Asia-Pacific Forum on Science Learning and Teaching, Volume 17, Issue 2, Article 13 (Dec., 2016) Sasithep PITIPORNTAPIN, Naruemon YUTAKOM, and Troy D. SADLER Thai pre-service science teachers’ struggles in using Socio-scientific Issues (SSIs) during practicum Previous Contents Next

Introduction

Currently, Thailand is experiencing rapid scientific and technological change. These changes, which have been occurring over that last twenty years, are a response to accelerating economic development that in turn promotes and supports socio-scientific issues (SSIs) such as global warming (Gayford, 2002), polluted water (Bouillion & Gomez, 2001), increasing garbage (Kortland, 1996), and the degradation of natural resources (ONEP, 2004), as well as belief in superstitions and pseudoscience (Lekpet & Pitiporntapin, 2015). SSIs have no clearly defined single outcome or answer and are topics about which reasonable people might be expected to disagree (Lewis, 2003).

SSIs have become important topics for science education and form a link between relevant social issues and science (Kolsto, 2001). To bring SSIs into the science classroom, SSI-based teaching is considered an alternative way for teachers to enhance student learning of specific science content (Sadler, Barab, & Scott, 2007) and to enhance ethical and moral decision-making skills regarding science, technology, society, and environmental issues (Sadler, 2009).

Students learning through this approach have a chance to engage in higher-order practices related to real life situations (Presley et al., 2013), such as analyzing and interpreting data; using evidence to participate in argumentation; and collecting, evaluating and communicating information, which is a kind of scientific literacy (NRC, 2012). In contrast, traditional approaches tend to produce students with epistemological beliefs and justifications, as students are taught in an autocratic fashion (Aikenhead, 2006). A lack of understanding of the interaction between the needs of society and science may lead to feelings of fear, anger, and distrust towards the scientific community (Hodson, 2008).

Nevertheless, bringing SSIs to the classroom is quite new in Thailand. Few studies address SSIs in science classrooms in Thailand, and most focus on the results of SSI-based teaching on students rather than focusing on pre-service science teachers (PSTs)’ use of SSIs in science classrooms (Nuangchalerm & Kwuanthong, 2010; Seomsuk, Pitiporntapin, & Kovitvadhi, 2015; Thanapud, Pitiporntapin, & Jantrarotai, 2015). For PSTs’ SSI-based teaching, Nuangchalerm (2009) found that many PSTs raised concerns about effectively controlling discussions, teacher–student differences in belief systems, and the distinction between science and ethics in classroom discourse. These problems are similar to those in other countries; Forbes & Davis (2008) found that PSTs in the United States had limited content knowledge about the SSIs. To address this problem, a teacher preparation program could help develop PSTs understanding of this new classroom practice (Bell, 1998).

The teacher preparation program forming the context of this study focuses on SSI-based teaching. It has challenged the researchers to reveal PSTs’ use of SSIs in their science classrooms during practicum, to identify any problems, and to determine professional development needs for SSI-based teaching. The findings will help science educators to develop science curricula and teaching that involves the use of SSIs for student learning.

Research Questions

In the context of the current study, the following questions were used to guide the research:

1. Did PSTs use SSIs in science teaching during practicum? If so, how did they do it?
2. What were PSTs’ difficulties with SSI-based teaching?
3. What are PSTs’ needs for professional development in SSI-based teaching?