Research on Science Education

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Slide 21

Positive Attitudes toward Science

Speaker's notes explaining graph:

Motivation is another area in which science standards and pedagogies are based on questionable extrapolations from the science of learning. The proposition is that children learn best through curiosity and a desire to understand their world, not through the imposition of external rewards. It follows that drill and practice on science facts and procedures are not fun. If science isn't fun, children won't learn it, or so the thinking goes.

This slide includes data from 37 countries in which 8th grade students took the 1995 TIMSS assessment. The X axis represents the percentage of children who said they really liked science. The Y axis represents their science scores. The correlation, aggregated at the national level, is - .74 between science scores and how much kids like science. This is a very strong negative relationship. Children in countries that were at the top on science achievement, such as Japan, don't like science. Children in countries at the bottom of international achievement in science like science more than children from any other country in the world. Perhaps you find that as interesting as I do.

TIMMS-R Rank order of countries by percent of students reporting high level of positive attitudes correlated with rank order of countries by average science achievement of 8th grade students - 1999

R = -.74

Martin, M. O., Mullis, I. V. S., Gonzalez, E. J., Gregory, K. D., Smith, T. A., Chrostowski, S. J., Garden, R. A., & O'Connor, K. M. (2000). TIMSS 1999 International Science Report: Findings from IEA's Repeat of the Third International Mathematics and Science Study at the Eighth Grade. International Study Center, Lynch School of Education, Boston College.