Science Investigation: Student Views about Learning, Motivation and Assessment

This book reports the findings of an interpretive case study of the phenomenon of science investigation (science inquiry) from students’ perspective. Data were collected from a class of twenty-four Year 11 students in a middle size, co-educational New Zealand school, through Science Laboratory Environment Inventory, student questionnaires, focus group interviews and classroom observations. The participants provided some insightful comments about their learning of science investigation. Illustrative examples highlight; what students found motivational and what demotivated them, what and how they learnt through carrying out science investigation, and how internal assessment influenced their motivation to learn and learning. The connectedness between the complexities of learning science investigation and how motivation, and assessment influenced these 15 year old students’ learning is discussed.