The Nature of Science as Viewed by Science Teachers in Najran District, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the views of Saudis Science Teachers in Najran district about the nature of science (NOS). A questionnaire of fourteen items was developed and administered to a sample of 83 science teachers. The questionnaire covers five aspects of the nature of science which are: scientific theories and models; role of scientists; scientific knowledge; scientific method; and scientific laws. Findings showed that the majority of the teachers in this study held uninformed conceptions about most of the target NOS aspects. At the same time, no differences were found between males and females regarding their informed conceptions about NOS. The results suggest that further research is required to better understand how Saudi teachers display NOS in their classes and how the pedagogies of teacher education inform this displaying.

Keywords: key words, orkforce sizing, job-shop production, holonic model