It Cannot be Done without Biology, or How the Lower Secondary School Pupils Perceive it
Vol.16,No.2(2011)
Studia paedagogica
There are a small number of research studies relating to pupils attitudes toward biology. In addition to the overall level of attitudes, the existing papers are focused mainly on the influence of gender and to a lesser extent on the influence of age (class) on attitudes towards biolo gy. In this contribution attention is paid to the two above-mentioned variables as well as the influence of lower secondary pupils´ favourite subject on the level of their attitudes towards biology. The sample consisted of 496 pupils from six Czech lower secondary schools and represented all classes at lower secondary level. The ratio of boys and girl was approximately the same. More pupils chose a non-science subject as their favourite subject. The measurement tool was a questionnaire with 25 Likert-type items. By applying a factor analysis, items were sorted into three dimensions: aids and the importance of biology, the difficulty of biolo gy, and interest in biolo gy. An analysis of variance and a multivariate analysis of variance were used to determine differences among groups of categorical variables. It was found that pupils have a relatively positive attitude towards biology. Girls, 6th grade pupils and pupils whose favourite subject is a science had more positive attitudes. In conclusion new directions of investigation are suggested.
attitudes toward biology; questionnaire with scale items; lower secondary school pupils
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