School of Mathematics, Natural Sciences and Technology Education

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Browsing School of Mathematics, Natural Sciences and Technology Education by Subject "beliefs"

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    The influence of scientific investigation workshops on life science teachers’ attitudes towards scientific investigations
    (University of the Free State, 2022) Smit, Shani; Pretorius, J. P. H.
    Life Science teachers’ attitudes play a vital role in successful scientific investigations. Some Life Science teachers situated in the central part of South Africa might experience challenges that include a lack of the necessary scientific knowledge and skills that hinder scientific investigations. These challenges might adversely influence Life Science teachers’ attitudes towards conducting scientific investigations, which might result in them conducting the minimum number of investigations with their learners. Professional, in-service training workshops allow teachers to develop the necessary scientific knowledge and skills to successfully conduct scientific investigations. This study aimed to understand how a scientific investigation workshop might affect Life Science teachers’ attitudes by measuring the ABC attitude model’s affective, cognitive and behavioural components. This research provided information on how vital in-service training programmes such as this scientific investigation workshop are in fostering positive attitudes toward scientific investigations. The findings that emerged from this study imply that implementing this scientific investigation workshop has developed Life Science teachers’ confidence in their science skills and knowledge to facilitate scientific investigations. The findings also indicate that this scientific investigation workshop caused a significant improvement in teachers’ intended behaviours in implementing scientific apparatus in the science classroom, as they gained valuable knowledge and skills regarding the science apparatus.