IT WAS THE PURPOSE OF THIS RESEARCH TO ASSESS THE CONTRIBUTION OF CERTAIN SCIENCE COURSES AND OTHER FACTORS THAT MAY INFLUENCE STUDENTS' UNDERSTANDING OF SCIENTISTS, THE AIMS AND METHODS OF SCIENCE AND THE SCIENTIFIC ENTERPRISE. THE SAMPLE CONSISTED OF 1,275 PHYSICS STUDENTS AND 1,009 CHEMISTRY STUDENTS FROM HIGH SCHOOLS IN IOWA, KANSAS, NEBRASKA,…

Reported is a study having several major purposes. Among these were (1) to investigate the change in "understanding the nature of science" as shown by high school students studying physics-astronomy at a summer science institute and (2) to compare the level of understanding possessed by the summer science group with normative secondary…

Compared was the effectiveness of a two-year integrated chemistry-physics course with a two-year sequence of separate courses, in developing understanding of chemistry and physics concepts, understanding science and its methods, and reactions to the study of science. Both groups used the content, materials and instructional approach of the…

Students whose Physical Science Study Committee (PSSC) physics course was supplemented with the PSSC films did not achieve significantly higher scores on the PSSC Achievement Test or the Test on Understanding Science than students who did not see the films, when intelligence and science background were used as covariates. (AL)

The test "Measurement About Science and Scientists" (Project Physics, Form 1) was prepared by choosing 101 items from the "Test on Understanding Science" and from the "Science Process Inventory" on the basis of their ability to indicate changes in students' knowledge. The method of building derived tests is described,…