Exploring the Conceptions of a Science Teacher from Karachi about the Nature of Science

Mir Zaman Shah

doi:10.12973/ejmste/75281

Full Text (PDF)

Mir Zaman Shah ¹ ^*

More Detail

¹ RMIT University, Bandoora, VIC, AUSTRALIA^* Corresponding Author

Abstract

The main purpose of this study is to investigate a science teacher’s beliefs and understanding of the nature of science (NOS) in order to be able to relate these beliefs about the NOS to classroom practice and therefore student experience. Teachers’ beliefs about the NOS are embedded in their experiences of learning and teaching science and hence, this research contains elements of a life history approach within a qualitative interpretive design. A single science teacher, Ikraam (a pseudonym), working in a community-based co-education school in one of the socio-economically disadvantaged areas in Karachi, was the focus of the research. His life story plays a vital role in this study to illustrate his views of the NOS. The data includes six life history interviews, two group interviews with his students, eight classroom observations and document analysis. The study revealed that the teacher’s beliefs about the NOS were embedded in his own experiences of learning and learning to teach and indicates that in some cases Ikraam held informed conceptions about the NOS but in some important areas he displayed naïve views.

Keywords

science teacher
epistemological beliefs
Nature of Science (NOS)
life history approach

License

This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Article Type: Research Article

EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed, Volume 5, Issue 3, 2009, 305-315

https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75281

Publication date: 22 Jan 2009

Article Views: 1879

Article Downloads: 1035

Open Access References How to cite this article

References

Abd-El-Khalick, F. (2000). Improving elementary teachers’ conceptions of nature of science in the context of a science content course. A paper presented in the annual international conference of the Association for the Education of Teachers in Science, Ohio.
Abd-El-Khalick, F. (2001). The influence of a philosophy of science course on preservice secondary science teachers’ views of nature of science. Retrieved March 10, 2004, from http://www.ed.psu/Cl/Journals/2002aets/f7_abd_el_k halick.rtf
Abd-El-Khalick, F., & Lederman, G. (2000). Improving science teachers’ conceptions of nature of science: A critical review of the literature. International Journal of Science Education, 22 (7), 665-701.
Abd-El-Khalick, F., Bell, R. L., & Lederman, N.G. (1998). The nature of science and instructional practices: Making the unnatural natural. Science Education, 82,
Bell, R. L., & Lederman, N. G. (2003). Understanding of the nature of science and decision making on science and technology based issues. Science Education, 87 (3), 352- 375.
Bogdan, R. C., & Biklen, S. K. (1992). Qualitative research for education: An introduction to theory and methods (2nd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Carter, K., & Doyle, W. (1996). Personal narrative and life history in learning to teach. In J. Sikula, T. J. Butterry & E. Guyton (Eds.), Handbook of research on teacher education (2nd ed., pp. 120-142). New York: Simon and Schuster Macmillan.
Chiappetta, E. L., Koballa, T. R. (Jr.), & Collette, A. T. (1998). Science instruction in the middle and secondary schools (4th ed.). New Jersey: Merrill Prentice-Hall.
Cobern, W. W. (2000). The nature of science and the role of knowledge and beliefs. Science and Education, 9, 219-246.
Cohen, L., & Manion, L. (1994). Research methods in education (4th ed.). London: Routledge.
Cole, A. L., & Knowless, J. G. (2001). Lives in context: The art of life history research. Walnut Creek: AltaMira Press.
Creswell, J. (2003). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods approaches (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks: Sage.
Driver, R., Leach, J., Millar, R., & Scott, P. (1997). Young people images of science. Buckingham: Open University Press.
Duschl. R. A. (1994). Research on the history and philosophy of science. In L. G. Dorothy (Ed.), Handbook of research on science teaching (pp. 443-465). New York: MacMillan.
Esler, W. K., & Esler, M. K. (1996). Teaching elementary science (7th ed.). London: Wadsworth Publishing Company.
Gess-Newsome, J. (2002). The use and impact of explicit instruction about the nature of science inquiry in an elementary science methods course. Science and Education 11, 55-67.
Gillham, B. (2000). Case study research methods. London: Continuum.
Glesne, C. (1998). Becoming qualitative researchers: An introduction (2nd ed.). New York: Longman.
Goodson, I. (1995). The making of curriculum: Collected essays (2nd ed.). London: Falmer Press.
Goodson, I., & Sike, P. (2001). Life history research in educational settings: Learning from lives. Buckingham: Open University Press.
Guskey, T. R. (2002). Professional development and teacher change. Teacher and Teaching: Theory and Practice, 8, 381- 391.
Halai, N. (2000). Elementary teachers learn about the nature of science: New frames for experience. A paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association. Montreal, Canada.
Halai, N. (2002). Munazza’s story: Understanding science teaching and conceptions of science in Pakistan through life history study. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Toronto, Canada.
Halai, N. (2005). Becoming a school science teacher: A female narrative. In J. Retallick & I. Farah (Eds.), Transforming school in Pakistan: Learning communities in action. Karachi: Oxford University Press.
Halai, N., & Hodson, D. (2004). Munazza’s story: Shedding light on a science teacher’s conceptions of the nature of science through a life history study. Canadian Journal of Science, Mathematics and Technology Education, 4 (2),103- 118.
Harlen, W. (1992). The teaching of science. London: David Fulton Publishers.
Harlen, W., Macro, C., Reed, K., & Schilling, M. (2003). Making progress in primary science: A study book for teachers and student teachers. London: Routledge.
Hitchcock, G., & Hughes, D. (1995). Research and the teacher: A qualitative introduction to school-based research (2nd ed.). London: Routledge.
Hodson, D. (1998). Is this really what science does: Seeking a more authentic science in and beyond the school laboratory. In J. Wellington (Ed.), Practical work in school science: Which way now? (pp. 93-108). London: Routledge.
Hodson, D. (1998). Teaching and learning science: Towards a personalized approach. Buckingham: Open University Press.
Kvale, S. (1996). Interviews: An introduction to qualitative research interviewing. Thousand Oaks: Sage.
Ledeman, N. G., McComas, W. F., & Mathews, M. R. (1998). Editorial. Science & Education 7, 507-509.
Lederman, N. G. (1992). Students’ and teachers’ conceptions of the nature of science: A review of the research. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 29, 331-359.
Lederman, N. G. (2000). Improving science teachers’ conceptions of the nature of science: A review of literature. International Journal of Science Education, 22, 665- 701.
Lederman, N. G., Wade, P.D., & Bell, R. L. (1998). Assessing the nature of science: What is the nature of our assessment? Science and Education, 7, 595-615.
Maxwell, J. (1996). Qualitative research design: An interactive approach. Thousands Oaks: Sage.
McComas, W. F., Clough, M. P., & Almazroa, H. (1998). The role and character of the nature of science in science education. In W. F. McComas (Ed.), The nature of science in science education: Rationales and strategies (pp. 3- 39). Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic Publishers.
National Research Council [NRC], (1996). National Science Education Standards. Washington: National Academy Press.
Nott, M., & Wellington, J. (1995). Science teachers’ the nature of science and the national science curriculum. In J. Wellington (Ed.), Secondary science: Contemporary issues and practical approaches (pp. 32-43). London: Routledge.
Nott, M., & Wellington, J. (1998). Eliciting, interpreting and developing teachers’ understanding of the nature of science, Science and Education, 7 (4-6), 579- 594.
Ogborn, J., Kress, G., Martins, I., & McGillicuddy, K. (1996). Explaining science in the classroom. Buckingham: Open University Press.
Smith, L. C. (2001). Life history as a key factor in understating teacher collaboration and classroom practice. Teacher Education, 111-125. Retrieved April 11, 2004, from http://www.teqjournal.org/backvols/2001/28_3/v28n 309.pdf

How to cite this article

APA

Shah, M. Z. (2009). Exploring the Conceptions of a Science Teacher from Karachi about the Nature of Science. Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 5(3), 305-315. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75281

Vancouver

Shah MZ. Exploring the Conceptions of a Science Teacher from Karachi about the Nature of Science. EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed. 2009;5(3):305-15. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75281

AMA

Shah MZ. Exploring the Conceptions of a Science Teacher from Karachi about the Nature of Science. EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed. 2009;5(3), 305-315. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75281

Chicago

Shah, Mir Zaman. "Exploring the Conceptions of a Science Teacher from Karachi about the Nature of Science". Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education 2009 5 no. 3 (2009): 305-315. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75281

Harvard

Shah, M. Z. (2009). Exploring the Conceptions of a Science Teacher from Karachi about the Nature of Science. Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 5(3), pp. 305-315. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75281

MLA

Shah, Mir Zaman "Exploring the Conceptions of a Science Teacher from Karachi about the Nature of Science". Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, vol. 5, no. 3, 2009, pp. 305-315. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75281