Successful students' perceptions of secondary school science

School Science and Mathematics, Mar 1997 by John Eichinger

The attitudinal perceptions of successful college science students regarding their junior high and high school science experiences were compared with those of successful nonscience students. Particular attention was paid to recollections of teacher personality attributes and instructional methodology. Results indicate that science students were especially motivated by knowledgeable, enthusiastic, communicative, committed, friendly, competent, and creative science teachers, whereas the nonscience group preferred patient, knowledgeable, congenial, friendly, supportive, and enthusiastic instructors. Both groups agreed that, although traditional methods (textbooks, lectures, quizzes/tests) dominated their science experiences, their preferred instructional strategies included more dynamic methods, including laboratory activities, teacher demonstrations, and discussions. Both groups also agreed that high school science courses provided a closer match than did junior high/middle school courses in providing their preferred teacher attributes and instructional methods. Results supported the observation that, even for these academically gifted students, interest in science is relatively depressed during the junior high/middle school years. It was concluded that, although endogenous variables act in concert, the quality of the student-teacher interaction exerts the greatest influence on student attitudes, particularly if those students are not already "science-friendly. " Instructional implications are discussed.

Educators are determined to elicit greater student interest and achievement in school science, thereby raising the national level of science literacy for all students and preparing more students for science-related careers (American Association for the Advancement of Science, 1989; Brunkhorst & Yager, 1990; Drew, 1996; Hurd,1989; Massey,1992). Yet, students tend to lose interest in science the longer they remain in school (Simpson & Oliver,1990; Yager & Bonnstetter,1984; Yager & Penick, 1984, 1986; Yager & Yager, 1985), with a particularly sharp attitudinal decline occurring during the junior high/middle school years (Barrington & Hendricks, 1988; Cannon & Simpson, 1985; James & Smith,1985; Simpson & Oliver,1985). The purpose of this study was to identify attitudinally influential classroom factors at the secondary level, based upon the perspectives of students for whom the system has "worked," that is, for academically successful individuals who go on to college. The hope is that these results might be useful to middle school and high school science teachers in their efforts to cultivate nurturing and effective classroom learning environments.

Research indicates that a positive relationship exists between student attitudes and academic achievement (Bloom, 1976; Cannon & Simpson, 1985; Germann, 1988; Schibeci & Riley, 1986; Shrigley, 1983; Talton & Simpson, 1987), and that exemplary programs, which utilize more nontraditional and interactive classroom strategies, tend to produce more positive results when compared with random programs (Bonnstetter, Penick, & Yager,1983; Brunkhorst,1992; Vargas-Gomez & Yager, 1987). These findings suggest that the educational process can be actively directed toward the maximization of student interest and achievement.

Endogenous variables, i.e., those factors "that are under the influence of the school process and may have a direct or indirect influence on attitude toward the subject matter of science" (Haladyna, Olsen, & Shaughnessy, 1982, p. 673), have been shown to generate substantive effects including the curriculum, teacher quality, teacher attributes, and a variety of classroom environmental factors (George, Wystrach, & Perkins, 1985, 1987; Gogolin & Swartz, 1992; Haladyna & Shaughnessy, 1982; Koballa & Crawley, 1985; Myers & Fouts,1992; Simpson & Oliver, 1990; Talton & Simpson,1987). Ebenezer and Zoller (1993) reported that teacher role and style are particularly crucial to the development of positive student attitudes in constructivist/science-technology-society-oriented courses. According to Gallagher (1994), middle school students' perceptions of their teachers' attitudes toward teaching science and toward individual students are predictors of student decisions to persist in science. A survey of college science students (Eichinger,1992) indicated that participants preferred student-centered, enthusiastic secondary science teachers and classes, but did not often recall having encountered either, especially at the junior high/middle school level. Furthermore, Keeves (1975) reported that influential variables tend to exert their influence in complex patterns of interaction.

Similar to the investigations of superior science programs (Bonnstetter, Penick, & Yager, 1983; Brunkhorst, 1992; Vargas-Gomez & Yager, 1987), this study was guided by the premise that practical insights concerning the enhancement of attitudes for all students may be gained by analyzing exemplars, which in this case were successful students. A review of past research revealed, however, that college science students' recollections of secondary school science experiences represent an untapped source of potentially valuable data. What practical insights could the most capable individuals offer? The primary goal of this study, therefore, was to identify influential, endogenous school science variables (particularly teacher personality attributes and instructional methodology) as perceived by a sample of successful, high-ability science students. Conversely, as Tobias ( 1990) has stated, "we have to identify the able students who are choosing not to pursue science [and] find out why they are put off by science and attracted to other occupations..." (p. 7). Although it is not realistic or even desirable for all students to major in the sciences, it appeared likely that talented nonscience students' perceptions would be of value to this investigation. The secondary objectives of the study, then, were: (1) to contrast the recollected science experiences of students choosing a scientific career track with students planning careers in other fields, and (2) to compare the participants' junior high school science experiences with those of high school. Therefore, the attitudes of academically successful college science students regarding junior high and high school science classes, teachers, and instructional methods were collected and compared with those of equally successful, nonscience majors.