Validation of the attitude toward women in science scale for early adolescents

The purpose of this study was to measure attitude of adolescents toward women in science careers. To do so, researchers in the Career Oriented Modules to Explore Topics in Science Project validated a 27-item instrument, the Women in Science Scale (WiSS). The scale had high reliability whether measured by estimates of internal consistency or test-retest reliability. The validity was established using the known groups and correlates procedures. The test clearly distinguished between known groups and resulted in the predicted pattern of correlations with measures of other constructs. The WiSS could prove to be a valuable instrument for basic research or curriculum evaluation where adolescent attitude toward women in science careers is a variable of interest.     

Positive childhood experiences predict less psychopathology and stress in pregnant women with childhood adversity: A pilot study of the benevolent childhood experiences (BCEs) scale

This pilot study examined the psychometric properties of the Benevolent Childhood Experiences (BCEs) scale, a new instrument designed to assess positive early life experiences in adults with histories of childhood maltreatment and other adversities. A counterpart to the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) questionnaire, the BCEs was developed to be multiculturally-sensitive and applicable regardless of socioeconomic position, urban-rural background, or immigration status. Higher levels of BCEs were hypothesized to predict lower levels of psychopathology and stress beyond the effects of ACES in a sample of ethnically diverse, low-income pregnant women. BCEs were also expected to show adequate internal validity across racial/ethnic groups and test-retest stability from the prenatal to the postnatal period. Participants were 101 pregnant women (M = 29.10 years, SD = 6.56, range = 18–44; 37% Latina, 22% African-American, 20% White, 21% biracial/multiracial/other; 37% foreign-born, 26% Spanish-speaking) who completed the BCEs and ACEs scales; assessments of prenatal depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, perceived stress, and exposure to stressful life events (SLEs) during pregnancy; and demographic information. Higher levels of BCEs predicted less PTSD symptoms and SLEs, above and beyond ACEs. The BCEs showed excellent test-retest reliability, and mean levels were comparable across racial/ethnic and Spanish-English groups of women. Person-oriented analyses also showed that higher levels of BCEs offset the effects of ACEs on prenatal stress and psychopathology. The BCEs scale indexes promising promotive factors associated with lower trauma-related symptomatology and stress exposure during pregnancy and illuminates how favorable childhood experiences may counteract long-term effects of childhood adversity.     

Development of the attitude toward science in school assessment and its use to investigate the relationship between science achievement and attitude toward science in school

There is much interest in science courses in high school and student attitudes toward those courses. A valid and reliable instrument that measures such attitudes is not available. This study first developed and validated the Attitude toward Science in School Assessment (ATSSA). The instrument was used to evaluate the relationship between such attitude and achievement in science. A low correlation was found between attitude and various achievement tests. A moderate correlation was found between attitude and achievement that included an evaluation of the quality of work, as in a course grade.     

Effect of women science career role models on early adolescents' attitudes toward scientists and women in science

In order to change the attitude of early adolescent female and male students toward scientists and women in science, students in the middle school/junior high grades were exposed over a two months' period to women science career role models as part of their science instruction. This treatment positively affected the students' attitude toward scientists and toward women in science. It is suggested that teachers of science in the middle school/junior high should periodically bring community resource people who use science in their careers to the classroom to act as role models and that women should be included among this group so that the attitudes of both male and female students toward scientists and women in science might be improved.     

A cluster analysis of high school science classroom environments and attitude toward science

This study provides a test of a theory which suggests that student perceptions of their classroom environment affect their attitudes toward science. Using the statistical technique of cluster analysis, 27 high school science classes were divided into three distinct clusters which were most distinguishable by the amount of involvement, affiliation with students, teacher support, order and organizations, and innovative teaching strategies. One of the clusters provided a classroom environment which was significantly different from the other two and the students in that environment had more positive attitudes toward science. The dimensions of the classroom environment which make a difference are those which teachers may develop and change in order to enhance the science attitudes and, possibly, the science achievement of their students.     

Critical competencies in early childhood administration: A national survey

There has been little consensus to date about the skills needed to administer early childhood facilities. A national survey of state education and child welfare agencies attempted to rate competencies.Rosemarie Slavenas is an Assistant Professor and Charles A. Sloan is a Professor at Northern Illinois University in Dekalb.     

Relationships of attitude toward classroom environment with attitude toward and achievement in science among tenth grade biology students

The purpose of the study was to examine the relationship of classroom environment to attitudes toward science and achievement in science among tenth grade biology students. An attitude instrument was administered at three times during the school year to measure student attitudes toward science and the classroom environment. The classroom environment measures examined six areas: emotional climate of the science classroom, science curriculum, physical environment of the science classroom, science teacher, other students in the science classroom, and friends attitudes toward science. Student achievement in science was measured by teacher reported semester grades. The results of the study indicated: (1) student attitudes toward the classroom environment predicted between 56 to 61% of the variance in attitudes toward science, (2) student attitudes toward the classroom environment predicted between 5 to 14% of the variance in achievement in science, (3) student attitudes toward science and attitudes toward the classroom environment predicted between 8 and 18% of the variance in achievement in science.     

SCIIENCE: The creation and pilot implementation of an NGSS-based instrument to evaluate early childhood science teaching

This paper describes the development, testing and implementation of the Systematic Characterization of Inquiry Instruction in Early LearNing Classroom Environments (SCIIENCE). The SCIIENCE instrument was designed to capture best practices outlined in the National Research Council's Framework for K-12 Science Education as they occur within a science lesson. The goals of the SCIIENCE instrument are to (a) assess the quality of science instruction in PK-3 classrooms, (b) capture teacher behaviors and instructional practices that engage students in the lesson, promote scientific studies, encourage higher-level thinking, and (c) provide a feedback mechanism for guiding professional development of PK-3 teachers. Science educators can apply this instrument to teacher behaviors and use the data to improve classroom inquiry instructional methodology.     

Designing a likert-type scale to assess attitude toward energy conservation: A nine step process

A nine-step process was used as a multilevel screening mechanism in developing a Likert-type scale that measures that attitudes of teachers toward energy conservation. Following the assemblage of a 71 statement item pool, the statements were analyzed via qualitative criteria (i.e., presence of authoritative appeals, use of double negatives, statements irrelevant to the attitude object, etc.). The 60 statements meeting the qualitative criteria were then pilotted using a sample of 93 preservice elementary teachers. One of the 60 statements was modified as a result of respondent feedback. Data collected from respondents were anlayzed using the Likert Attitude Scale Analysis Main Program (LIKRT) and the emotional intensity of each statement was judged by the criteria: discrimination index, bipolar data, and neutral data. Nineteen statements that were part of the initial item pool met all the criteria set forth by the nine-step process; as a result, these statements composed the Attitude Toward Energy Conservation Scale. Coefficient alpha for the scale was reported at 0.81 by LIKRT with an average adjusted item-total correlation of 0.48. Initial validity data collected suggests the scale to be a valid measure of preservice teachers' attitudes toward energy conservation.     

Validation of the child sex abuse attitude scale through confirmatory factor analysis

A validation study was conducted on the Child Sex Abuse Attitude Scale (CSAAS) using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to examine factor structure. The CSAAS was developed based on Festinger's (1957) theory of attitude development resulting in a 4‐factor first‐order structure (cognition, value, affect, and behavior) and a single‐factor 2nd‐order structure (attitude). A sample of 215 school psychologists, members of the National Association of School Psychologists, responded to the CSAAS survey. CFA results supported the hypothesized factor structure of the CSAAS, thus indicating the plausibility of a 4‐factor 1st‐order and a single‐factor higher order structure of the CSAAS.     

Toward a gender-sensitive model of science teacher education for women primary and early childhood teachers

Female teachers predominate in primary schools, and tend both to have more negative perceptions of their teaching skills in the physical sciences than males, and to expect girls to perform less well in these areas than boys, with likely serious consequences for girls. In this context the WASTE (Women and Science Teacher Education) Project sought to identify characteristics for teacher education programs which, in the opinion of their conveners, were productive in changing the attitude toward the teaching of science, or in changing the actual mode of teaching science, of women preservice and practising teachers. This paper reports the findings of the WASTE Project which surveyed the conveners of pre- and inservice programs and outlined the three models of exemplary practice used to classify responses:subject-centred, learner-centred andknowledge and person-centred. These models were based largely on differing explanations given for attitude change and on implicit concepts of knowledge, persons, and teaching and learning, and on the importance attributed to gender as a variable. Secondly, it shows how the Primary and Early Childhood Science and Technology Education Project, a gender-sensitive action-research project, was built on these findings. Finally, using these models, it offers a critique of the gender perspective of the Discipline Review of Teacher Education (DEET, 1989). Specializations: gender and science/science teacher education, feminist theory, curriculum theory.     

Assessing teachers' attitude toward the handicapped: A methodological investigation

The attitude of 48 pre- and in-service regular and special educators toward teaching the special needs pupil was assessed physiologically via changes in pulse and skin temperature and with self-report. The self-report data were contradicted by the physiological evidence. Statistically significant differences were not observed among the four groups on the self-report measure; however, the physiological index of change in mean pulse rate indicated that preservice regular and special educators, in comparison to experienced teachers, perceived teaching the handicapped child to be significantly more stressful. The lack of agreement between the two assessment procedures was interpreted as suggesting that one should consider cautiously the results of investigations that assess attitude toward the handicapped only by means of self-report.     

A meta-analysis of the relationship between science achievement and science attitude: Kindergarten through college

A meta-analysis of research results for correlation between science achievement and attitude was conducted. Forty-three studies were utilized and 15 variables were coded for each correlation found in each study, yielding 280 coefficients. Overall relationship is moderate (0.16), with differences between elementary, junior high, senior high, and college subjects. Causal ordering results support achievement causing attitude in grades three to eight and mixed results thereafter. Sex differences exist through high school. Other effects are mixed across grade level.     

The influence of early science experience in kindergarten on children's immediate and later science achievement: Evidence from the early childhood longitudinal study

This study explores the impacts of selected early science experiences in kindergarten (frequency and duration of teachers' teaching of science, availability of sand/water table and science areas, and children's participation in cooking and science equipment activities) on children's science achievement in kindergarten and third grade using data for 8,642 children from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study‐Kindergarten cohort (ECLS‐K). A theoretical model that depicts the relationships between the study variables was developed and tested using structural equation modeling. Results demonstrated that availability of science materials in kindergarten classrooms facilitated teachers' teaching of science and children's participation in science activities. Likewise, the frequency and the duration of kindergarten science teaching was a significant predictor of children's science activities but not of the children's end of kindergarten science achievement scores. Children's engagement with science activities that involved using science equipment also was not a significant predictor of their end of kindergarten science achievement. However, children's participation in cooking activities was. Children's prior knowledge, motivation, socio‐economic status, and gender were all statistically significant predictors of their science achievement at the end of kindergarten and end of third grade. Results of this study indicate that early science experiences provided in kindergarten are not strong predictors of children's immediate and later science achievement. Findings of the study suggest that the limited time and nature of science instruction might be related to the limited effect of the science experiences. Implications for teacher education programs and educational policy development are discussed. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 48: 217–235, 2011     

Developing the changes in attitude about the relevance of science (CARS) questionnaire and assessing two high school science classes

This study has two purposes: (a) methodological—to design and test a new instrument able to reflect changes in attitudes toward science over time, and (b) investigative—to find out the effect of two similar curricular treatments on the attitudes of two classes. Items about the relevance of science to students' lives were developed, pilot‐tested, and analyzed using Rasch modeling. We then divided reliable items into three equivalent questionnaire forms. The final three forms of the questionnaire were used to assess high school students' attitudes. Over 18 weeks, one class used a core curriculum (Science and Sustainability) to learn science in the context of making decisions about societal issues. A second class used the same core curriculum, but with parts replaced by computer‐based activities (Convince Me) designed to enhance the coherence of students' arguments. Using traditional and Rasch modeling techniques, we assessed the degrees to which such instructional activities promoted students' beliefs that science is relevant to them. Both classes tended to agree more, over time, that science is relevant to their lives, and the increases were statistically equivalent between classes. This study suggests that, by using innovative, issue‐based activities, it is possible to enhance students' attitudes about the relevance of science. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 40: 757–775, 2003     

A pilot study of early childhood mental health consultation for children with behavioral problems in preschool

This study reports the findings of a pilot demonstration project called Together for Kids, which used a mental health consultation model to address the needs of young children with challenging behaviors who are identified in preschool classrooms. The study was conducted in four preschool programs and one Head Start program serving children ages 3–5, including both private-pay families and those using public subsidies. Rates of significant behavior problems as assessed by preschool teachers using a standardized scale were high, with 34% of all children enrolled in preschool classrooms in these sites over a 3-year period identified at-risk of externalizing or internalizing problems. Classroom teachers, as well as individual children and families identified as at-risk, were provided services, including, classroom observation and teacher training, individual child assessment and therapy, family assessment and support, and referrals for other family needs. Analysis of outcomes for 47 children and families with externalizing behavior problems who received individualized consultation, compared to 89 control children, and analysis of outcomes of a matched group of 19 intervention and 19 control children, revealed that the intervention was associated with significant improvements in classroom aggressive and maladaptive behavior, and growth in adaptive behavior. Improvements in child behavior were associated with total hours of individual child services provided, and with improvements in child developmental skills. Significant reductions in the rate of children suspended or terminated from child care programs were also found. Implications for further development of models of early childhood mental health consultation are discussed.