Investigation of primary education second level students’ motivations toward science learning in terms of various factors

The coordination among various intrinsic-extrinsic factors is of high importance in order to achieve the aim of the educational system. The contact between the teacher and the student, the attitude formed as a result of this contact, socio-economic status of the student, curriculum, and physical structure of the school are some important examples of these factors. In this respect, primary school has a weighty responsibility in delivering fundamental information, talent, behavior and habits to the individual. If we aim to bring up individuals who are equipped with all the requirements they would need for upcoming education levels, we should take some prior steps from the primary school level. This is the prerequisite of the education that will continue forever.

As the studies concerning the improvement of the quality of curriculums are investigated, one observes that these studies are mostly cognitive whereas affective evaluations are less in number. Indeed, many researchers emphasized that affective aims have a significant role in revealing the knowledge and skills of the students (Duit & Treagust, 2003; Lee & Brophy, 1996; Meredith, Fortner, & Mullins, 1997; Thompson & Mintzes, 2002). Affective skills consist of many factors such as interest, attitude, motivation, impetus, believes and self-efficiency. All these factors reflect to the behaviors from the senses of the individuals, can change according to their state of mind and can be affected by several variables which take place in the learning environment (teacher, friend, physical environment etc.). Among the affective skills, motivation is very important for the students to be more active and successful in learning environments (Brophy, 1987; Wolters & Rosenthal, 2000).

Motivation is a mental situation that evokes the behaviors of the students, directs their behaviors during this process and enables them to continue (Glynn & Koballa, 2006). Motivation is also quiet important in gaining interests of students in science, in making more meaningful and permanent learning and in getting success in required level. Learning of a course/lesson effectively and efficiently is related to the motivation and these two concepts affect each other. Therefore, a student who has a low motivation would be unsuccessful by not exposing expected positive behavior and adaptation to learning domain would become difficult for him/her (Yılmaz & Çavaş, 2007).

Studies concerning the effect of motivation on students were mostly carried out in main branches of science. Science with its disciplines (physics-chemistry-biology) is a course that mainly consists of abstract information, based on solving problems and contains high-level cognitive steps. In many countries, the course of science is carried out as an integrated course during the primary education (EURYDİCE, 2011). In Turkey, the disciplinary of science is being taught in the first (4^th and 5^th grade) and second (6^th, 7^th and 8^th grade) level of primary education as an integrated course under the name of science and technology (science-technology) course. In developing learning periods as in all learning periods, students’ approach to the science concepts with the fear of “this course is already difficult, I can’t learn it” affects their motivations. This situation rocks them to learn these concepts and causes to turn toward memorizing or learning by heart. Features such as teaching methods and techniques, in-class and out-class activities and in-class applications affect students’ attitude towards the course and their motivations. Thus, these features dominate students’ success directly. (EURYDICE, 2011). Along with this situation, students’ perceptions about the motivational learning environments of science courses from the primary education to the higher education level become a problem for us to cope with.

Bertels & Bolte (2010) proposed a model (Motivational Learning Environment_MoLE) which is thought to be related with reality that students perceive from the science course and their personal interest towards the course. In this model, students’ motivation levels towards ‘REAL’ and ‘IDEAL’ conditions were investigated according to the selected individual variables such as developmental tasks, and self and prototype that are used in science courses. The original of the model focuses on three different approaches in perceiving motivational environments concerning the learning of chemistry course. These are as the following; (1) perceptions of the students and general assessments, (2) how should be the motivational learning environments in the science course and what are students’ expectations in this aspect, (3) assessments in an experienced private science course and the perceptions of the students (Bolte, 2007). This model not only gives information about the motivations of the students in science/chemistry course but also reveals the science/chemistry course in the imaginations of students (Bolte, 2012). Application of such a model in the learning environment would give us strong information about the expectations of the students concerning the science courses and about the development of the high motivational learning environments. Furthermore, it would also be possible to receive feedbacks about whether the students have interests and expectations for the course and have feedbacks about their level of attendance to the course. With the given explanations here, let us take off with the idea that the key of the success, which is effective in meaningful and permanent learning, is the motivation (Ryan & Deci, 2000). Then we can conclude that the specifying motivational levels of the students in science learning when they start primary school and arranging the appropriate precautions according to their levels are indeed necessities.

According to Belo, Van Driel, & Verloop (2010), participation of the students in science courses is related with intrinsic and extrinsic causes and is associated to the motivation. As a matter of fact, whereas some students have the sense of discovery (intrinsic motivation), which is the focus of the science courses, some others behave with the idea of being in higher levels in terms of socio-economic values (extrinsic motivation). Studies concerning the motivation were mostly focused on the variables as success, gender and grade level which are the factors that affect the motivation toward science learning (Akpınar, Batdı, & Dönder, 2013; Güvercin, Tekkaya, & Sungur, 2010; Singh, Granville, & Dika, 2002; Velayutham, Aldrıdge, & Fraser, 2012; Yaman & Dede, 2007; Yenice, Saydam, & Telli, 2012; Velayutham, Aldrıdge, & Fraser, 2012; Yaman & Dede, 2007). Güvercin et al., (2010) state in their research that grade level and gender affect the motivation of the students. They revealed in their researches, which were carried out with 6^th and 7^th grade students of the second level of primary education, that the higher is the grade level; the lower is the motivation of the student. They also observed that the motivation causes differences and these differences are in favor of the girls in means of gender. At this point, analyzing the socio-economic factors affecting the motivation level in science learning along with these variables also seems important.

When the importance of the affective skills in meaningful and permanent learning is considered, specifying the place of the motivation in science learning and to determining the factors affecting the motivation levels are also strongly significant. Therefore, it is possible to reassess the science-technology learning program in the primary education second level and the results of this study may provide data for the possible rearrangements in the program.

Turkey is sensitive to the development of teaching programs; it keeps up with the reforms enacted by the other countries of the world. In this context, significant steps have been taken until now in the field of quality and function of the teaching in the primary education of Turkish National Educational System and some reforms have been enacted in parallel to the developments in science and technology. With the regulation done in 1997, Turkish National Educational System was composed of three levels under the names of primary (1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th and 5^th grade) middle (6^th, 7^th and 8^th grade) and high school (9^th, 10^th and 11^th grade) and these three levels were connected with each other. According to this regulation, primary and secondary levels were consolidated under the roof of primary school. This regulation was rearranged according to the age groups in the year of 2012 and compulsory education time has been extended to 12 years, through this regulation 5^th grade students have been included in second stage of the primary school (Ministry of Education, 2012). When it is taken into consideration that behaviors gained by the students in every level of the primary education affect the coming education levels, it is thought that it is extremely important to know the level of students' affective skills on this level.

In this context, assessing the international studies based on different countries seems important. Data would be acquired through the PISA project. This assessment project, which is repeated once every three years, aims to assess and evaluate the reading skills, mathematics and science. The PISA project also evaluates and the education system of the group of 15 age (8^th grade). These data contain students’ attitudes towards mathematics, science and reading skills, their motivations in terms of learning, learning strategies, socio-economic backgrounds of students and schools and policies of the education and administration (Ministry of Education, 2010). This project carried out by the ‘General Management of Innovation and Education Technologies’ which is bounded to Ministry of Education on behalf of Turkey. The latest assessments in the field of science were carried out in 2006. According to the PISA report of the respective year, success average in science, level of competence in science, science literacy and attitudes and motivations of Turkey toward science were enlisted as “under the international standards” (Telli, den Brok, & Çakıroğlu, 2010). In this context, these kind o projects would be useful for countries to make comparisons with the student profiles of other countries.

Developmental differences between cities are common in our country as in all over the world. Development levels of cities in terms of socio-economic situations are investigated to analyze the developmental differences among the regions. To reach this aim in our country, studies continue with the five-year development plan that is prepared by ‘State Planning Organization’. Several studies reaching the parallel results with the data of ‘State Planning Organization’ were carried out and Özceylan & Coşkun (2012) set the most interesting findings of these studies. According to the studies carried out by these researchers, Ankara becomes in the second place and Adana becomes in the eighth place among 81 cities in terms of socio-economic status. Considering that the socio-economic data is directly proportional with the educational levels of the individuals, we can conclude that parental education and level of income is different from each other in these two cities. Therefore, Adana, which has low level of income, business opportunities and economic weakness, was reported to be listed below Ankara in terms of educational level because of these factors (Özceylan & Coşkun, 2012). Furthermore, according to data entitled ‘completed educational level condition’ developed by Turkish Statistical Institution in April 2013, Ankara has maximum number of high school graduates. Thus, we decide to select two cities of Turkey that expose socio-economic differences to reveal the aim ideally and to represent the findings of the study ideally. The gap in the literature regarding the motivation of students toward science learning is thought to be filled with the analysis of the motivations of the second level students of primary education. Under the light of all this information, we aim to determine the effect of variables such as gender, class, socio-economic status, science and technology success and science-technology course score on the motivations of students toward science learning.