeling. According to the analysis, teachers with a common science teacher qualification certificate had a high awareness of integrated school education, and the response average was high in all areas of value, direction and success condition of integrated school education. In addition, the average response of teachers with a common science teacher qualification certificate was also found to be higher than those with a common science teacher qualification. There were no major differences in perception between the two groups on the strength of science education and ESD integration, but the difference was that teachers with a common science teaching certificate focused on science in all topics and recognized science as a medium for each topic compared to teachers who did not.

• 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.19 no.2
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• pp.293-304
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• 1999

A Calculator-Based Laboratory (CBL) system was introduced to science teachers and their perceptions to its classroom application was assessed. A CBL survey instrument was responded by 54 middle and high school science teachers who undertook a three-hour workshop of science experiments with CBL system. There were significant differences in teachers perceptions to CBL system among gender, school level, school location, teacher's degree, and years of teaching in terms of learning CBL system, applicability of CBL system for science classrooms, and effects on science achievement. Male teachers showed significantly (p<.05) higher agreement to learning of CBL system and applicability for science classrooms than female teachers. Compared to middle school teachers, high school teachers showed significantly (p<.05) high interests in CBL applicability for science classrooms and perceptions that there will be an increase of science achievement. Teachers with 4-8 years of teaching experience also showed significantly (p<.05) higher interest toward learning CBL system and its applicability. It was concluded that science teachers perceived CBL system as a promising science teaching method in Korean middle and high schools. However, a science teacher inservice training program for CBL system should be developed in consideration of gender, school level, school location, and years of teaching.

• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
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• v.41 no.4
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• pp.770-782
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• 2022

This study analyzes the depictions of scientists and teachers' thoughts on the 2015 revised elementary school science authorized 3rd-4th grade textbooks from the perspective of gender equality, and suggest improvements for the 2015 elementary school science authorized 5th-6th grade textbooks as well as a 2022 revised elementary school science curriculum. The data consist of representations of scientists found in seven elementary science textbooks provided to 3rd- and 4th-grade students in 2022 as well as in-depth interviews conducted with three elementary school teachers and responses from 32 teachers in Gyeonggi-do. Of the 23 scientists depicted in the textbooks, three (13.0%) are female and 10 (43.5%) worked in the inquiry domain, which was the largest group. When the teachers were asked about their perceptions of the gender ratio of scientists in the textbooks, their answers revealed that they had lower perceptions of female scientists compared to male scientists; moreover, they had no or very little teaching experience concerning female scientists. Furthermore, the teachers' thoughts on improving the gender ratio of scientists depicted in the textbooks differed considerably by the teachers' gender. Based on these findings, it was concluded that during the process of producing textbooks, writers and members of society need to agree on the gender ratio of scientists to be represented, and a social consensus is needed to identify and introduce the achievements of previously unknown female scientists towards gender equality.

• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
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• v.34 no.7
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• pp.625-634
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• 2014

This study has investigated the factors that make a science teacher effective by analyzing students' perception of teacher knowledge required in enhancing their science learning. The basic components of teacher knowledge identified by previous researchers have been confirmed through Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA). Based on the findings of the EFA, the questionnaire has been further analyzed using Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) by means of Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). In addition, the differences in students' perception on the identified factors of effectiveness have also been analyzed in terms of gender and achievement level. The findings of the EFA showed that five factors of science teacher effectiveness were identified; namely, substantive knowledge, syntactic knowledge, knowledge of students' understandings, knowledge of instructional strategies, and knowledge of assessment. These five components have been divided into two categories of teacher knowledge, SMK and PCK. What we found from the CFA was the respective high correlation between substantive and syntactic knowledge, knowledge of students' understanding and instructional strategies and the low correlation between substantive knowledge and knowledge of instructional strategies. Students perceived substantive knowledge as the most effective factor, knowledge of assessment as the least effective factor. Also, there have been considerable differences in students' perception by gender and achievement level. We proposed, based on the findings, that SMK and PCK need to be integrated into a coherent manner for the effective science teaching practice. This study provides some implications for science teacher professional development and the improvement of science teacher preparation program.