Recent research on attitudes concerning science

Competency beliefs, positive affect, and gender stereotypes of elementary students and their parents about science versus other school subjects

“…Overall, the results of research comparing preferences for different subject matters support two propositions: (a) Science is not as preferred as some other subjects; and (b) boys prefer physical science more than do girls (Aiken & Aiken, 1969, Greenblatt, 1962Archer & McDonald, 1991;Frymier, 1991;Harvey, 1984;Kane, 1968;Ormerod, 1975;Powell, 1962;Shemesh, 1990;Taber, 1991).…”

Attitudes toward chemistry among 11th grade students in high schools in Greece

“…An outcome of this development was the introduction of chemistry in the curriculum of elementary and secondary education, either as part of science courses or as separate discipline. Science educators have agreed that the development of a positive attitude toward science should be an important goal of the school curriculum (Aiken & Aiken, 1969;Koballa, 1988;Laforgia, 1988).…”

Holding Up the Mirror: A theoretical and practical analysis of the role of reflection in Clinical Legal Education

“…discussion� Such an exercise can result in a disorienting moment 162 (see above)� Ogilvy points out that '[t]o be successful, the journal assignment must be presented to the students with care� It is important that the purposes and benefits underlying the assignment be presented fully to the students� It is also important that the teacher continually reinforce the value of the journal by making stimulating comments on journal entries before returning them to the students and, with appropriate regard to issues of privacy and confidentiality, by sharing student journals with the entire class�' 163 The vulnerability of students writing about personal experiences merits consideration� Students completing my course are usually in their final year of a law degree, often uncertain about their futures and often lacking in confidence about their skills� Being objective about their performance in a work experience environment and submitting their reflection about their performance for scrutiny by the course co-ordinator can be a daunting prospect for many students� Stephen Brookfield, for example, has noted that '[n]o matter how much we may think we have an accurate sense of ourselves, we are stymied by the fact that we're using our own interpretive filters to become aware of our own interpretive filters -the pedagogical equivalent of trying to see the back of one's head while looking in the bathroom mirror�' 164 Michael Devlin and others comment on the importance of providing feedback on reflective essays� 165 Their rubric for feedback, from which instructions can be developed, is at Appendix B� Wald and others view feedback as part of the process of interactive reflective writing 166 i�e� 'providing individualised guided feedback about their experiences to support learners during important transitions in an authentic, transparent manner' 167 that 'helps to foster students' reflective capacity, self-awareness, and self-confidence as the insights they share are illuminated, reflection is invited with targeted queries, lessons are derived, and concrete recommendations are provided, as relevant�' 168 Wald et al emphasise that the provision of feedback creates a 'commonality of experience' within a 'universe of shared experience and shared humanity�' 169 Wald et al use the Brown Educational Guide to the Analysis of Narrative (BEGAN) for preparing feedback to students' reflective writing� 170 Wald writes about how reflective writing by medical students when encountering death for the first time provides valuable opportunities for transformative professional growth and student well-being� 171 Feedback can guide students to acknowledge, explore and learn from their emotional experience, potentially bolstering resilience and student well-being'� 172 Similar emotionally powerful experiences can occur in the clinical legal education context -e�g� client being imprisoned; client accused of heinous crime e�g� paedophilia, difficult client; delivering bad news etc� This can also develop emotional intelligence and lessen the sense of emotional isolation� 173 Ogilvy also recommends using prompts to address some common problems when providing feedback; some of his suggestions are included in Appendix E�…”