Ed544

Running head: DO AUTHENTIC SCIENCE LESSONS

Do Authentic Science Lessons Change Students’

Attitudes Towards Science?

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to determine if teaching authentic lessons to sixth grade students at Alexander Graham (A.G.) Middle School will improve their scores on the enjoyment of science lessons and their attitudes towards science by using the TOSRA (Test of Science-Related Attitudes). We will utilize a quantitative study by following a quasi-experimental design that will measure the attitudes of students at an urban school within a large district in North Carolina.  We believe that if students are able to participate in an authentic ecology unit, this will increase their attitude towards science classes.  This study will take place at A. G. Middle School in two sixth grade Academic Enrichment classes that have students with similar demographics, 5th grade EOG scores of level III and IV, and class size.  The researchers will have the experimental group complete the authentic ecology unit and the control group will complete the traditional instruction ecology unit with the same objectives.  This study will be conducted by two 6th grade science teachers, one of the researchers will be embedded in the process of conducting the study. The results will show that students who participate in the authentic ecology unit will have a more positive attitude toward science and find it more enjoyable.  The two science classes that will participate in this study will both receive the same information within the same nine week quarter.

Introduction

It can be challenging when teaching science to sixth grade middle school students who have little prior knowledge and lack of positive experiences. This situation can lead to students struggling and deciding at an early age that science is too difficult and begin to find it irrelevant to their lives. “For some time,...