Primary School Pre-service Teachers’ Orientation towards Science Teaching

Year 2024, Volume: 21 Issue: 2, 425 - 449

Mehmet Şen

https://doi.org/10.33711/yyuefd.1413428

Abstract

One of the challenges that primary school teachers have is teaching science lessons and their beliefs have an essential role in teaching science. Therefore, this study focuses on primary school pre-service teachers’ orientation toward science teaching including beliefs about the purposes of science teaching, beliefs about science teaching and learning, and beliefs about the nature of science (NOS). Data were collected from seven pre-service primary teachers (PST) through semi-structured interviews to reveal their beliefs and analyzed by using deductive and inductive coding. The primary analysis showed PSTs focused on everyday coping, affective domain, and improving skills like social skills as beliefs about the purpose of science teaching. Teachers mainly had teacher-centered beliefs (e.g. traditional) and transitional beliefs. Also, they mainly held naïve NOS beliefs. Further analysis showed that the teachers having teacher-centered beliefs had teaching purposes like the correct explanation, solid foundation, and science process skills. These teachers also had naïve NOS understandings. The teacher having informed beliefs in the nature of science held student-centered beliefs and also focused on the structure of science as a teaching purpose, unlike other teachers. Discussions and implications are presented considering the beliefs forming teachers’ orientation toward science teaching in primary schools.

Keywords

Beliefs about science teaching and learning, beliefs about the nature of science, beliefs about the purpose of science teaching, orientation towards science teaching, primary school pre-service teachers

Sınıf Öğretmen Adaylarının Fen Öğretimi Yönelimleri

Abstract

Sınıf öğretmenlerinin en çok zorlandığı konulardan birisi fen öğretimidir ve öğretmen inanışları fen öğretim kalitesini etkilemektedir. Bu nedenle bu çalışmada sınıf öğretmenliği öğretmen adaylarının fen öğretim amaçları, feni öğretmeye ve öğrenmeye yönelik inanışları ve bilimin doğasına yönelik inanışlarını içeren fen öğretimine yönelik yönelimleri araştırılmıştır. Veriler 7 sınıf öğretmeni adayından yarı-yapılandırılmış görüşmeler aracılığıyla toplanmış, tümdengelimsel ve tümevarımsal yollarla analiz edilmiştir. Öğretmen adayları fen öğretim amacı olarak günlük hayatta bilgiyi kullanma, duyuşsal alan geliştirme ve beceri geliştirme amaçlarına odaklanmıştır. Fen öğrenmeye ve öğretimine yönelik inanış olarak ise öğretmen adayları genelde öğretmen merkezli inanışa sahip olmuştur ve bilimin doğası ile ilgili olarak genelde gelişmemiş inanışlara sahiptir. Sonuçlar ayrıca, öğretmen merkezli inanışa sahip olan öğretmen adaylarının doğru cevaba ulaşma, öğrencileri sonraki yıllara hazırlama ve bilimsel süreç becerilerini geliştirme gibi amaçlara sahip olduğunu göstermiştir. Bu öğretmen adaylarının ayrıca gelişmemiş bilimin doğası inanışlarına sahip olduğu görülmüştür. Gelişmiş bilimin doğası inanışlarına sahip olup öğrenci merkezli yaklaşım geliştiren öğretmen adayı ise bilimsel bilginin özelliklerini amaç edinen tek öğretmen adayı olmuştur. Çalışmanın sınıf öğretmenliği adaylarının fen öğretimi amaçları, fene yönelik öğrenme ve öğretmeye ilişkin inanışları ve bilimin doğasına yönelik inanışları ile ilgili sonuçlarının fen öğretimi yönelimi alanına katkılar sunacağı düşünülmektedir ve konu ile ilgili önerilerde bulunulmuştur.

Keywords

Fen öğretimi ve öğrenmeye yönelik inançlar, bilimin doğasına yönelik inançlar, fen öğretim amacına yönelik inançlar, fen öğretim yönelimleri, sınıf öğretmen adayları

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