Promoting Preservice Teachers’ Attitudes toward Socioscientific Issues

Abstract

In this study, we aimed to improve preserviceteachers’ attitudes toward socioscientific issues through socioscientific issuecourse. Moreover, we investigated whether this course influences preserviceteachers studying in a science education and non-science education in a similarway. For this purpose, a semester-long socioscientific issues course wasdesigned and implemented. Data were collected from a science education group(preservice science teachers) and a non-science education group (preservicesocial-science teachers). In order to evaluate participants’ attitudes towardssocioscientific issues, Attitudes towards Socioscientific Issues Scale wasutilized before and after the course. This scale evaluates attitudes underthree themes: liking of socioscientific issues, interest and usefulness ofsocioscientific issues, and anxiety towards socioscientific issues.  The result revealed that socioscientificissues course provided similar gains for both preservice science teachers andpreservice social-science teachers on interest and usefulness ofsocioscientific issues, liking of socioscientific issues, and anxiety towards socioscientificissues. That is both groups derived a similar benefit from the socioscientificissues course. Specifically, socioscientific issues course contributed topreservice teachers’ interest and usefulness of socioscientific issues, andliking of socioscientific issues positively. On the other hand, their anxietyscores did not change significantly after the course.  These findings imply that, regardless ofmajors, socioscientific issues course has potential to favor preserviceteachers’ attitudes toward socioscientific issues.