Analysis of Middle School Students’ Views on Scientific Inquiry in the Context of Science Achievement

Abstract

One of the aims of science teaching is to ensure that students enjoy scientific work and develop scientific thinking and associated inquiry skills. Scientific inquiry represents a process that scientists routinely use in their work, and it is a way for students to acquire scientific knowledge and develop scientific skills. Providing students with ample knowledge and necessary skills related to daily life, scientific inquiry is an important part of science education. This study aimed to elicit the views of a group of middle school students concerning scientific inquiry. Twenty-eight students (10 girls, 18 boys) attending the eighth grade participated in this case study. The data were collected through the Views of Scientific Inquiry (VOSI) and the students’ scores in the Examination for the Transition from Primary to Secondary Education (TEOGS) held in Turkey. The relationship between TEOGS scores and student views classified by VOSI was examined. The results revealed that students that are successful in academic terms may have insufficient views of some components of scientific inquiry.