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Addressing the Nature of Science in Preservice Science Teacher Preparation Programs: Science Educator Perceptions

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Journal of Science Teacher Education

The nature of science (NOS) has a prominent role among the national science education content standards at all grade levels, K–12. Results from a national survey of collegiate science educators indicate the perception that the greatest contributors to preservice teachers’ understanding of the nature of science were science methods courses, research projects, and science content courses. Implications of findings are discussed, including connections to current research concerning teacher preparation for effective NOS classroom teaching and student learning.

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Acknowledgement

The authors acknowledge the contributions of Larry Scott, professor and chair, Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Emporia State University, for assistance with statistical treatments of the survey data and a critical review of related sections of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departments of Physical Sciences, Emporia State University, Emporia, KS, 66801–5087, U.S.A

    DeWayne A. Backhus & Kenneth Wayne Thompson

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  1. DeWayne A. Backhus
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  2. Kenneth Wayne Thompson
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Additional information

The Nature of Science course on the authors’ campus was initiated in the early 1990s, has evolved, and remains in the required core curriculum for preservice chemistry, earth science, and physics teacher candidates. It is the capstone for NOS insights. It adds to and refines impressions garnered implicitly from science content courses, the methods course, and, for some, an undergraduate research experience.

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Backhus, D., Thompson, K. Addressing the Nature of Science in Preservice Science Teacher Preparation Programs: Science Educator Perceptions. J Sci Teacher Educ 17, 65–81 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10972-006-9012-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10972-006-9012-9

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