Investigating The Effect Of Nature Of Science Activities On Pre-Service Science Teachers’ Critical Thinking Skills

Abstract

This study aims to investigate how nature of science activities affects pre-service science teachers’ critical thinking skills. The participants of this study are 62 pre service science teachers; 47 of which are girls and 15 are boys. Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ), developed by Pintrich, Garcia, and McKeachie (1991), was used to assess students’ critical thinking skills for both pre-test and post-test. Real Fossils, Real Science, Tangram, Flojiston, The Tube, The Cans were activities that used in the present study to discuss nature of science. During the discussions, pre-service science teachers were encouraged about to dwell on the common misconceptions about the nature of science. A one- way within-subjects ANOVA test was conducted to compare pre-test and posttest results about students’ critical thinking skills. According to the results, there was a significant difference between pre-test and post-test. In other words, the results suggested that the nature of science activities is effective to improve pre-service science teachers’ critical thinking skills.

Keywords

• Nature of Science, Critical Thinking, Activities

Investigating The Effect Of Nature Of Science Activities On Pre-Service Science Teachers’ Critical Thinking Skills

Öz

Bu araştırma, Fen Bilgisi Öğretmen adaylarına uygulanan bilimin doğasına yönelik etkinliklerin, eleştirel düşünme becerilerine etkisini ortaya çıkarmayı amaçlamaktadır. Araştırmanın uygulama grubunu, 47 bayan ve 15 erkek olmak üzere toplam 62 öğretmen adayı oluşturmaktadır. Veri toplama aracı olarak, 1991 yılında Pintrich, Garcia, and McKeachie tarafından geliştirilen “Öğrenmede Güdüsel Stratejiler” anketinin eleştirel düşünme boyutu kullanılmıştır. Bilimin doğası etkinlikleri; Gerçek fosiller, Gerçek bilim, Tangram, Flojiston, Kutu ve Bileşik Kaplar gibi etkinliklerden oluşmaktadır. Öğretmen adaylarının eleştiriyel düşünme ölçeğine ait ön test ve son test puanları arasındaki ilişki ANOVA testi ile değerlendirilmiştir. Analiz sonuçlarına göre eleştirel düşünme ölçeği öntest ve son test sonuçları arasında anlamlı farklılık tespit edilmiştir. Diğer bir deyişle, bilimin doğasına yönelik etkinliklerin öğretmen adaylarının eleştiriyel düşünme becerileri üzerinde olumlu etkiler oluşturduğu sonucu çıkartılabilir.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Bilimin Doğası, Eleştirel Düşünme, Etkinlikler.

References

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