• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
• /
• v.28 no.3
• /
• pp.352-360
• /
• 2009

In this study, we investigated the relationships among elementary school teachers' perceptions of constructivist science assessment, views on science teaching and learning, science teaching efficacy belief, and the perceptions of constructivist science learning environment. An exploratory factor analysis was conducted to validate the factor structure of the perceptions of constructivist science assessment test. The test consisting of 3 factors with 21 questions in the previous research was reconstructed as one consisting of 2 factors with 22 questions as a result of the factor analysis. A stepwise multiple regression analysis was also conducted to predict the explanatory powers of the variables on perceptions of constructivist science assessment. The results indicated that the perceptions of constructivist science learning environment, views on constructivist science teaching and learning, and personal science teaching efficacy belief were the significant predictors of the perceptions of constructivist science assessment.

• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
• /
• v.29 no.1
• /
• pp.86-92
• /
• 2010

Although constructivist assessment has been emphasized by many science educators, most elementary school teachers are still not familiar with this. In order to investigate the causes of this problem, we examined the perceptions of pre-service elementary school teachers toward constructivist science assessment and the relationships among the perceptions toward constructivist science assessment, the views on science teaching and learning, science teaching efficacy beliefs, and the perceptions toward constructivist science learning environment. Analyses of the results revealed that the perceptions of pre-service elementary school teachers toward constructivist science assessment were higher than those of the elementary school teachers reported previously. The results of a stepwise multiple regression analysis indicated that the views on constructivist science teaching and learning and personal science teaching efficacy beliefs were the significant predictors of the perceptions toward constructivist science assessment.

• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
• /
• v.24 no.1
• /
• pp.121-128
• /
• 2004

This study was to investigate high students' conceptions of acids and bases, and their views on learning science. Multiple sources of data were collected over six months with a participation of sit tenth graders and their science teacher. The transcripts of interviews and other data were examined with an eye toward students' conceptions of acids and bases, and their views of learning science. Students' views of science are displayed the representative pattern. Each pattern is represented with an episode. Students' views of learning have been found to reflect the transmissive models of science educational practice. Students accept passive and difficult-to-modify views of the learner roles that they should play in the science classroom. Students identified science classes as conservative places, despite the introduction of science literacy as a goal of Korean science education since 1980. Behaviorism remains the major influence in their expectation, design, and practice in school science. Moreover, 'transmission' remains the persistent and dominant classroom cultural dynamic for both teaching and learning of science.

• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
• /
• v.27 no.4
• /
• pp.420-436
• /
• 2008

The purpose of this study was to investigate and analysis the elementary teachers' and students' views about the difficulties in teaching and learning in geology units of elementary school science. For the purpose of this study, semi-structured interviews were conducted individually with seventeen elementary teachers who have serviced more than three years, and with sixteen elementary students located in Cheongju City. The interview questions were developed through Seidman's step to acquire a reliability in the interview data with triangulation, then in-depth interview questions were modified and completed through pre-interview after constructing the trustworthiness of interviewees. In-depth interviews were performed in applying the analytic induction method and the interviews were recorded. From the interviews, we found that elementary teachers' views about the difficulties in teaching geology units; teachers' inner difficulties, the difficulty of lab activities, the problems of rock samples, the problems of curriculum in geology units, the difficulty of the geological feature, the problems of the cramming education, the lack of the opportunity for the speciality, and so on. And the students have the views about the difficulties in learning geology units; the difficulty of the unit contents understanding, the problems of learning by heart, the lack of the interest, the lack of materials, the problems of rock samples, the difficulty of the field learning, and so on. Based on the results, the study suggested that an interesting lab activities should be included in the geology units and taught in the geological field trip to help elementary school students more fully comprehend contents of the geology units.

• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
• /
• v.29 no.3
• /
• pp.262-276
• /
• 2010

The purpose of this study was to investigate and analyze the elementary teachers' views and students' views about the difficulties in teaching and learning on open inquiry activities of elementary school science. Semi-structured interviews were conducted individually with three elementary teachers who have serviced more than three years, and with twenty four elementary students attending schools located in Cheongju City. And their anecdotes were collected and analyzed. The interview questions were developed through Seidman's steps to acquire the reliability in the interview data. From the interviews and anecdotes, we found that elementary teachers' views about the difficulties of teaching open inquiry activities: the difficulties of teaching in finding inquiry problem and planning inquiry, the difficulties of managing group activities, the difficulties of managing class hours for inquiry, the lack of the students' inquiry abilities, and problems on students' affective characteristics. And the students have the views about the difficulties in doing open inquiry activities: the difficulties of finding inquiry problem and planning inquiry, being unaccustomed to write reports, the troubles with investigating, problems on affective characteristics, the difficulties of joining in a group, and the lack of inquiry abilities. The teachers give suggestions for effective application of the open inquiry activities: first, the teachers must encourage students' emotion and will in doing open inquiry activities, second, there must be the steady inquiry teaching and learning in ordinary elementary science classes. Based on the results, this study suggested that elementary teachers should concern specially about students' being unaccustomed to write reports and the troubles in doing scientific investigation.

• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
• /
• v.21 no.5
• /
• pp.773-794
• /
• 2001

Many studies on the professional development of science teachers demonstrated that induction teachers' conceptions of teaching science are important factors in developing their professionalism. The present study was conducted to describe in detail the progress of two science induction teachers, June and Mike, towards conceptual change teaching, and to investigate secondary induction science teachers' conceptions of teaching science by analysing their conceptual ecologies. The study was interpretive, using multiple data sources to achieve a triangulation of data. Both June and Mike held strongly positive learning in their views of knowledge and science. Holding positivist views of knowledge and of science is likely to be a major obstacle for anyone coming to understand constructivism and its implications in teaching for conceptual change. This argument resonates in several key ways with the teachers' cases, even though I recognize differences between scenario and teachers, and between teachers themselves.

• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
• /
• v.25 no.6
• /
• pp.689-697
• /
• 2005

Science education has been in a state of crisis for some time. To understand the science teacher's role, it is helpful to reconsider an aspect as fundamental as the nature of science. Since teaching cannot be separated from learning and knowledge, their very close dynamic processes need to prescribe the role of the teacher and student simultaneously. However, traditional views are limited because they tend to emphasize some particular selected aspect of learning and teaching. This paper investigates the epistemology of Michael Polanyi (1891 1976), which is often considered to transcend the confrontation between objectivity and subjectivity of knowledge. Polanyi reconceptualized science knowledge as 'personal knowledge' based on his own experience as a scientist and a thinker. In this study, I discuss 1) the nature of science in light of Polanyi's epistemology, 2) what this says about the meaning of science learning and teaching, 3) the potential of these ideas for the role of the science teacher.

• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
• /
• v.17 no.4
• /
• pp.501-510
• /
• 1997

Science teachers' beliefs about science and school science and their perceptions of the science laboratory learning environment were investigated with an assumption that science laboratory teaching would be affected by science teachers' beliefs. Likert-scale questionnaires of BASSSQ and SLEI were used in this study. The major findings were as follows: 1. Science teachers showed inconsistent beliefs about science and school science. Their responses reflected a patch-like view of postmodern epistemology and objectivism They also showed somewhat different views about science and school science. It was found that science teachers had strong objectivist views about science in some parts. but they had moderate constructivist views about school science in other parts; 2. The mean scores of student cohesiveness, integration. and rule clarity on the actual version in SLEl were relatively high, but those of open-endedness and physical environment were very low; 3. There was no association between teachers' beliefs about science and their perceptions of the science laboratory learning environment. But some associations were found between teachers' beliefs about school science and their perception on student cohesiveness, integration, and rule clarity of the actual science laboratory learning environment. Teachers' beliefs about school science had some statistically significant correlations with their perceptions on all scales of the preferred version of SLEI. We could not show a causal relationship between teachers' beliefs and their science laboratory learning environment through these results. But it can be suggested that teachers' beliefs about school science do have a role in constructing a desirable science laboratory learning environment, as we found that there were statistically significant correlations between them.

• Journal of the Korean Chemical Society
• /
• v.48 no.3
• /
• pp.291-299
• /
• 2004

The purpose of this study is to investigate views of high school students' learning of chemistry as one aspect of conceptual ecology. The results of this study will help us expand our understanding of conceptual change as it is used to evaluate learners. I made use of an interpretative research design based on principles of naturalistic inquiry. The participants in this study were six sophomore students. The picture of a chemistry class we draw from analyzing data is a play on stage with little interaction. Students accept passive and difficult-to-modify views of the learner roles that they should play in the chemistry classroom. Students identified chemistry classes as conservative places. 'Transmission' seems to remain the persistent and dominant classroom cultural dynamic for both the teaching and learning of chemistry. Students should understand about learning processes, and how to play, monitor, evaluate and regulate them. Students should experience the plausibility and fruitfulness of learning chemistry, and it will help students to feel a "love of learning chemistry." As students change their views of learning chemistry, it will help to improve their learning and to experience conceptual change in chemistry learning.

• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
• /
• v.18 no.1
• /
• pp.75-85
• /
• 1999

This paper describes some major trends in primary and secondary education now. It is a selective views of significant topics with important implication for the future. These trends are summarized as follows, after examining historical development of Teaching-learning Methodology in primary and secondary education. 1. Education is seen as part of interdisciplinary world; emphasis is on relating education to the students' world, which is not compartmentalized. 2. Emphasizing students' individual growth with their own goal of lives. 3. Open-education with variable contents and purposes of education. 4. Education for all from that for some. 5. Consructivist based from behavior based. 6. Cooperative learning, peer tutoring, group projects. 7. Authentic assessment; assessment integrated with instruction. 8. The teacher is a facilitator of learning and a learner as well; students are learners and teachers in some situations; networks emerge instead of one-way forms or communication. 9. Spiral curriculum from single exposure.