Persuading girls to take elective physical science courses in high school: Who are the credible communicators?

Abstract

Eighth‐grade girls (N=257) randomly selected from nine different public junior high schools in central Texas were questioned in order to identify the communicators whom they perceive as highly credible regarding reasons for taking elective physical science courses in high school and the attributes associated with these communicators. Four persons were each identified by better than 10 percent of the sample as the best person to try to convince junior high school girls to take elective physical science courses in high school. In order of perceived credibility, these persons are “father,” “woman science teacher,” “mother,” and “boy high school student.” Slight variations in the order of perceived credibility were found when the responses from girls of the different ethnic groups represented in the sample (Caucasian, Hispanic, Black, and Asian) were examined separately. Attributes listed by the respondents for “father,” “woman science teacher,” “mother,” and “boy high school student” were examined and classified into the categories of prestige, trustworthiness, similarity, attractiveness, and power. Prestige and trustworthiness are the attributes associates most frequently with communicators identified as highly credible. Implications of the present study and suggestions for further research are discussed.

Through the Lens of Mathematical/Scientific Self‐Schemas: Images of Students' Current and Possible Selves1

“…Given this hedging, students more aschematic than not should also strongly benefit from genuine efforts to link ongoing abstract and technical activities with current self views through explicit work on the articulation of a variety of possible selves. Classroom intervention strategies such as the search for "credible communicators" (Koballa, 1988b) and efforts to improve attitudes toward science and science-related careers (e.g., Mason & Kahle, 1988;Rosser & Kelly, 1994) offer further insights as to how this may be achieved. Even confident, negative schematic students may be able to benefit from similar linkages and interventions; but probably not without other means that address the defense, and reasons for defense, against disconfirming feedback.…”

“…A learner's mathlscience possible selves would function as herlhis selves to be expected and either avoided or approached in future performance or evaluative situations that required the current or working self-concept to draw upon mathlscience self-schemas. Though not explicitly emphasizing the theory, strong, indirect support for these expectations is provided by research demonstrating the importance of perceived and anticipated self-interest and personal contact (Hill, Pettus, & Hedin, 1990), internalized sociocultural, as well as personal, science beliefs (Jegede & Okebukola, 1991;Linn, Songer, & Lewis, 1991;, attitudes toward science-learning behavior (Koballa, 1988a(Koballa, , 1988bRay, 199 I), and the importance of self-concepts and internal attributions for selecting careers in science and mathematics (Campbell, 1991).…”

The Effect of Micro Teaching on Pre-Service Science Teachers’ Professional Attitudes

“…Ayrıca, öğretmen adaylarının tutumlarını ilerletecek ve ilerlemiş olan bir tutuma ilişkin hangi değişkenlerin katkı sağladığını belirleyecek yolların bulunması gerekmektedir (Koballa, 1988). Bununla ilgili olarak, Oliver ve Koballa (1992), öğretmenlerin tutumlarının ancak öğrenim sonucu değiştirilebileceğini ifade etmektedir.…”

Instructional factors related to hearing impaired adolescents' interest in science

“…Women , minorities, and handicapped people are underrepresented in research and teaching careers in science, mathematics, and engineering. A number of researchers have addressed the problems of women and minorities (Hill, Pettus, & Hedin, 1990;Koballa, 1988a;Mulkey & Ellis, 1990), however, little has been written about careers in science for handicapped people , especially hearing-impaired people. Stolte (1981) examined the science career development needs of deaf students and concluded that the academic area of science was most definitely neglected by teachers of the deaf, and that there was a dearth of literature with regard to science education strategies to use with deaf students.…”