Examining Pre-Service Teachers Beliefs about the Nature of Science in the Context of Botswana
Author(s)
Kago Confidence Patrick , Lesego Tawana ,
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Abstract
There is a general concern that being unaware of pre-service teachers’ beliefs about NOS can be futile to teacher education and development in science education. Thus a quantitative case study approach was employed in the investigation of pre-service science teachers’ beliefs about the nature of science. 78 pre-service teachers of science were randomly selected from a local university in Botswana. Participants responded to a questionnaire using a 4 point Likert scale (Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of .743). Data analysis revealed that pre-service teachers’ beliefs about NOS aspects were inconsistent. However, participants’ overall beliefs about the NOS were progressive. These findings have implications on training of science education teachers and development of scientific literacy in Botswana.
Keywords
Beliefs, Botswana, nature of science, pre-service teacher, science education
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