Rose revisited : an analysis of pupils' opinions on the relevance of science education

• Main Author: Hamilton, Iona Mary Jane
• Published: Queen's University Belfast 2012
• Subjects: 507.10416
• Online Access: http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.579717

Attitude has been recognised as an important determinant of pupils' interests in science and their willingness to engage with the subject (Osborne et al. 2003). Thus, a determination of pupils' attitudes towards science in school and in the wider context is important. Reportedly, some pupils are unable to find any relevance for the science they experience in the classroom with their everyday lives (Schreiner and Sjeberg 2004). This study examined the attitudes of pupils in Northern Ireland towards science. As one of the original partners of the international Relevance of Science Education (ROSE) project, the views of an initial cohort of 847 pupils in Northern Ireland were collected in 2003/4. That sample provided a baseline to compare with the responses from a second cohort of 752 pupils in 2008/9. Pupils' attitudes were determined using the ROSE questionnaire in a survey-based methodology (Schreiner and Sjeberg 2004). The addition of a comment and/or drawing to some questionnaires, and the inclusion of 32 pupils in focus-group interviews, provided additional data outside the questionnaire. The evidence reinforced the potential of qualitative methods to provide further insight about pupils' opinions. The results showed a high level of similarity comparing pupils' responses between survey groups, even after a five-year interval. That evidence suggested consistency in pupils' opinions over time. The findings suggested boys were generally more positive than girls. There was also evidence of differences by the level of science studied, with separate sciences pupils generally holding more positive views compared with single and double award groups.