��I WAS TOLD IT WAS GOING TO BE HARD WORK BUT I WASN��T TOLD IT WAS GOING TO BE THIS MUCH WORK��: THE EXPERIENCES AND ASPIRATIONS OF UNDERGRADUATE SCIENCE STUDENTS

The recruitment and training of scientists is an area of international concern. Much of the research and policy focus around this issue in the UK has been on how science is taught in schools and in particular on the structure of the school science curriculum. Much less attention has been devoted to the undergraduate student experience and the trajectory that learners take which can lead to higher education and into careers as professional scientists and technicians. This paper reports the findings from a comparative study of the experiences and aspirations of almost 1,000 art and science undergraduates studying at 6 elite British universities. There is no evidence to suggest that undergraduate scientists are put off a career in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics field, although theirs is arguably a less positive experience than that of their peers who study arts subjects. Most science undergraduates have clear career aspirations which are largely linked to remaining in the field and often involve further study. For many, these aspirations lead them towards the applied sciences and away from a career in ‘pure’ research or academia.     

STUDENTS’ SOURCES OF MOTIVATION FOR PARTICIPATING IN SCIENCE FAIRS: AN EXPLORATORY STUDY WITHIN THE CANADA-WIDE SCIENCE FAIR 2008

Science fairs have been for many years a popular school activity in North America. They are a venue for the popularization of science and consequently an important encouragement for the pursuit of careers in science or engineering. However, little is known about students?? perceived motives for participating in local or national science fairs and about the way in which their involvement mediates their interest in science learning and scientific careers. The present study investigates the motivational factors associated with the high school students?? decision to participate in the 2008 Canada-Wide Science Fair, a thoroughly selected and highly motivated group. Our study examines 5 sources of motivation: (1) interest in science content, (2) sense of self-efficacy, (3) assurance of achievement through rewards or gratifications, (4) the social aspect of participating and (5) working strategies to gain scientific knowledge and methods. The understanding of the anticipated benefits participants seek through their involvement in science fairs may have the potential to help science teachers adapt instruction to appeal to a broader range of students in schools, thus nourishing the emergence of more interest in science.     

TECHNOLOGY KNOWLEDGE: HIGH SCHOOL SCIENCE TEACHERS’ CONCEPTIONS OF THE NATURE OF TECHNOLOGY

In-depth interviews guided by video elicitations examined 30 high school science teachers’ conceptions of technology and by extension how these conceptions reflected dimensions of nature of technology. Altogether, 64 % of the teachers characterized their schools and departments as aggressive–moderate adopters with generous access and support for technological tools. In comparison, 30 % noted that their school lagged behind due to funding and lack of infrastructure. Definitions of technology revealed emphasis on technology as artifact, overwhelming optimism on the purpose and function of technology to improve and make life easier and as representation of advancement in civilization. In tandem, teachers were most drawn to two video scenarios—medical and everyday tool videos because it reflected notions of progression and expectations of future changes; heightened awareness of the multitude of available technologies; and perceived relevance with classroom content. Perhaps most telling in these findings was that few teachers were drawn to the classroom video scenario, and only three teachers highlighted the technology–science–school science connection. These findings have implications for holistic understandings of technologies, which may inform how science teachers perceive and enact technologies in their science classrooms.     

THE BENEFITS OF SUMMER BRIDGE PROGRAMS FOR UNDERREPRESENTED AND LOW‐INCOME TRANSFER STUDENTS

University summer bridge programs or transitional programs for low‐income and minority transfer students are becoming an established part of the effort to recruit, retain, and graduate a population of students underrepresented in higher education. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of a summer bridge program on the academic, personal, and social development of underrepresented and low‐income transfer students during their first year at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). The 1988 entering cohort of Transfer Summer Program (TSP) students was tracked through their first two quarters at UCLA, collecting both attitudinal and academic data.

The results of the study clearly suggest that summer bridge programs for underrepresented and low‐income students can help facilitate their transition and adjustment to university life and improve their academic performance and persistence rates. This is accomplished by increasing transfer students' control over their academic future by preparing them to effectively participate in a classroom, to assess their academic abilities, and by introducing them to campus services and encouraging the utilization of these services.     

INVESTIGATING A POSSIBLE GAP BETWEEN STUDENTS’ EXPECTATIONS AND PERCEPTIONS: THE CASE OF A PRE-ENTRY SCIENCE PROGRAM

This study investigated a gap that may have existed between students’ expectations and perceptions of the 2007 Pre-Entry Science Program (PESP) cohort at the National University of Lesotho and factors that might have influenced these expectations and perceptions. Questionnaires and semi-structured interviews were used for data collection and administered to students participating in PESP. The gaps between expectations and perceptions that existed were measured using Cohen′s effect size. A large effect size was found for the ability of presenters to give students a good grasp of concepts within the subject area. Factors that seem to have influenced the students′ expectations and perceptions were identified as students′ background knowledge, previous experience, informal communication, and individual needs. Suggestions made to narrow the gap include knowing students′ expectations at the beginning of the program and then making a conscious effort to meet them.     

THE EFFECTS OF EPISTEMIC BELIEFS IN SCIENCE AND GENDER DIFFERENCE ON UNIVERSITY STUDENTS’ SCIENCE-TEXT READING: AN EYE-TRACKING STUDY

The primary purpose of this study was to explore not only the effects of epistemic beliefs in science on science-text reading but also the gender differences in epistemic beliefs and the reading process. The interactions between gender and epistemic beliefs during reading were also explored. A total of 25 university students, 13 male and 12 female, were paid to participate in the study. The scientific epistemological beliefs (SEBs) questionnaire was used to probe the subjects’ epistemic beliefs in science, while the eye-tracking method was employed to record their science-text reading process. It was demonstrated that the participants in the study had developed sophisticated SEBs. Complicated SEBs were associated with higher cognitive attention to the reading of data-related information but less mental effort to fact, scientific explanations, and the microview photos. As for the gender difference, female students displayed less mental effort in comprehending scientific explanations, but attended more to data and the microview graphic. It is argued that female learners are better at processing textual information. Interactions between SEBs and gender were found and discussed.     

INDIGENOUS STUDENTS’ EXPERIENCES OF THE HIDDEN CURRICULUM IN SCIENCE EDUCATION: A CROSS-NATIONAL STUDY IN NEW ZEALAND AND TAIWAN

The tacit messages transmitted to indigenous learners in the science classroom provide a lens through which indigenous disengagement with school science can be better understood. In this paper, the findings of a cross-national comparative study conducted with indigenous Maori students in New Zealand and Seediq/Atayal students in Taiwan are discussed from a sociological perspective. The purposes of the present study were to explore the ways in which indigenous elementary school students in two industrialized nations experience the science curriculum and to identify the socialization processes through which patterns of indigenous under-achievement in science are maintained and reproduced. The findings suggest that the peripheral positioning of indigenous culture and knowledge within the science curriculum in developed nations underpins a series of tacit pedagogical codes that contribute to indigenous student disengagement with the subject.     

UNDERSTANDING ACID�CBASE CONCEPTS: EVALUATING THE EFFICACY OF A SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT-CENTRED INSTRUCTIONAL PROGRAM IN INDONESIA

This study was a mixed quantitative–qualitative research to evaluate the efficacy of a designed student-centred instructional (DSCI) program for teaching about acids and bases. The teaching innovation was designed based on constructivist, hands-on inquiry and context-based approaches and implemented in seven 45-min lessons with a class of 36 grade 11 students (experimental group) from a public senior high school in Indonesia. Another class of 38 students (comparison group) from the same school was instructed using a traditional teacher-centred approach. Data were obtained using a (1) 12-item achievement test on acids and bases that was administered to both groups as a pretest and a posttest, (2) self-evaluation 13-item questionnaire on students’ perceptions of their competence and confidence in carrying out the inquiry activities that was administered to the experimental group and (3) 3-item open-ended questionnaire on students’ perceptions of the instructional process using the DSCI that was administered to the experimental group. The results of the study showed that the teaching innovation was effective in improving students’ understanding of acid–base concepts with significant difference between the two groups on the posttest mean scores. Moreover, the effectiveness of the innovation was supported by an increase in students’ interest in learning science as indicated by their (1) positive perceptions of their engagement and competence in doing inquiry activities, (2) positive perceptions of the learning environment and (3) positive outcome expectations. The findings have implications for chemistry teaching in any institution with similar achieving students as well as for the professional development of teachers.     

BETTER COLLEGE INFORMATION FOR STUDENTS: THE ROLE OF THE STATE TWO‐YEAR COLLEGE AGENCY

Prospective two‐year college students often lack adequate information on the range of educational alternatives available to them. Increasingly, state level agencies are playing a role in responding to that need. This article reports on a. national study of state two‐year college agencies to determine the extent and comprehensiveness of the postsecondary educational information they provide to students. Results indicate that most states have information they send to prospective students, but it varies widely in quality and often overlooks information students say they want to know. States with model information are identified.     

THE LENGTH MEASUREMENT IN THE TURKISH MATHEMATICS CURRICULUM: ITS POTENTIAL TO CONTRIBUTE TO STUDENTS’ LEARNING

“Knowing and doing measurement” is a fundamental competency in real life since measuring attributes of objects in appropriate units and using measuring tools assist students to quantify and understand the world. For this reason, the study of measurement has a special place in every mathematics curriculum. Among the domains of measurement, length measurement is extremely important for students to understand basic ideas about measurement and to construct bases for more advance topics as area and volume measurement. However, research on students’ understanding of length measurement reveals serious difficulties varying from incorrect alignment with a ruler to confusion of perimeter with area. One of the reasons for students’ struggles in measurement is considered as weaknesses in the intended (written) curriculum. In this respect, this study was designed to investigate the content of length measurement in the Turkish mathematics curriculum (1st–fifth grade) in terms of its potential to support students’ understanding. For this purpose, the Turkish Mathematics Curriculum Guide was carefully analyzed by considering main components of the curriculum (e.g. learning objectives). In spite of some weaknesses, the length measurement content in the curriculum seems to provide meaningful opportunities for students to develop the concepts and skills involved in length measurement.     

PREDICTORS OF COLLEGE STUDENTS’ KNOWLEDGE OF AND ATTITUDES TOWARD ELDERLY SEXUALITY: THE RELEVANCE OF GRANDPARENTAL CONTACT

In this study, 241 young and middle‐aged adult college students completed the Aging Sexuality Knowledge and Attitude Scale, and provided information about their demographic and grandparental relationship qualities. Findings showed that greater age was associated with increased knowledge of elderly sexuality. Both the presence of contact and greater than average perceptions of closeness with at least one grandparent were predictive of more permissive attitudes toward elderly sexuality. Among the total sample, greater knowledge was related to more permissive attitudes toward elderly sexuality. However, the presence of contact with at least one grandparent moderated this relationship; young adults without grandparental contact presented a nonsignificant knowledge /attitude relationship. These findings suggest that future studies of younger age cohorts’ attitudes toward elderly sexuality should assess grandparental contact and relationship characteristics, as well as general demographic information such as chronological age. Health‐care educators also may need to reconsider the commonly held assumption that greater knowledge of elderly sexuality is associated exclusively with more permissive attitudes.