DEVELOPMENT OF AN INSTRUMENT TO MEASURE STUDENT ATTITUDES TOWARD SCIENCE FAIRS by Claudia A. Huddleston Liberty University Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Education Liberty University 2014 2 DEVELOPMENT OF AN INSTRUMENT TO MEASURE STUDENT ATTITUDES TOWARD SCIENCE FAIRS by Claudia A. Huddleston A Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirement for the Degree Doctor of Education Liberty University, Lynchburg, VA 2014 APPROVED BY: Kurt Y. Michael, Ph.D., Committee Chair Travis Bradshaw, Ph.D., Committee Member Pat Leahy, Ph.D., Committee Member Scott B. Watson, Ph.D., Associate Dean of Advanced Programs 3 ABSTRACT Science fairs are woven into the very fabric of science instruction in the United States and in other countries. Even though thousands of students participate in science fairs every year, no instrument to measure student attitudes toward partaking in this hands-on learning experience has been fully developed and available for school administrators and teachers to assess the perceived value that current students attribute to participation in science fairs. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to continue the development and refinement of an instrument that measured student attitudes towards science fairs based on an unpublished instrument created by Michael (2005). The instrument developed and tested using 110 students at two different middle schools in southwest Virginia. The instrument consisted of 45 questions. After applying a principal component factor analysis, the instrument was reduced to two domains, enjoyment and value . The internal consistency of the instrument was calculated using Cronbach’s alpha and showed good internal consistency of .89 between the two domains. Further analysis was conducted using a Pearson product-moment test and showed a significant positive correlation between enjoyment and value (r = .78). Demographic information was explored concerning the domains using a series of statistical tests, and results revealed no significant differences among race and science fair category. However, a significant difference was found among gender and students who won awards and those who did not. The conclusion was that further development and refinement of the instrument should be conducted. Keywords: Science Fairs, Value, Enjoyment, Attitudes, Survey Tools 4 Table of Contents ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................................... 3 List of Tables .................................................................................................................................. 8 List of Figures ................................................................................................................................. 9 List of Abbreviations .................................................................................................................... 10 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................... 11 Background ............................................................................................................................... 11 Problem Statement .................................................................................................................... 14 Purpose of the Study ................................................................................................................. 15 Significance of the Problem ...................................................................................................... 15 Research Questions ................................................................................................................... 15 Definitions ................................................................................................................................. 16 Assumptions .............................................................................................................................. 17 Limitations ................................................................................................................................ 17 Studying Adolescents ............................................................................................................ 18 Mandatory/Competitive versus Voluntary Noncompetitive.................................................. 18 CHAPTER TWO: REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE ............................................................... 20 History of Science Fairs ............................................................................................................ 20 New York World’s Fair 1939-1940 ....................................................................................... 21 Theories and Theorists Related to Science Fairs ...................................................................... 22 Experiential Learning Theories ............................................................................................. 22 John Dewey (1859-1952 ........................................................................................................ 23 Social Development Theory (Vygotsky) ............................................................................... 24 5 Theory of Reasoned Action (Ajzen & Fishbein, 1980) ......................................................... 25 Studies Directly Related to Science Fairs ................................................................................. 26 Syer and Shore ....................................................................................................................... 26 Grote ...................................................................................................................................... 27 George ................................................................................................................................... 28 Forrester ................................................................................................................................. 29 Yasar and Baker ..................................................................................................................... 30 Tools that Measure Attitude ...................................................................................................... 30 Teacher Attitude Scale towards Science Fairs ...................................................................... 30 TOSRA .................................................................................................................................. 31 Theoretical Framework for the Student Attitude toward Science Fairs .................................... 32 Ajzen and Fishbein ................................................................................................................ 32 Osborne, Simon, and Collins ................................................................................................. 32 Domains of Student Attitudes toward Science Fairs ................................................................. 34 Motivation ............................................................................................................................. 34 Self-Efficacy or Self-Esteem ................................................................................................. 35 Enjoyment .............................................................................................................................. 36 Anxiety .................................................................................................................................. 37 Achievement .......................................................................................................................... 38 Value ...................................................................................................................................... 39 Social Support or Influences.................................................................................................. 41 Influence of Peers .................................................................................................................. 41 Influence of Teachers ............................................................................................................ 42 6 Influence of Parents ............................................................................................................... 42 Nature of the Classroom ........................................................................................................ 43 Fear of Failure ....................................................................................................................... 44 Effects of Gender upon Attitudes of Students to Science ......................................................... 44 Effects of Race upon Attitudes of Students to Science ............................................................. 46 Effects of Awards on Student Attitudes toward Science .......................................................... 47 CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY .................................................................................... 50 Design........................................................................................................................................ 50 Research Questions ................................................................................................................... 50 Participants and Setting ............................................................................................................