Promoting and measuring elementary school children's understanding of science

Science and scientific knowledge are important parts of our culture and play essential roles in our everyday lives (Bybee, 1997; OECD, 2016). To be able to participate in socioscientific discussions, it is essential to have not only knowledge and skills in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) but also an adequate understanding of the nature of science (e.g., Driver, Leach, Miller, & Scott, 1996). An understanding of the nature of science (for reasons of better legibility, we refer to this as an understanding of science in the following) refers to an understanding of “what science is and how it is done” (McComas, 1998, p. 50). It lays therefore an important foundation for students’ science learning (Lederman, 2007). As particularly important elements, an understanding of science includes epistemic beliefs (individual representations about knowledge and knowing) as well as an understanding of inquiry-based methods (approaches under which scientific knowledge is generated). Due to the essential relevance of an adequate understanding of science, promoting such an understanding in students is a normative goal of science education, and for many years, educational research and practice has focused on promoting this understanding as early as elementary school (e.g., European Commission, 2007; Mullis & Martin, 2015; OECD, 2016). Interventions offer one effective way of investigating and promoting students’ understanding of science. Previous intervention studies have shown that inquirybased approaches, in particular, can be beneficial for fostering students’ understanding of science (e.g., Blanchard et al., 2010). However, a number of questions regarding the effective promotion of elementary school children’s understanding of science are still unanswered. They refer, for example, to the question of how fundamental aspects of students’ understanding of science (e.g., epistemic beliefs and a profound understanding of scientific inquiry methods) can be promoted effectively in elementary school children. Furthermore, open questions exist with regard to how to adequately measure students’ understanding of science. Instruments are required to describe children’s competencies and to measure intervention effects. However, existing instruments for elementary school children cover limited aspects of students’ understanding of science and show somewhat limited reliability and validity. The three empirical studies that were conducted in this dissertation addressed central questions concerning the measurement and promotion of elementary school children’s understanding of science. Specifically, the dissertation focused on (a) the development of a new paper-and-pencil test for assessing elementary school children’s understanding of science and (b) the investigation of the effectiveness of a recently developed intervention for third and fourth graders. With cross-sectional data from 878 third and fourth graders, Study 1 examined the reliability and validity of a new instrument that was developed to measure the understanding of the so-called scientific inquiry cycle (SIC) as a central component of the understanding of science. Confirmatory factor analyses confirmed a one-dimensional structure of the test, and the instrument was found to have an acceptable reliability. As expected, the SIC was found to be positively related to cognitive abilities such as fluid intelligence and text comprehension, experimentation strategies, as well as epistemic beliefs. Studies 2 and 3 investigated the effectiveness of a 10-week extracurricular intervention with regard to the promotion of elementary school children’s understanding of science by means of two randomized controlled studies. The intervention was developed by researchers from the university as part of an enrichment program for gifted children (Hector Children’s Academy Program, HCAP). It focused on the targeted promotion of children’s understanding of science and included inquiry-based learning approaches, the ability to work scientifically according to the SIC, as well as reflections on epistemic issues. The results of Study 2 (N = 65)—in which the intervention was conducted by the program developers under controlled conditions—revealed that the intervention affects children’s epistemic beliefs and epistemic curiosity positively. On the basis of the positive results of Study 2, Study 3 (N = 117) investigated the effectiveness of the intervention when it was implemented under real-world conditions by 10 course instructors from the HCAP. In this context, the SIC test was applied to examine the intervention effects. Positive effects were found on children’s understanding of science (understanding of the SIC and experimentation strategies) and need for cognition. Intervention effects on epistemic beliefs and epistemic curiosity could not be replicated. Analyses of implementation fidelity revealed that, overall, the course instructors kept to the program and put the intervention—with some limitations—into practice successfully. The findings of the three studies are summarized and discussed within the broader research context. Implications for future research and educational practice are derived.