Document Type
Article
Publication Title
Journal of Science Teacher Education
Publication Date
2023
Keywords
Initial teacher education (pre service), nature of science, science journals, teacher thinking
Abstract
This study explored whether, and how, preservice elementary teachers’ scientific curiosity related to their confidence for science teaching. A group of 29 preservice, elementary teachers in the U.S. engaged in a curiosity journaling strategy across a 16-week scientific inquiry course. Their expressions of curiosity were coded using Luce and Hsi’s framework of curiosity. Whether expressions of curiosity related to their confidence for teaching associated science topics was examined statistically. In addition, the categories of their curiosity were coded and are described across eight journal entries. The nature of the relationship between scientific curiosity and science teaching confidence, as well as the nature of the curiosity they expressed, are described. Generally, curiosity about specific scientific phenomena and changes in confidence for teaching those topics did not relate to one another. Relationships did emerge, however, among categories of curiosity and participants’ confidence for teaching seven specific science topics.
Funding Source
This article was published Open Access thanks to a transformative agreement between Milner Library and Taylor & Francis.
Recommended Citation
Antink-Meyer, Allison; Brown, Melisa; and Wolfe, Alex, "The Scientific Curiosity of Preservice Elementary Teachers and Confidence for Teaching Specific Science Topics" (2023). Faculty Publications - College of Education. 32.
https://ir.library.illinoisstate.edu/fped/32
Comments
This article was published in Journal of Science Teacher Education, DOI: 10.1080/1046560X.2023.2168858.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, and is not altered, transformed, or built upon in any way.