Determination of Factors On Secondary School Students’ Anxiety Towards Science Learning
Filiz Avcı1*, Fatma Gülay Kırbaşlar2
1Dr.,Istanbul University Hasan Ali Yucel Education Faculty Department of Science Education Istanbul, TURKEY
filizfen@istanbul.edu.trstanbul.edu.tr
2 Prof. Dr., Istanbul University Hasan Ali Yucel Education Faculty Department of Science Education Istanbul, TURKEY
*Corresponding author
Abstract
Anxiety is one of the affective factors influencing the student achievement. Anxiety is defined as an undetermined feeling of fear what is the problem unknown. Anxiety towards science is described as dislike or fear from the concept of science, scientists and the activities related to science. Anxiety towards science that a serious threat in science education is a factor that complicates students’ interest in science, career efforts and class participation. It is said that there were several factors that cause anxiety towards science. There are many reasons for anxiety towards science as science-anxiousteachers in elementary and secondary schools, including past the bad experiences in science lessons, the boring scientist profile in the popular media. The aim of the study is to investigate the level of the anxiety towards science learning of secondary school students according to kinds of variables and determine factors anxiety towards science learning. Quantitative research methods were used in this study. The study had been conducted with 450 6th, 7th and 8th grades students who were attending from 2 different secondary schools in İstanbul-Turkey at 2015-2016 academic year. “Anxiety Science Scale” and “A questionnaire containing demographic variables” were used in study. As a result of research, it was found that students have above the average levels of anxiety towards science learning. It was examined secondary school students’ some demographic variables such as gender, class, education level of parents, the parents' working status, students’ working hours’ weekly science lesson, the number of science-related books at home in the study.
Keywords: Primary school students, science learning, science anxiety.
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