Relational Analysis of College Science‐Major Students’ Epistemological Beliefs Toward Science and Conceptions of Learning Science

In recent years, there has been an increasing interest among educational researchers in exploring the relationships between learners’ epistemological beliefs and their conceptions of learning. This study was conducted to investigate these relationships particularly in the domain of science. The participants in this study included 407 Taiwanese college science‐major students. All of them responded to two major questionnaires, one assessing their scientific epistemological beliefs (SEBs) and the other one probing their conceptions of learning science (COLS). The SEB questionnaire included four factors: “certainty,” “source,” “development,” and “justification” of science knowledge. The COLS survey consisted of six factors in a hierarchical order, that is, learning science as “memorizing,” “preparing for tests,” “calculating and practicing,” “increasing one’s knowledge,” “application,” and “understanding and seeing in a new way.” The students’ confidence and interest toward learning science were also assessed by additional questionnaire items. Stepwise regression analyses, in general, showed coherence between students’ SEBs and their COLS, indicating that the sophistication of SEBs was consistent with less agreement with lower‐level COLS (such as “memorizing” and “preparing for tests”) as well as more agreement with higher‐level COLS (such as “understanding and seeing in a new way”). However, the SEB’s “justification” factor was positively related to almost all of COLS factors from the lower‐level to higher‐level. This study finally found that among all of the SEB and COLS factors, the “preparing for tests” factor in COLS was the solely significant variable for predicting students’ interest in science and confidence toward learning science.     

Pre-service teacher education students' epistemological beliefs and their conceptions of teaching

A study using both quantitative and qualitative methods was conducted in the final year of a Bachelor of Education programme to examine the student-teachers' epistemological beliefs and conceptions of teaching. The results show that most of the student-teachers (i) strongly believed that learning effort was more important than innate ability, (ii) strongly believed that knowledge changes, and (iii) were inclined to question the authority of knowledge. Although student-teachers who had sophisticated or mixed epistemological beliefs tended to believe in constructivist or mixed conceptions of teaching as predicted, inconsistent cases were identified. Implications for teacher education programmes are discussed.     

社会视角下对学生数学教学信念的研究

从社会视角来看,学生数学教学信念可以分成如下几部分:对于作为活动中介的学校数学的信念;对于活动中自我的信念;对于活动中教师与学生角色的信念;对于活动以及活动中社会规范和数学社会规范的信念.学生的数学教学信念是在数学课堂教学的社会活动中产生和发展的.数学课程改革应该重视培养学生形成新的数学教学信念.     

The Relationships Among Scientific Epistemic Beliefs,Conceptions of Learning Science,and Motivation of Learning Science: A study of Taiwan high school students

This study explores the relationships among Taiwanese high school students’ scientific epistemic beliefs (SEBs), conceptions of learning science (COLS), and motivation of learning science. The questionnaire responses from 470 high school students in Taiwan were gathered for analysis to explain these relationships. The structural equation modeling technique was utilized to reveal that the students’ absolutist SEBs led to reproduced COLS (i.e. learning science as memorizing, preparing for tests, calculating, and practicing) while sophisticated SEBs were related to constructive COLS (i.e. learning science as increase of knowledge, applying, and attaining understanding). The students’ reproduced COLS were also negatively associated with surface motive of learning science, whereas the constructive COLS were positively correlated with students’ deep motive of learning science. Finally, this study found that students who viewed scientific knowledge as uncertain (advanced epistemic belief) tended to possess a surface motive of learning science. This finding implies that the implementation of standardized tests diminishes Taiwanese high school students’ curiosity and interest in engaging deeply in science learning.     

Consistencies and Inconsistencies Between Science Teachers’ Beliefs and Practices

To gain a better understanding of teachers’ beliefs about teaching, as compared with their in-reality classroom practices, case studies were constructed with four science teachers in different schools in Egypt. The main aims of this article were to provide an answer to the research question, ‘To what extent do science teachers’ beliefs correspond to their practices?’ and to explore the contextual factors that can explain the difference, the consistency or inconsistency, between teachers' beliefs and practices. The study collected data for each teacher using semi-structured interviews, notes taken while observing classes, and teachers’ notes, journals, and lesson plans concerned with STS lessons. The data were analysed using the constant comparative method around common themes, which were identified as distinctive features of teachers’ beliefs; these same themes were then compared with their practices. Results showed that a few of the in-service science teachers’ pedagogical beliefs aligned with constructivist philosophy. Some of the teachers’ beliefs were consistent with their practices, especially the traditional beliefs, while some of teachers’ practices were conflicted with their beliefs in different contexts.     

对高师数学师范生信念改变的思考

教师的数学教学信念对于其课堂教学有着重要的影响,因而在师范教育中不但应该重视师范生的知识与技能,也应关注他们的数学教学信念.新入学的数学师范生的数学教学信念的特点是:他们大多持有与现代数学教育理念不相符合传统的数学教学信念.因此要在师范教育中改变他们传统的数学教学信念,从而形成与现代数学教育理念相符合的数学教学信念.为此,首先应该认识到培养师范生具有与现代数学教育理念相符合的数学教学信念的重要性、艰巨性和长期性,其次教师本身要具有和现代数学教育理念相适应的数学教学信念.     

内地香港语文教学之比较

香港因殖民地统治,形成了与内地完全不同的文化背景,"港式中文"就是这种文化背景的的产物。与内地相比,香港语文教学的理念不同,重工具性,轻人文性,强调创造性;语文课堂教学语言、教学文字不同,香港的课堂语言是粤语,使用繁体字;语文教学的课程目标不同,重在培养学生阅读、写作、聆听、说话和思维等语文能力,重在对学生自学能力的培养、对文化的认识。香港所使用的教材、采用的教学方法、考试范围等也与内地不同。香港的教师和学生与内地相比也表现出不同的特点。     

Scientific epistemic beliefs, conceptions of learning science and self-efficacy of learning science among high school students

This study examined the relationships among Taiwanese high school students’ scientific epistemic beliefs, conceptions of learning science, and self-efficacy of learning science. The questionnaire responses gathered from 377 high school students in Taiwan were utilized to elicit such relationships. The analysis of the structural equation model revealed that students’ absolutist scientific epistemic beliefs led to lower-level conceptions of learning science (i.e. learning science as memorizing, preparing for tests, calculating, and practicing) while sophisticated scientific epistemic beliefs might trigger higher-level conceptions of learning science (i.e. learning science as increase of knowledge, applying, and attaining understanding). The students’ lower-level conceptions of learning science were also found to negatively associate with their self-efficacy of learning science, while the higher-level conceptions of learning science fostered students’ self-efficacy. However, this study found that students who viewed scientific knowledge as uncertain (advanced epistemic belief) tended to possess lower self-efficacy toward learning science.     

Popular Culture goes to school in Hong Kong: a Language Arts curriculum on revolutionary road?

English teaching and learning has taken an interesting shift in Hong Kong schools with the implementation of the New Senior Secondary (NSS) curriculum under the ‘334’ education reform. Situating the paper within the broader considerations of the intersection of Cultural Studies and English teaching, this paper examines the challenges and prospects of teaching the new Language Arts elective called Learning English through Popular Culture module. It is argued that while the module endeavours to connect and motivate Hong Kong students to learn English through popular culture materials, the official curriculum and schemes of work, however, narrowly articulate the teaching of popular culture texts conceived as ‘text-types’. Such a formulaic approach to using popular culture in the classroom is limiting and locks students into a procedural way of ‘thinking’ and ‘doing’ popular cultural texts. The paper concludes by offering some ways forward that might deliver what is otherwise a revolutionary and innovative curriculum. Beyond the specific case of Hong Kong, the curriculum challenge discussed is instructive for other education systems and curriculum scholars looking to develop new pedagogies from the intersecting disciplines of Cultural Studies and English teaching.     

Epistemic beliefs in action: Spontaneous reflections about knowledge and knowing during online information searching and their influence on learning

In the present study it was investigated whether high school students are spontaneously able to reflect epistemologically during online searching for information about a controversial topic. In addition, we examined whether activating epistemic beliefs is related to individual characteristics, such as prior knowledge of the topic and argumentative reasoning skill; also whether learning from the Web is influenced by epistemic beliefs in action and the ability to detect fallacies in arguments. The participants (N = 64) were students of Grade 13, who were asked to think aloud during navigation. Qualitative and quantitative analyses were performed. Findings reveal that most participants spontaneously activated beliefs about all four dimensions identified in the literature, that is, about the simplicity/complexity, certainty/uncertainty, justification, and source of knowledge, at different levels of sophistication. Most epistemic reflections were about the source of knowledge. Two patterns of contextualized epistemic beliefs emerged and significantly influenced learning from the Web, which was also affected by participants' ability to identify argumentative fallacies.     

台港澳高等师范院校教育实习的比较分析

本文在评析台港澳高师教育实习的实习制度、实习目的、实习内容、活动安排和组织机构的基础上,概括出台港澳高师教育实习的特点,并提出了高师教育实习值得借鉴的几个问题。     

English teachers’ uses of motivational strategies beyond an established framework

ABSTRACT

Background: Although the usefulness of Dörnyei’s framework of motivational strategies to language teachers has been widely tested, motivational techniques that are not within the framework have less commonly been accounted for.

Purpose: This study explores the uses of motivational strategies beyond Dörnyei’s taxonomy, and the factors that cause English teachers to use them.

Methods: In total, 22 teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) in Hong Kong participated in this study. Reflective journal data and interview data, supported by classroom observations, were collected and analysed qualitatively.

Findings: The results reveal that, while most of the reported strategies corresponded closely to Dörnyei’s recommendations, two additional macrostrategies – routine teaching activities and uses of authentic materials – were employed. The most predominant factor leading to the use of these two macrostrategies was a concern about feasibility.

Conclusions: This study hence suggests the need for a new line of research on strategies that are primarily instructional and secondarily motivational, as well as further studies that take the feasibility of motivational strategies into greater consideration.     

非英语专业学生词汇学习策略调查研究

非英语专业的学生在把英语作为第二语言习得的过程中,所普遍反映的学习困难之一就是词汇的习得。调查问卷数据表明大多数学生认为英语词汇应该在用中学;在英语词汇习得过程中他们广泛地使用各种学习策略,其中,认知策略使用的最为广泛。     

Distinguishing between knowledge and beliefs: students’ epistemic criteria for differentiating

“I believe that he/she is telling the truth”, “I know about the solar system”: what epistemic criteria do students use to distinguish between knowledge and beliefs? If knowing and believing are conceptually distinguishable, do students of different grade levels use the same criteria to differentiate the two constructs? How do students understand the relationship between the two constructs? This study involved 219 students (116 girls and 103 boys); 114 were in 8th grade and 105 in 13th grade. Students had to (a) choose which of 5 graphic representations outlined better the relationship between the two constructs and to justify their choice; (b) rate a list of factual/validated, non-factual/non-validated and ambiguous statements as either knowledge or belief, and indicate for each statement their degree of truthfulness, acceptance and on which sources their views were based. Qualitative and quantitative analysis were performed. The data showed how students distinguish knowledge from belief conceptually and justify their understanding of the relationship between the two constructs. Although most students assigned a higher epistemic status to knowledge, school grade significantly differentiated the epistemic criteria used to distinguish the two constructs. The study indicates the educational importance of considering the notions of knowledge and belief that students bring into the learning situation.