• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
• /
• v.20 no.1
• /
• pp.123-137
• /
• 2001

In this study, the contents of elementary school science textbooks related to 'heat and temperature' are analyzed and alternative conceptions ofi"heat and temperature" among students enrolled in grades 4, 5 and 6 are investigated. 259 students were selected from a elementary school located in urban area. The relationships between students' alternative conceptions and the content of elementary science textbooks are also examined. Students' conceptions are analyzed from their answers to a paper-and-pencil test. The typical alternative conception of "heat and temperature" held by students was follows. They think that "heat" is a material and "temperature" is value of heat amount. They can't distinguish between "heat" and "temperature". Their explanation of "heat and temperature" is focused on hot or cool sensation and other observable characteristics of a material. A textbook analysis indicated that contents on "heat and temperature" were organized without the viewpoint of particle motion theory. This may be one of the causes of students' alternative conceptions.

• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
• /
• v.25 no.1
• /
• pp.8-14
• /
• 2006

This study examined how pre-service elementary teachers' perceptions regarding the learning environment (learning focus/ability-meritocracy/cooperative climate) and achievement goals (mastery/performance-approach/performance-avoidance) in science education courses jointly contributed to their science teaching efficacy beliefs (personal science teaching efficacy belief/science teaching outcome expectancy). A path analysis supported a causal model in which the perception of the learning focus influenced the mastery goal, which in turn influenced the personal science teaching efficacy belief and science teaching outcome expectancy. The perception of learning focus also had a direct effect on science teaching outcome expectancy. The perception of ability-meritocracy influenced personal science teaching efficacy belief via the performance-approach (positively) or, conversely, the performance-avoidance goal (negatively). No link .was deduced from the perception of cooperative climate. The educational implications of these findings were also discussed.

• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
• /
• v.30 no.4
• /
• pp.504-513
• /
• 2011

The preservice elementary teachers' achievement goal orientations(mastery/ability-approach/ability-avoidance/work-avoidance goal) for science teaching were measured. The student teachers(91 males and 127 females) tended to have the mastery or ability-approach goals rather than the ability-avoidance or work-avoidance goals for science teaching. The male students were more learning focused than were the females, while the female students reported stronger work-avoidance goal orientation than did the males. This study also examined how the preservice teachers' achievement goal orientations were related to their science teaching efficacy beliefs(personal science teaching efficacy belief/science teaching outcome expectancy). As expected, the results showed that there were significantly positive relationships between the mastery or ability-approach goals and science teaching efficacy beliefs, while the significantly negative relationships were found between the ability-avoidance or work-avoidance goal and personal science teaching efficacy belief. The educational implications and future directions were discussed.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Earth Science Education
• /
• v.9 no.1
• /
• pp.54-64
• /
• 2016

The purpose of this study was to see the influences of science class applying learning cycle emphasized exploration on science learning motivation and scientific attitude of elementary students. The results drawn from this analysis were as below. Firstly, positive relationship was found between science learning motivation and science class applying learning cycle emphasized exploration among the research group. This shows that science learning motivation was improved by science class applying learning cycle emphasized exploration. It indicates that science class applying learning cycle emphasized exploration is effective in improving science learning motivations. Secondly, positive relationship was found between scientific attitude and science class applying learning cycle emphasized exploration among the research group and this means that science class applying learning cycle that emphasizes exploration stimulates intellectual curiosity of elementary school students and improves their scientific attitude. Thirdly, students thought that science class applying learning cycle emphasized exploration was very effective to improve their satisfaction, interest, participation in their science classes. Above results show that science class applying learning cycle emphasized exploration is highly effective for elementary students. Thus, it is needed to utilize science class applying learning cycle emphasized exploration to current science class as it can promote wider scientific activities among elementary school students.

• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
• /
• v.35 no.2
• /
• pp.243-252
• /
• 2016

The purpose of this study was to analyze affective characteristics and the demands of elementary science gifted students on gifted educations in urban and rural areas. The subjects were 196 science gifted students. The survey questionnaires were consisted of self-esteem, interests in science, scientific attitudes, and demands regarding gifted classes. The results of this study were as follows. First, self-esteem and interests in science, particularly interests toward science, toward science learning, toward science related careers, in urban gifted students were higher than those in rural areas. Whereas interests toward science activities and science anxiety of science gifted students in rural areas were significantly higher than those in urban area. Furthermore, scientific attitudes of science gifted students in urban area were higher than rural those in open-mindedness, critical-mindedness, voluntariness, creativity, whereas science gifted students in rural areas were higher than urban those in cooperation. Second, for the analysis on demands regarding class contents and methods, 'teaching content that challenges and exciting stimuli' of science gifted students in rural areas were significantly higher than those in urban area. Third, for the analysis on demands regarding educational environments, 'satisfaction with class materials provided by gifted classes' of gifted students in urban area were higher than those in rural area.

• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
• /
• v.26 no.4
• /
• pp.459-467
• /
• 2007

The purpose of this study was to compare the illustrations used in elementary science textbooks of Korea and BSCS in USA, and analyze the types, role, and characteristics of the illustrations. For the analysis, we used 8 elementary science textbooks of the 7th curriculum of science education in Korea from 3rd through 6th grade, and 16 volumes (stage 2 to stage 5) used in BSCS in USA. We examined types of illustrations, including photograph, picture, graphic, cartoon, chart, and their 4 roles such as, motivation, introducing the lesson activity, providing the materials, presenting the learning result. The results were as follows: First, Korean textbooks have more "photograph" type of illustration than BSCS. In BSCS textbooks, diverse types of illustrations were used compared to Korean textbooks. Second, large portion of illustrations in Korean textbooks took a role of providing materials. In BSCS textbooks, the roles of illustrations were more diverse. In BSCS, there were many illustrations to describe students working together with the disabled children, and to explicitly encourage cooperative learning. Considering the findings in this study, educational implications were discussed.

• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
• /
• v.36 no.1
• /
• pp.61-72
• /
• 2017

The purpose of this study was to analyze elementary school teachers' implementation for the emphasis on the revision, major contents, teaching and learning method, and evaluation in the 2009 revised national science curriculum. To fulfill the purpose of this study we carried out a survey with 222 elementary school teachers. Main findings of this research were as follows: First, they highly agreed to the increase in class hours and the application of subject classroom, but they had a lower recognition for setting the subject groups. Second, the degree of necessity in discussion and STS was relatively high, but the degree of implementation in science writing, discussion and STEAM was low. Third, in teaching and learning method, they showed a high performance for mutual cooperation, student-led activities and communication, but, a low implementation for open inquiry and instruction considering individual differences. Fourth, in the evaluation of science learning, they showed a high implementation for evaluation based on achievement standards and one based on the understanding and application of basic concepts, but, a low implementation for the development of common evaluation tools. Fifth, it seemed that their recognition for amount, level and interest of science contents and inquiry activities was appropriate and positive.

• Journal of Engineering Education Research
• /
• v.20 no.1
• /
• pp.3-9
• /
• 2017

This study examined 39 elementary teachers' perceptions on the frontier science teaching and their teaching efficacy. The results showed: elementary teachers were interested in and were well aware of the importance of the frontier science in human life and in this society. They also agreed with the necessity of teaching frontier science in elementary school. They, however, had perceptions that frontier science may not be appropriate for the level of elementary students. Moreover, the poor educational environment may act as constraints for frontier science teaching. The change of elementary teachers' teaching efficacy(t=-13.67, p<.01) was statistically significant after their participation of developing STEAM program on frontier science and practicing its lessons.

• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
• /
• v.25 no.2
• /
• pp.141-148
• /
• 2006

The purpose of this study is to examine the efforts of cooperative loaming through a student team-achievement division(STAD) model on elementary school students' learning achievements and science ,elated attitudes toward the field of astronomy. This study was conducted using 72 students of the fifth-grade class in a elementary school in Busan. The 18 science lessons of the 'Family of the sun' were executed over 6 weeks in the fifth-year students classes. In this study, the experimental group were exposed to cooperative learning through STAD and the contrast group were exposed to a traditional teacher-centered class. The results show that the STAD class of the experimental group had a greater effect upon the elementary school students' science learning achievement and science related attitudes toward the field of astronomy than those of the comparison group. Additionally, the students recognized that cooperative learning provokes both interest in loaming and in their studies generally and also they expressed a desire to continue with cooperative teaming methods.

• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
• /
• v.26 no.5
• /
• pp.525-534
• /
• 2007

Elementary students are tend to depend heavily on visual informations in the cognitive process. Thus, elementary science textbooks provide science contents mostly by inscriptions, the visual materials, with little verbal information in the limited page area. Especially, since the textbooks include many accompanying inscriptions rather than a basic inscription, it is very important to understand the relationships among many inscriptions in teaching and leaning science. Therefore, this study analyzed the status and characteristics of accompanying inscriptions used. in elementary science textbooks, and classified them according to their functions. As results, we found six types of the accompanying inscriptions such as inner part, detail, result, process, emphasis, and explanation. Accompanying inscriptions were used more frequently in the lower grade (3rd and 4th grades) than the higher grade (5th and 6th grades). We discussed the examples of each type in detail, and thus revealed some possible difficulties in understanding inscriptions caused by the inconsistency of the directions of the basic inscription and accompanying inscription, and by the absence of the sign linking the basic and accompanying inscriptions.