The progression of students’ views about nature of scientific inquiry

While helping students develop informed views about nature of scientific inquiry (VNOSI) has been emphasised in science education, little is known regarding students’ current VNOSI at a certain grade level and whether there was evidence of higher attainment of VNOSI in students in higher grades as compared to lower grades? The purpose of this study was to answer these questions. This study was conducted in China, Hebei province, with a medium level of economic, social, and educational development. Data collection consisted of questionnaire survey and structured-interview. Participants were 212 students (82 males, 130 females) at five grade levels and from four types of locations. The results were: (a) No matter which grade levels students were in, most of them had not developed informed VNOSI. (b) According to Fisher exact tests, in six aspects of nature of scientific inquiry (NOSI), students in higher grades had higher attainment as compared to lower grades; and in two aspects of NOSI, students in higher grades did not have higher attainment as compared to lower grades. In order to explain these research results, three possible reasons were explored; For the purpose of promoting the development of students’ VNOSI, three implications were discussed.