perceptions of coordinators of college freshman chemistry regarding selected goals and outcomes of...

JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN SCIENCE TEACHING VOL. 31, NO. 4, PP. 381-392 (1994)

Perceptions of Coordinators of College Freshman Chemistry Regarding Selected Goals and Outcomes of High School Chemistry

Overson Shumba and Lynn W. Glass

Department of Curriculum and Instruction, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa 5001 1-31 90

Abstract

Several studies have shown that high school science teachers base their teaching on what professors of college freshman science expect, and that, in some instances, advanced high school courses are needlessly similar to college freshman courses. In order to gain insight of college science professors’ expectations and perceptions on selected goals and outcomes of science education, a survey instrument was developed and mailed to 123 heads/coordinators of freshman chemistry in U.S. state and land grant colleges and universities that offer a graduate degree program in chemistry. The results demonstrated that although the coordinators were positive about many science education goals and outcomes they did not value aspects related to societal issues, and no differences among them existed when the results were analyzed according to demographic subgroups such as age and teaching experience. They perceived high school graduates as possessing inadequate skills and perceived measures to improve precollege science education requiring collaboration of precollege and college faculty positively. The implications for science education were that college chemistry professors place values different from those of science educators on some pertinent goals and outcomes of science teaching, a situation that is not helpful to reforming precollege science education.

In recent years numerous publications have highlighted the undesirable state of precollege science education. The National Commission on Excellence in Education (1983) warned of a new generation of scientifically and technologically illiterate citizens being raised. Reform efforts since have spawned new goals and areas of emphases pertaining to the academic, personal, and career needs of students along the lines recommended in Project Synthesis (Harms & Yager, 1981). There is an unprecedented call for science education to serve the needs of all students, not merely the academically gifted, and to provide experiences that demonstrate the interactions of science and technology with society. In addition, the science instructional process should be reformed so that it focuses on the development of skills and strategies in the cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains for real-life problem solving (Carin & Sund, 1989).

Although the science education leadership encourages innovative science programs and strategies to attain the new goals, the quality and pace of attainment of these goals will depend upon how quickly science educators at all levels are reoriented to them. Moreover, curriculum theorists inform us that implementation requires change in people (Saylor, Alexander, & Lewis, 198 1); hence, reorienting science educators to new goals is consistent with this assertion.

0 1994 by the National Association for Research in Science Teaching Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. CCC 0022-4308/94/040381-12

382 SHUMBA AND GLASS

Recently it has been documented that high school science teachers base what they teach on what college instructors of freshmen students expect (Gabel, 1983; Yager, Snider, & Krajcik, 1988). This is disturbing, because not all students proceed to college, and also because “there are many myths about what colleges expect” and about “what experiences in high school make a difference in college” (Yager, 1986, p. 24). Yager (1984) also reported that in some instances, advanced high school courses in chemistry, physics, and biology were similar to college freshman courses in the same field. Although Yager and colleagues recommended arranging high school chemistry around the “study and analysis of applications or societal issues” (p. 435) little evidence exists on the expectations of college chemistry instructors as to what should be the foci or outcomes of precollege science.

This study, which was conducted at the end of 1989, was an attempt to unveil both the expectations and the perceptions of college chemistry instructors on what should be the emphasis of high school chemistry courses for students who eventually elect to pursue the study of chemistry in college. It also provided an opportunity for college instructors to reflect upon and to show their perceptions of learning outcomes being proposed by science educators for precollege science. Although Yager et al. (1988) inferred emphases of high school chemistry from observing student performance and reactions when exposed to a curriculum with a societal bias, the present study sought more direct evidence of what college chemistry professors expected by surveying their perceptions on a broader range of outcomes of high school science.

Specifically the study sought answers to the following major questions:

1 .What are the perceptions of college chemistry professors on the importance of selected outcomes and goals of high school science as preparation for studying college chemis-

2.What kind of subject preparation in high school is expected for students who will study

3.0f the major topics in high school chemistry, which ones are perceived as important

4.How do college chemistry professors perceive selected approaches to improving pre-

5. What demographic factors, if any, predict the perceptions of college freshman chemistry

try?

college chemistry?

preparation for college chemistry?

college science education?

instructors?

Purpose

This article reports on the results of a national survey of coordinators of freshman chemistry in 123 state and land grant universities and colleges in the U.S. Instructors of college freshman were selected because they have firsthand experience with students graduating from high school, and thus can furnish more pertinent data on the skills of beginning college students. It also was anticipated that they would have great interest and concern in precollege science programs and their outcomes. The data gathered from a nationally drawn sample have implications for science educators and curriculum developers insofar as they illuminate what Yager (1986) has called “myths about what colleges expect” (p. 24).

Method

Sample

The sample consisted of 123 heads/coordinators of freshman chemistry in state and land grant colleges and universities in the United States. In addition to teaching, they were involved

COLLEGE CHEMISTRY PROFESSORS’ VIEWS OF HIGH SCHOOL CHEMISTRY OUTCOMES 383

in an administrative role and thus were expected to have a broader perspective on the entering skills of college freshmen. Institutions were limited to those that had both an undergraduate and a graduate chemistry program and a total student enrollment of at least 10,000 students as reported in The College Handbook, 1988-1989 or the 13th edition of The American Univer- sities and Colleges, 1987. Using these two criteria, a fairly homogeneous profile of major state and land grand colleges was obtained. Of those contacted, 86 (69.9%) replied after one re- minder letter had been sent. Of the 86, only 80 (65.0%) were completed properly and usable for the analyses reported. Because no subsequent follow-up was conducted, it was not possible to ascertain the characteristics of nonrespondents or their institutions.

The questionnaire

The study used a researcher-developed questionnaire consisting of three sections, an earlier version of which had been pilot tested with 17 freshman chemistry instructors and teaching assistants at Iowa State University (ISU). Following several modifications it was reviewed by a panel of five chemistry professors, at least four (80%) of whom had to be in agreement for an item to be adopted.

Part A sought demographic information. Part B consisted of six subscales that sought the opinion of instructors on subject preparation, chemistry-related academic skills or abilities, and attitudes of high school students who eventually enroll in college chemistry. It also sought their opinions on the goals of precollege science education and on the relative importance of 24 chemistry topics identified in major high school chemistry texts and from previous studies (Bank, 1982; Gabel, 1983; Zimelis, 1981). Part B used a Likert-type scale ranging from 1 to 5 , the response mode being (1) not important to (5) very important. Part C used a scale of (1) strongly disagree to (5) strongly agree to solicit the opinion of instructors on the adequacy of student skills and on measures to improve the preparation of high school students for college chemistry.

Results

For interpretative purposes, the researchers set a criterion of two-third (66.7%) of all respondents to determine a significant majority when frequencies were being reported. The respondents in this study were fairly homogeneous in their demographics, consistent with findings from other related studies (Druger, 1985/1986; Gallagher, Zehr, & Yager, 1983). A great majority were over 40 years of age (87.5%) and had not taken courses in education (80%). They specialized in areas directly related to the field of chemistry; the majority (61.2%) were physical and inorganic chemists. The majority did not have experience in teaching precollege science or chemistry. A significant majority had more than 15 years experience teaching college chemistry (73.8%) and more than 10 years experience teaching college freshman chemistry (90%).

Over 78% of the respondents were members of science education societies; 61 (76.3%), were members of the American Chemical Society (ACS)-Chemical Education Division, where- as only 12 (15.0%) respondents were members of the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA). A majority of the coordinators spent an average of 50% of their time on instructional activities, 18.5% on research activities, and 22.0% on public service and administration.

Of all 80 respondents, 62 (77.5%) indicated that they professionally interacted with precollege science teachers. Those 62 responding to this item were involved in precollege science in a variety of ways, including consulting, conducting summer institutes, presenting guest lectures, and running workshops or seminars with high school level teachers. Half (35) of those


indicating involvement with science teachers had presented a paper or a workshop at a high school science teachers’ meeting.

Before presenting the results in Figures 1 and 2, it must be observed that responses on the original Likert scale, (4) “important” and ( 5 ) “very important” were aggregated to establish-the new overall category “important.” In the figures, the total number of those rating each item either “important” or “very important” is reported as a percent of all respondents in the study.

A clear majority of the respondents perceived that 3 and 4 years of mathematics (100.0% and 58.6%, respectively), one year of chemistry (88.7%), and one year of physics (67.5%) were important for preparing students for college chemistry (mean > 3.50). It was surprising that they valued mathematics significantly more than chemistry. For example, one year of advanced chemistry was considered “not important” by 52.6% of the respondents (mean = 2.33).

The respondents perceived 10 science process skills (Table l), 10 out of 11 attitudes (Table 2), and the higher-order skills on the questionnaire as important outcomes of high school science requisite for college chemistry (Table 3). Tables 2 and 3 show that “appreciating usefulness and limitations of science and technology” as an attitude and “appreciating the relationship among science, technology and society” as a higher-order intellectual outcome were ranked low in importance.

Of the 24 chemistry topics, only 12, or half, of the topics in the list were rated important (mean > 3.50) for high school students as shown in Table 4 and in Figure 1. Precollege emphases pertaining to academic preparation were perceived positively, but those pertaining to social and personal relevance were rated low or neutral in importance (Table 5 and Figure 2).

The respondents’ perception on the adequacy of student skills in five knowledge and skill

Frequency Rating importance Yo

Figure I . portant’! (N = 80).

Percent distribution of coordinators rating high school chemistry topics “im-


Processeslattitudes

Thinking skills

Spec. for college

Subject matter

Career preparation

Societal issues

Pers. needshnterests

0 20 4 0 60 80 100

Percent Rating Importance

Figure 2 . school science “important” (N = 80).

Percent distribution of coordinators rating science education emphases in high

areas was low (mean < 3.00) (Table 6). They were positive about measures to improve the preparation of students through collaboration and joint workshops for precollege and college faculty (Table 7).

Comparisons made using t tests at the .05 significance level found no significant differences on overall perception of the respondents when they were placed into subgroups of professional rank, age, teaching experience, and involvement in precollege science programs. These subgroups are useful in describing faculty in academic institutions (Gallagher et al., 1983). Com- parisons made using the eight subsection means yielded test statistics that were not significant in

Table 1 Perception of Coordinators of College Freshman Chemistry on the Importance of Science Process Skills as Outcomes of High School Science (N = 80)

Skill Mean S.D. Rank

Observing Communicating Interpreting data Inferring Measuring Experimenting Hypothesizing Predicting Controlling variables Classifying

4.45 4.36 4.35 4.31 4.26 4.22 4.12 4.10 4.04 3.92

0.76 0.68 0.70 0.83 0.84 0.71 0.87 0.88 0.83 0.92

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

10


Table 2 Perception of Coordinators of College Freshman Chemistry on the Importance of Selected Attitudes as Outcomes of High School Science (N = 80)

Attitude Mean S.D. Rank _ _ _ _ ~

Good study skills and habits Willingness to learn independently Open-mindedness: willingness to

discard old ideas when new al- ternative ones are plausible

Criticalness/questioning attitude Motivation and interest in science Objectivity: uses evidence to check

validity of assertions/observations

Willingness to accept criticism Appreciating the value scientific

Willingness to work and learn co-

Appreciating usefulness and Iimita-

Appreciating the worth of research

method of inquiry

operatively in a group

tions of science/technology

4.73 4.53

0.50 0.66

1 2

4.45 4.37 4.32

0.71 0.69 0.76

3 4 5

4.26 4.12

0.70 0.76

6 7

3.96 0.91 8

3.85 1 .oo 9

3.74 3.37

0.97 1.08

10 11

Table 3 Perception of Coordinators of College Freshman Chemistry on the Importance of Selected Higher Order Skills as Outcomes of High School Science (N = 80)

Skill Mean S.D. Rank

Ability to do ratios, proportions, and combinatorial logic

Ability to think logically and ratio- nally for or against alternatives in making decisions

Ability to isolate/control variables Ability to deduce, infer, and gener-

alize from data Creativity in applying principles

learned in courses to solve problems in real-life situations

Ability to estimate and evaluate ac- curacy and significance of data

Ability to state and test hypotheses on the basis of theory, prior knowledge, and observations

Appreciation of the relationship of science, technology, and society

4.56 0.70 1

4.47 0.66 4.25 0.78

2 3

4.17 0.70 4

4.10 0.75

3.99 0.82

5

6

3.95 0.86

3.62 0.95

7

8


Table 4 Perception of Coordinators of College Freshman Chemistry on the Importance of 24 Chemistry Topics for High School Science (N = 80)

Topic Mean S.D. Rank

Metric system Scientific notation Symbols and formulas Equations and mass relationships Stoichiometry and the mole Periodicity Density Energy and chemical changes Solutions Atomic theory Acids, bases, and pH Bonding Oxidation and reduction Kinetic theory and gases Liquids, solids, and crystals Careers in chemistry Kinetics Environmental chemistry Quantitative analysis Electrochemistry Qualitative analysis Radioactivityhuclear chemistry Organic chemistry Complex ions

4.64 4.58 4.58 4.44 4.41 4.26 4.14 3.86 3.78 3.76 3.76 3.64 3.45 3.41 3.27 2.91 2.85 2.77 2.67 2.64 2.56 2.55 2.51 2.23

0.60 0.80 0.68 0.75 0.78 0.89 0.91 0.98 0.94 I .05 1.02 1.12 1.04 1.19 1.05 1.19 1.14 0.91 0.98 I .08 1.01 1.09 1.15 1.09

1 2.5 2.5 4 5 6 7 8 9

10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24

Table 5 Perception of Coordinators of College Freshman Chemistry on the Importance of Precollege Science Education Emphases for High School Science (N = 80)

Emphases Mean S.D. Rank

Emphasis on thinking skills 4.65 0.58 1 Emphasis on science process skills

Emphasis on mastery of subject

Emphasis on academic preparation

Emphasis on societal issues and

Emphasis on personal needs and

and attitudes 4.13 0.84 2

matter knowledge 3.97 0.86 3

and specialization for college 3.87 0.87 4

problems 3.40 1.10 5

Emphasis on careers 2.99 1.08 7 interests of students 3.03 1.06 6


Table 6 Perception of Coordinators of College Freshman Chemistry on the Adequacy of High School Student Skills in Five Outcome Areas (N = 80)

Skills Mean S.D. Rank -

Science content knowledge 2.81 1.10 1 Scientific attitudes 2.66 1.15 2 Mathematical skills 2.52 I .42 3 Science process skills 2.51 1 . 1 1 4 Higher-order thinking skills 2.29 1.19 5

seven subsections. Perception of respondents with less than 20 years experience teaching freshmen differed significantly from those with greater than 20 years experience on the subsection dealing with measures to improve high school preparation ( t = -2.03, p = .05).

Backward multiple regression analysis was conducted to find out which of the demographic factors best predicted the perception of the respondents on the pre-college goals and outcomes. Missing values were deleted prior to the analysis. The factors age, professional rank, teaching experience, and involvement with precollege science teachers were correlated highly and positively but were not correlated significantly to perception (Table 8), thus failing to meet one requirement for regression analysis (Hinkle, Wiersma, & Jurs, 1988). All the factors in combi- nation accounted for 8% of the variance in perception. The factors were neither important nor significant predictors of the perception of freshman chemistry coordinators participating in the study.

Table 7 Perception of Coordinators of College Freshman Chemistry on Five Measures to Improve Preparution of Students for College Chemistry (N = 80)

Improvement Mean S.D. Rank

High schools and colleges need to

Colleges must reduce time spent in remediating skillsiconcepts that should have been taught in high school 4.28 I .02 2

College faculty should be more involved in precollege science

More workshops/seminars for college and precollege teachers to discuss objectives/goals of sci-

work together 4.31 0.84 I

teachers’ workshops 4.08 0.94 3

ence programs 3.97 1.06 4 High schools need to limit the

amount of chemistry material covered 3.69 1.31 5


Table 8 Correlation of Five Demographic Characteristics of Coordinators of College Freshman Chemistry to Overall Perception on the Importance of Precollege Science Goals and Outcomes

Variable” Age Colexp Frechexp Rank Proinv

Colexp 0.68* Frechexp 0.68* 0.70* Rank 0.51* 0.48* 0.39* Proinv -0.06 0.07 0.12 0.17 OvMean 0.02 -0.09 -0.05 0.08 -0.21

aAbbreviations representing the variables: Colexp = college chemistry teaching experience. Frechexp freshman chemistry teaching experience. Rank = current professional rank. F’roinv = professional involvement with science teachers. OvMean = overall mean rating of outcomes and goals, used as a measure of perception. *Significant at the .05 alpha level.

Discussion and Implications

Notwithstanding the limitation of survey data, the results of the study were revealing, and a few points warrant discussion. The perception of the college professors in the study was consistent with several current trends in science education. The respondents were positive about the importance of specific science process skills, scientific attitudes, and higher-level thinking skills. Skills related to those in the present study have been identified to be lasting outcomes in the training of scientists and desirable as outcomes of high school level science (Johnstone & Sharp, 1979; Powell & Cracknell, 1987). Given that the skills and outcomes being reported might not be peculiar to a specific science discipline, the findings lend some limited support to the assertion that most professors want intelligent, curious students, students with good study habits, students who want to study in a particular discipline, and students with mathematical skills and knowledge (Yager & Penick, 1987).

The respondents did not expect high schools to teach abstract concepts. Several respondents made the following comments that most likely would explain their high rating of mathematics:

High school chemistry as it is taught today is not necessary for a successful career in college chemistry. While basic information in the sciences is important, math through spherical trig and elementary calculus and application of those skills through word problems is more important. Science content can come later.

They indicated that although high school chemistry should prepare students for college, it must not be a small-scale version of college chemistry, a concern that has been raised in the past (Harms & Yager, 1981; Krajcik & Yager, 1987; Yager et al., 1988). Instead, they expected more attention to be paid to the descriptive aspects of chemistry and that high school teachers would make chemistry more fun, not scary, a finding previously reported by Zimelis (1981). These expectations may account partially for the low and negative rating of the importance of one year of advanced chemistry for high school students. Furthermore, out of 24 chemistry topics found in popular high school texts only half were perceived as important to be covered in high school. The judgment of the respondents on the relative importance of chemistry topics is not unreason- able. Many high school chemistry programs in effect run for one academic year, and hence, too little time exists in the current high school curriculum to teach most of the broad and high-level


content to the depth and breadth expected and demanded in the topics. Furthermore, this aspect continues to raise concerns that science educators have raised in the past, that texts contained too many topics and continually add more content as they are revised and updated (Gabel, 1983).

A closer examination of Table 4 and Figure 1 reveals that, in general, the topics rated most important for high school are those that cover the introductory or basic concepts of chemistry. This suggests that coordinators of college freshman chemistry perceived that topics demanding the more abstract concepts should not be central concerns in high school.

However, three observations can be made about the topics and about the outcomes rated either high or low in importance. First, the top-ranked topics “metric system” and “scientific notation” are not chemistry. Instead, they are tools for use in studying chemistry. It is inferred that instructors expected students to enroll in college having mastered the basics for coping and functioning in college chemistry. Second, the topics rated as “not important” are those that address topical societal issues, such as “environmental chemistry,” “nuclear chemistry,” and “careers in chemistry.” Third, although many goals of precollege science were perceived positively, respondents in this study rated low or neutral the goals pertaining to emphasis on personal needs, interests of students, and social issues and problems. The rationale supporting these goals is to make science meaningful and relevant to most students regardless of their eventual future career or academic destiny. By attaining these goals it is anticipated that the students will be prepared to utilize science for improving their personal lives and to deal responsibly with science and technology related social issues (Yager, 1989). It is the nontradi- tional goals of science education that were rated neutral. For example, “appreciating usefulness and limitations of science and technology” as an attitude and “appreciating the relationship among science, technology and society” as a higher-order intellectual outcome were both rated low in importance. Combining this with their low rating of topics such as “environmental chemistry,” it is inferred that college freshman chemistry instructors have attitudes favorable to the traditional orientation of chemistry courses. Overall, their view is unfavorable to the Yager et al. (1988) approach for high school chemistry focusing on the study and analysis of societal issues. Although Yager’s (1986) assertion that there were myths about what college science professors expected implied or predicted the latter’s favorable disposition to societal issues, this study found otherwise.

Science educators emphasize personal relevance and decision making as they relate to functioning in society. On the contrary, chemistry professors value thinking and mathematical ability as they relate to working chemistry problems in the discipline of chemistry rather than to their societal impact. The results of this study have underscored a problem that continues to have a serious impact on science education. Science educators and college chemistry professors, and presumably high school chemistry teachers, seem to place different values on the goals and outcomes of science education, a situation that is not helpful to reforming science education.

However, the respondents’ positive rating of measures for improving precollege science education was encouraging, The measures that would involve college faculty directly included conducting workshops to discuss goals and content of science education together with precollege faculty. These findings lead the authors to presume that college instructors have the interest to cooperate in precollege science activities as demonstrated in their interaction with high school science teachers. The science education leadership must seize the opportunity to increase their efforts to educate and to seek the input of all levels of science educators on the new orientations of precollege science programs and their implementation.

We view collaborative efforts rather than separatist approaches as vital in implementation strategies where science teachers and the scientific community bring input as professional experts in different fields. Duschl (1985) observed that the intent of the National Science

COLLEGE CHEMISTRY PROFESSORS’ VIEWS OF HIGH SCHOOL CHEMISTRY OUTCOMES 39 1

Foundation in the 1960s curricula movement was for the “scientific community to teach teachers” (p. 542), a rather inappropriate approach that may account partially for the limited success of these curricula. Implementation of science education innovations and recommendations is certainly a difficult process, and we disagree with Duschl’s conjecture that “a simple reversal of roles, educators and curriculum researchers as developers and scientists as implementors, would suffice” (p. 533). This approach negates the collaborative element in the curriculum development and implementation process. We agree with the position of curriculum theorists who have noted the vitality of using subject specialists in developing educational programs but then only when approached at the collaborative, interactive, and collegial levels (Saylor et al., 1981). Collaborative efforts and greater contact among science teachers, educators, and scientists also will reduce sentiments of resentment, and, in addition, provide precollege science education with intellectual nourishment, which Hurd (1986) asserted to be lacking in science program reform perspectives.

Success in meeting our science education goals will depend upon the implementation strategies we choose and use. It is desirable to explore fully the nature and scope of ways to involve and to use the input of college science faculty in the betterment of precollege programs. Tentatively, coordinators of college freshman chemistry do not perceive science-technology- society issues as prerogatives for high school students who eventually opt to study chemistry in college. Science educators and chemistry professors place different values on the goals and outcomes of science teaching, a situation that is not helpful to reforming science education.

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Manuscript accepted March 18, 1993.

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