Exploring student beliefs and understanding in elementary science and mathematics

This study had the goal of investigating the association among elementary students' (N = 276) science and math beliefs and the relationship between those beliefs and teachers' ratings of mathematical and science understanding. Results of structural path analysis indicate that in science, intellectual risk‐taking (IRT; the willingness to share tentative ideas, ask questions, attempting to do, and learn new things) was positively related to teachers' ratings of science understanding, while creative self‐efficacy (CSE) beliefs (i.e., students' confidence in their ability to generate ideas and solutions in science) were indirectly related (working through IRT). Results also indicate that students' scientific certainty beliefs (i.e., the belief that science knowledge is stable, fixed, and represented by correct answers) were negatively related to teachers' ratings of science understanding. With respect to math, results indicate that students' CSE beliefs were positively related to teachers' ratings of math understanding; whereas students' mathematical source beliefs (i.e., believing that math knowledge originates from external sources) were negatively related. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 49: 942–960, 2012     

Early adolescents' and their parents' mental imagery in relation to perceived reading competence

This cross‐sectional survey study examined the relation between mental imagery (i.e., seeing images of a story ‘in the mind's eye’) and perceived self‐competence in reading. The study was conducted with a group of seventh‐grade to ninth‐grade students in the prevocational educational track of secondary schools in the Netherlands and their parents. Results showed a moderate relation between mental imagery and self‐competence beliefs, also after controlling for the quality of students' home literacy environment. Examination of gender differences revealed that girls outperformed boys in self‐competence beliefs. Furthermore, boys perceived themselves as better readers when their parents had higher mental imagery skills. No direct relation was found between parents' and adolescents' mental imagery skills. These findings imply that parents and teachers may need to be made aware of the importance of mental imagery strategies as it may enhance the reading experiences of boys as well as girls.     

Positive and Negative Self‐Perceptions: Is There a Cyclical Relationship Between Teachers' and Students' Perceptions of Effort,Strategy Use,and Academic Performance?

This study was part of a larger research program designed to investigate how effort interacts with strategy use to mediate the academic performance of successful students with learning disabilities (LD) and how teachers' and students' perceptions influence these relationships. The sample consisted of 46 students with LD and 46 matched students without LD and their seven teachers from Grades 6–8. A self‐report survey was used to obtain an index of students' perceptions of their effort, strategy use, academic struggles, and academic competence. Our findings indicated that students with LD with positive academic self‐perceptions were more likely to work hard and to use strategies in their schoolwork than were students with LD who had negative academic self‐perceptions. Teachers viewed students with LD who had positive academic self‐perceptions as working equally hard and attaining similar levels of academic competence as their peers without LD. In marked contrast, students with LD who had negative academic self‐perceptions were judged by their teachers as making limited effort in school and achieving at a below‐average level in comparison with their peers. Findings suggested a cyclical relationship between students' self‐perceptions and their teachers' judgments and supported the notion of a reciprocal strategy‐effort interaction.     

High School Teachers' Motivational Perceptions and Strategies in an East Asian Nation

This study investigated the relationships between teachers' self‐reported classroom goal structures, instructional self‐perceptions, teaching efficacy, and perceptions of students' motivation in a developing East Asian nation. This study's participants were 404 teachers, across subject areas, in 14 high schools in an East Asian nation. Similar studies have been conducted in western nations, but these cannot be generalised to the East Asian cultural context without direct research. The following teacher perceptions correlated strongly with perceptions of student motivation: learning goal orientations; student ability; instrumentality of instruction; and high teaching self‐efficacy. Among these related factors, learning goals and ability emerged as the strongest predictors of perceived student motivation. Teachers interviewed reported that their students' motivation is primarily extrinsic and performance‐oriented, influenced by external factors, predominantly exam pressure and social expectations. These findings have important implications for teacher education and practice, and for school policy and educational reform.     

Differences in African‐American and European‐American students' engagement with nanotechnology experiences: Perceptual position or assessment artifact?

This study examined middle and high school students' perceptions of a weeklong science experience with nanotechnology and atomic force microscopy. Through an examination of student self assessments and their writing, the study allowed us to examine some of the issues that may contribute to discrepancies that are seen between European‐American and African‐American students in science. The results of the study showed that after instruction, African‐American students were significantly more likely to agree with the statement that “science involves mostly memorizing things and getting the right answer,” than European‐American students. In addition, European‐American students were significantly more likely to write their newspaper stories from a first person perspective than their African‐American peers. The results are discussed in light of the assessment task, students' interpretations of formal writing, cultural differences in the use of language in writing, and possible cultural differences in students' perceptions of the science experience. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 44: 787–799, 2007     

Reading motivation,perceptions of reading instruction and reading amount: a comparison of junior and senior secondary students in Hong Kong

This study examined the relations between students' reading motivation, perceptions of reading instruction and reading amount, together with grade differences, in a Chinese educational context. A total of 1,146 students from 19 secondary schools in Hong Kong voluntarily responded to a questionnaire that measured these three sets of variables. The study's findings indicated that students' intrinsic motivation was most strongly related to their reading amount. Students' perceptions of the reading instruction they received in their Chinese language class were significantly related to their reading motivation, but were only indirectly related to their reading amount, being mediated through reading motivation. Consistent with previous studies, significant grade differences were found in all types of reading motivation, students' perceptions of reading instruction and students' reading amount. The findings indicated that junior secondary students had better self‐efficacy, intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation and social motivation than senior secondary students. The largest grade difference was in students' self‐efficacy. Junior secondary students also perceived the reading instruction in their Chinese language class as more mastery‐oriented and read more frequently than senior secondary students. The implications of these findings for understanding Chinese students' reading motivation and for planning effective reading instruction to enhance their motivation are discussed.     

Motivation in high school science students: A comparison of gender differences in life,physical, and earth science classes

The aims of this study were to examine self‐efficacy and other motivation variables among high school science students (n = 502); to determine the degree to which each of the four hypothesized sources of self‐efficacy makes an independent contribution to students' science self‐efficacy beliefs; to examine possible differences between life, physical, and Earth science classes; and to investigate patterns of gender differences that may vary among the fields of science. In Earth science classes, girls earned higher grades and reported stronger science self‐efficacy. In life science classes, girls earned higher grades but did not report stronger self‐efficacy, and did report higher science anxiety. In physical science, there were no gender differences in grades or self‐efficacy, but girls again reported higher levels of science anxiety. For boys across science fields, science self‐efficacy significantly predicted course grades and mastery experiences was the only significant predictor of self‐efficacy. For girls, self‐efficacy was also the strongest predictor of science grade across fields. Mastery experiences significantly predicted self‐efficacy in Earth science for girls, but social persuasions, vicarious experiences, and physiological states were better predictors of science self‐efficacy in life and physical science classes. Results support (Bandura, A., 1997) hypothesized sources of self‐efficacy, previous research findings on self‐efficacy in the domain of science, and validate the suggestion made by Lau and Roeser (2002) to disaggregate data by science field. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 45: 955–970, 2008     

Adolescents' declining motivation to learn science: A follow‐up study

This is a mix methods follow‐up study in which we reconfirm the findings from an earlier study [Vedder‐Weiss & Fortus [ 2011 ] Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 48(2), 199–216]. The findings indicate that adolescents' declining motivation to learn science, which was found in many previous studies [Galton [ 2009 ] Moving to secondary school: Initial encounters and their effects. Perspectives on Education, 2(Primary‐secondary Transfer in Science), 5–21. Retrieved from www.wellcome.ac.uk/perspectives ; Osborne, Simon, & Collins, [2003] International Journal of Science Education 25(9), 1049–1079], is not an inevitable phenomenon since it appears not to occur in Israeli democratic schools. In addition to reinforcing previous results in a different sample, new results show that the differences between the two school types are also apparent in terms of students' self‐efficacy in science learning, students' perceptions of their teachers' goals emphases, and students' perception of their peers' goals orientation. Quantitative results are accompanied by rich verbal examples of ways in which students view and articulate their own and their teachers' goal emphases. Content analysis of students' interviews showed that students in traditional schools are directed more towards goals that are external and related to the outcome of learning in comparison to democratic school students who are motivated more by goals that are internal and related to the process of learning. Structure analysis of these interviews suggests that democratic school students experience a greater sense of autonomy in their science learning than traditional school students do. Implications for research on students' motivation are discussed, such as considering not only the teacher and the classroom but also the school culture. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 49: 1057–1095, 2012     

Measuring Students' Self‐Efficacy for Communication

Design students are asked to regularly communicate their ideas to a diverse audience. Students' abilities may be affected by their perceived self‐efficacy, the perception of abilities to perform a task. Because self‐efficacy is conceived of as context‐specific, it is vital to consider self‐efficacy as it specifically relates to design studios and the communication within that context, rather than to look at generalised self‐efficacy for communication. To that end, this article explains the development and validation of measures of students' perceived self‐efficacy for communicating in both formal (critique) and informal (studio working time) design circumstances. Using data from students at two institutions, the measures were found to be reliable; these results were further supported through their relationship to previously validated measures. The development of these measures and the results from pilot data provide insight into students' perceptions of their communication abilities that may be beneficial to educators seeking to help design students communicate competently.     

The Effects of Instructional Training on University Teaching Assistants

This study addressed the need for empirical tests of the global instructional design (ID) model as a toolkit for classroom teachers in authentic settings; and the performance improvement challenge of finding effective, efficient methods of professional development for preparing graduate assistants to teach. Participants were eighteen teaching assistants (TAs) with primary instructional responsibilities at a large Midwestern university. Twelve were given a training intervention in instructional design, while the other six served as a control group. The intervention was based on the iterative, five‐phase ADDIE model, and principles from educational psychology. Dependent measures were TAs' ID knowledge, teaching self‐efficacy, satisfaction with knowledge and strategies, perceived teaching competence, teaching performance and teaching effectiveness, and their students' engagement and perceived learning. All of the study's seven hypothesized relationships were found statistically significant. The intervention, though brief, measurably increased the ID knowledge of participating TAs, along with their teaching‐related self‐perceptions, and student outcomes. Instructional design emerges as a potentially powerful training tool for organizing teachers' and trainers' knowledge related to the complex practice of classroom instruction.     

Science motivation questionnaire II: Validation with science majors and nonscience majors

From the perspective of social cognitive theory, the motivation of students to learn science in college courses was examined. The students—367 science majors and 313 nonscience majors—responded to the Science Motivation Questionnaire II, which assessed five motivation components: intrinsic motivation, self‐determination, self‐efficacy, career motivation, and grade motivation. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses provided evidence of questionnaire construct validity. The motivation components, especially self‐efficacy, were related to the students' college science grade point averages. The science majors scored higher than the nonscience majors on all of the motivation components. Among both science majors and nonscience majors, men had higher self‐efficacy than women, and women had higher self‐determination than men. The findings suggest that the questionnaire is a valid and efficient tool for assessing components of students' motivation to learn science in college courses, and that the components play a role in students' science achievement. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 48: 1159–1176, 2011     

Gender ratios in high school science departments: The effect of percent female faculty on multiple dimensions of students' science identities

To examine how school characteristics are tied to science and engineering views and aspirations of students who are underrepresented in science and engineering fields, this mixed‐methods study explores relationships between aspects of students' science identities, and the representation of women among high school science teachers. Quantitative analyses tested the hypothesis that percent female faculty would have a positive effect on girls' science interests, and perceptions in particular, given the potentially greater availability of women role models. Findings indicate that percent female science faculty does not have an effect on a range of science measures for both male and female students, including the ways in which they understand scientific practice, their science self‐concept, and their interest in science‐related college majors. As qualitative data demonstrate, this could reflect practical constraints at schools where female faculty are concentrated and narrow perceptions of science teachers and “real” science. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 44: 980–1009, 2007     

Dimensional comparisons in students' perceptions of the learning environment

This study aims to add empirical evidence to the generalized internal/external frames of reference (GI/E) model, according to which students' social and dimensional achievement comparisons might not only be related to students' self-concepts but also to perceptions of the learning environment. In a sample of N = 4926 German students, math and language achievements were measured along with two facets of students' perceptions of the learning environment, i.e., perceived instructional quality of math and language classes and perceived relations to math and language teachers. In the GI/E path model, achievement and perceptions of the learning environment were positively related within matching domains but negatively related or unrelated across non-matching domains. This pattern of relations indicates that social and dimensional achievement comparisons contribute to the formation of students' perceptions of the learning environment but the pattern of relations was stronger for math than for language achievement. Students' perceptions of instructional quality were more strongly related to achievement than perceptions of student–teacher relations. The findings were generalizable across same-aged elementary and secondary school students. The results are discussed regarding their implications for the proposed GI/E model and their importance for future research.     

Monitoring trends and accuracy of self‐efficacy beliefs during interventions: Advantages and potential applications to school‐based settings

Self‐efficacy measures are context‐specific assessment tools designed to evaluate students' perceptions of capability to attain specific outcomes on particular tasks. These measures are important because they possess several desirable features typical of progress‐monitoring tools (i.e., context specific, free of reactive effects, strong psychometric properties), have been shown to be strong predictors of motivated and self‐regulatory behaviors, and possess many advantages relative to more global self‐report scales of motivation. In this article, a general framework for using these scales as a supplemental assessment tool to behavioral or skill‐based assessments will be presented and discussed. The key focus of this article involves illustrating how practitioners can evaluate and interpret the trends in students' self‐efficacy judgments as well as the accuracy of these judgments during the implementation and evaluation of academic interventions. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Black males' self‐perceptions of academic ability and gifted potential in advanced science classes

The purpose of this research effort was to examine Black male students' self‐perceptions of academic ability and gifted potential in science. The purposeful sample consisted of nine Black males between the ages of 14 and 18 years. Four categories of self‐perceptions of academic ability and gifted potential emerged from the data. These included: (a) gifted high achievers; (b) gifted “could do better” high achievers; (c) gifted “could do better” situational nonachievers; and (d) gifted “could do better” underachievers. Science teachers' influences that referenced participants' academic achievement pointed to validation. Participants' perceptions regarding how science teachers' influenced their academic performance focused on science teachers' content knowledge. Power dynamics germane to Black male participants' value or worth that directed their efforts in science learning environments are discussed. Implications are posited for science teaching, science education programs, and future research. This research endeavor was based on two premises. The first premise is that Black males' self‐perceptions of academic ability affect their science academic achievement. The second premise is that, given parental, peer, and community influences, science teachers have considerable influence on students' self‐perceptions of academic ability. However, the focus of this research was not on parental influences, peer influences, or any potential influences that participants' communities may have on their academic achievement. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 42: 888–911, 2005     

Spatial thinking in science,technology, engineering,and mathematics: Elementary teachers' beliefs,perceptions, and self-efficacy

Fostering students' spatial thinking skills holds great promise for improving Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education. Recent efforts have focused on the development of classroom interventions to build students' spatial skills, yet these interventions will be implemented by teachers, and their beliefs and perceptions about spatial thinking influence the effectiveness of such interventions. However, our understanding of elementary school teachers' beliefs and perceptions around spatial thinking and STEM is in its infancy. Thus, we created novel measures to survey elementary teachers' anxiety in solving spatial problems, beliefs in the importance of spatial thinking skills for students' academic success, and self-efficacy in cultivating students' spatial skills during science instruction. All measures exhibited high internal consistency and showed that elementary teachers experience low anxiety when solving spatial problems and feel strongly that their skills can improve with practice. Teachers were able to identify educational problems that rely on spatial problem-solving and believed that spatial skills are more important for older compared to younger students. Despite reporting high efficacy in their general teaching and science teaching, teachers reported significantly lower efficacy in their capacities to cultivate students' spatial skills during science instruction. Results were fairly consistent across teacher characteristics (e.g., years of experience and teaching role as generalist or specialist) with the exception that only years of teaching science was related to teachers' efficacy in cultivating students' spatial thinking skills during science instruction. Results are discussed within the broader context of teacher beliefs, self-efficacy, and implications for professional development research.     

College students solving chemistry problems: A theoretical model of expertise

A model of expertise in chemistry problem solving was tested on undergraduate science majors enrolled in a chemistry course. The model was based on Anderson's Adaptive Control of Thought‐Rational (ACT‐R) theory. The model shows how conceptualization, self‐efficacy, and strategy interact and contribute to the successful solution of quantitative, well‐defined chemistry problems in the areas of stoichiometry, thermochemistry, and properties of solutions. A statistical path analysis and students' explanations supported the model and indicated that the students' problem conceptualization and chemistry self‐efficacy influenced their strategy use, which, in turn, strongly influenced their problem‐solving success. The implication of these findings for future research and developing students' expertise in chemistry problem solving is that a strategy is advantageous when it is built on a foundation of conceptual knowledge and chemistry self‐efficacy. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 46: 1070–1089, 2009     

Do student perceptions of teaching predict the development of representational competence and biological knowledge?

Dealing with representations is a crucial skill for students and such representational competence is essential for learning science. This study analysed the relationship between representational competence and content knowledge, student perceptions of teaching practices concerning the use of different representations, and their impact on students' outcome over a teaching unit. Participants were 931 students in 51 secondary school classes. Representational competence and content knowledge were interactively related. Representational aspects were only moderately included in teaching and students did not develop rich representational competence although content knowledge increased significantly. Multilevel regression showed that student perceptions of interpreting and constructing visual-graphical representations and active social construction of knowledge predicted students' outcome at class level, whereas the individually perceived amount of terms and use of symbolic representations influenced the students' achievement at individual level. Methodological and practical implications of these findings are discussed in relation to the development of representational competence in classrooms.     

Developing an audiovisual notebook as a self‐learning tool in histology: Perceptions of teachers and students

Videos can be used as didactic tools for self‐learning under several circumstances, including those cases in which students are responsible for the development of this resource as an audiovisual notebook. We compared students' and teachers' perceptions regarding the main features that an audiovisual notebook should include. Four questionnaires with items about information, images, text and music, and filmmaking were used to investigate students' (n = 115) and teachers' perceptions (n = 28) regarding the development of a video focused on a histological technique. The results show that both students and teachers significantly prioritize informative components, images and filmmaking more than text and music. The scores were significantly higher for teachers than for students for all four components analyzed. The highest scores were given to items related to practical and medically oriented elements, and the lowest values were given to theoretical and complementary elements. For most items, there were no differences between genders. A strong positive correlation was found between the scores given to each item by teachers and students. These results show that both students' and teachers' perceptions tend to coincide for most items, and suggest that audiovisual notebooks developed by students would emphasize the same items as those perceived by teachers to be the most relevant. Further, these findings suggest that the use of video as an audiovisual learning notebook would not only preserve the curricular objectives but would also offer the advantages of self‐learning processes. Anat Sci Educ 7: 209–218. © 2013 American Association of Anatomists.