Rural Turkish Students' Reactions to Learning Science in a Mobile Laboratory

Autor/inn/en	Erol, Mustafa; Buyuk, Ugur; Tanik Onal, Nagihan
Titel	Rural Turkish Students' Reactions to Learning Science in a Mobile Laboratory
Quelle	In: Educational Sciences: Theory and Practice, 16 (2016) 1, S.261-277 (17 Seiten) PDF als Volltext kostenfreie Datei Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1303-0485
Schlagwörter	Foreign Countries; Middle School Students; Rural Youth; Rural Schools; Student Attitudes; Science Education; Science Laboratories; Science Experiments; Science Process Skills; Science Achievement; Outreach Programs; Student Surveys; Mixed Methods Research; Likert Scales; Rural Areas; Science Activities; Science Interests; Scientific Literacy; Statistical Analysis; Turkey + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Ausland; Middle school; Middle schools; Student; Students; Mittelschule; Mittelstufenschule; Schüler; Schülerin; Rural area; Rural areas; Youth; Ländlicher Raum; Jugend; Jugendlicher; School; Schools; Schule; Schulen; Schülerverhalten; Naturwissenschaftliche Bildung; Jobcoaching; Schülerbefragung; Likert-Skala; Statistische Analyse; Türkei
Abstract	The inadequacy of experimental activities (or lack of equipment) in science courses in rural parts of Turkey negatively effects students' acquisition of scientific thinking and inquiry skills. The fact that success rates are notably low in international assessments demonstrates the necessity to adopt "different" approaches apart from the existing learning and teaching methods. From this point of view, a mobile science laboratory (MSL) was constructed to deliver outreach activities in the rural outskirts of a city in Turkey. Experimental activities were carried out in this laboratory for six months with 324 middle school students who responded to survey questions. The research was designed with multimethod: A combination of quantitative and qualitative data-collection strategies was used. The first part has 25 five-point closed-ended Likert-scale items, and the second part has two open-ended questions. The results of the study show that the students in the rural areas were pleased with the activities; they enjoyed learning science in the MSL, and their interest and curiosity for science contents increased. It will be suggested that the MSLs should be used in order to support the science literacy of students in the rural areas of Turkey. (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	Educational Consultancy, Ltd (EDAM). Kisikli Mh. Alemdag Cd. Yan Yol Sk., SBK Is Merkezi No:5 Kat:1, Uskudar-Istanbul, 34692 Turkey. Tel: +90-216-481-30-23; Fax: +90-216-481-31-36; e-mail: editor@edam.com.tr; Web site: http://www.estp.com.tr/
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2020/1/01