Beliefs, attitudes and problems about research: Perspectives of selected science teachers

• Main Author: Pili, Adora S.
• Format: text
• Published: Animo Repository 2010
• Subjects: Report writing; Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/faculty_research/8651
• Institution: De La Salle University

The study attempted to explore the perspectives of selected science teachers along the context of selected research-related constructs. Employing both quantitative and qualitative modes of data gathering, the study aimed to specifically describe the following: science teachers' beliefs on the nature of research; science teachers' attitude toward research; and science teachers' problems on doing research. Further, the study attempted to derive possible relationships between and among the described research constructs . To carry out the objectives posted for the study, a total of 38 science teachers were selected from among those enrolled in a master's program in Science Education in one selected Higher Education Institution (HEI) in Manila. They were purposively selected on the basis of their enrolment in the Thesis Writing subject, during the second semester of SY 2007-2008. Their responses were elicited from a set of validated researcher-made instruments which consisted of the following : (1) Your Beliefs About the Nature of Research (YBNR) ; (2) Your Attitude Toward Research (YATR); (3) Your Problems Related to Doing Research (YPDR). In addition to these three paper-and-pencil questionnaires I inventories, a semi-structured interview was carried out by the researcher among the sampled respondents, done after their completion of the written instruments. Results of the study revealed the following: (J) The majority of the science teachers have a positivist belief about research; (2) science teachers have high positive attitude toward research; (3) science teachers have problems related to the conduct of their research projects particularly in terms of availability of time for research, and the appropriate identification of research topics; (4) high positive correlations were estimated between personal problems and their curricular problems related to doing research; (5) positive correlation estimates though relatively of low values were obtained for the following: attitude toward research vs. personal problems about doing research; and attitude toward research vs. course­ related problems about doing research. The quantitative and qualitative descriptions obtained from the research-related constructs as perceived by the science teachers can be regarded as possible considerations for curricular innovations in the Science Education program of the HE! sampled in the study and of other similar HEI's.