Science Unit Design and Practice in Lower Secondary School Based on Authentic Learning that Focuses on Relevance to Society and Everyday Life: Improvements of Students’ Attitudes to Science and School Science

OGAWA Hiroshi, TAKABAYASHI Atsushi, IKENO Hiroaki, TAKEMOTO Iwaki, HIRATA Toyosei, MATSUMOTO Shinji

doi:10.11639/sjst.18036

Bibliographic Information

Other Title

実社会・実生活との関連を志向する真正の学習論に着目した中学校理科の単元開発とその実践
実社会・実生活との関連を志向する真正の学習論に着目した中学校理科の単元開発とその実践 : 生徒の科学や理科学習に対する態度に与える効果
ジッシャカイ・ジッセイカツトノカンレンオシコウスルシンセイノガクシュウロンニチャクモクシタチュウガッコウリカノタンゲンカイハツトソノジッセン : セイトノカガクヤリカガクシュウニタイスルタイドニアタエルコウカ
―生徒の科学や理科学習に対する態度に与える効果―

Search this article

Abstract

<p>Science education in Japan has a big problem: that the level of students’ attitudes toward school science and science in general is low. In this study, we designed a science unit based on the idea of authentic learning that focuses on relevance to society and everyday life. Following deployment of our newly designed science units, improvements in students’ attitudes toward both school science and science in general were demonstrated in the model lower secondary school science classes. The participants in the study were 132 lower secondary school students (8^thgrade). The students participated in the science classes from the unit “Electric currents and magnetic fields.” To verify the effects, we conducted before-and-after surveys with questionnaires about students’ attitudes toward their science classes at school and science in general, i.e. its relevance and usefulness in daily life. Moreover, the comments of the students after the unit was completed were analyzed. Consequently, the data, such as evaluation scales of “general value of science” and “personal value of science,” illustrated statistically significant differences between the before-and-after surveys. Then, the comments of the students were coded by quantitative text analysis. Jaccard coefficients between the codes were computed and showed high relativity between “contents of science” and “everyday life,” and between “everyday life” and “usefulness.” The results from this survey suggested that lower secondary school students’ attitudes to science and school science were improved through authentic learning that focuses on science’s relevance to society and everyday life. </p>

Journal

Journal of Research in Science Education

Journal of Research in Science Education 59 (3), 345-356, 2019-03-25

Society of Japan Science Teaching

Keywords

Details 詳細情報について

Export