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Assessing South China (Guangzhou) High School Students’ Views on Nature of Science: A Validation Study

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Abstract

Research on students’ views on nature of science (VNOS) in Asian countries such as China is notably lacking. This study aimed to develop and validate an instrument to measure South China high school students’ VNOS. Based on the previously acquired qualitative data, the instrument included seven VNOS dimensions which reflect the crucial aspects of NOS indicated by the literature and/or the dominating ideology in China (i.e., Marxism). A sample (N = 604) was randomly divided into two groups used for exploratory analyses and confirmatory analyses. The results indicated that the instrument expressed satisfactory reliability and validity and the seven NOS dimensions could be explained by a higher-order dimension. That is, the data of this study supported the multi-dimensional framework that treats VNOS as comprising several more-or-less correlated dimensions. Two distinct dimensions, namely “Accumulative-Empirical Source” and “Pragmatic Justification” which have not been explicitly specified in the past literature, were found. In addition, the Chinese high school students generally held a constructivist/relativist-oriented view of all seven dimensions. Differences in gender and grade level were hardly observed in any dimension of the instrument. The findings are further discussed through a socio-cultural lens to enrich the current understanding of VNOS.

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Notes

  1. See Chai et al. (2010), Chan and Elliott (2004), Forato et al. (2012), Hofer (2010), Ma (2012), Wan et al.(2013) as examples.

  2. For example, see Chai et al. (2012), Goh et al. (2013), Lin et al. (2013), Tao (2003).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore

    Feng Deng & Ching Sing Chai

  2. Graduate Institute of Digital Learning and Education, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taipei, Taiwan

    Chin-Chung Tsai

  3. Graduate Institute of Applied Science and Technology, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, #43, Sec.4, Keelung Rd., Taipei, 106, Taiwan

    Tzung-Jin Lin

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  1. Feng Deng
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  2. Ching Sing Chai
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Correspondence to Tzung-Jin Lin.

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Deng, F., Chai, C.S., Tsai, CC. et al. Assessing South China (Guangzhou) High School Students’ Views on Nature of Science: A Validation Study. Sci & Educ 23, 843–863 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11191-013-9674-6

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