Secondary school students’ awareness and practices of science practical work in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

The key objective of the present research is to investigate the nature of students’ knowledge and practical work in secondary school biology, chemistry, and physics (BCP). Furthermore, comparisons will be made between knowledge and practical work practices in different year groups (Grades 10, 11, and 12). The sample consisted of 438 secondary school students from the first, second, and third years of secondary schools in the Al-Jouf region of north-eastern Saudi Arabia. Additionally, an analytical framework has been applied in the study to assess students’ attitudes in the cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains. A mixed methods approach was adopted for this study, in which questionnaires and interviews were used to collect data. The findings of the research indicated that Saudi students generally displayed positive attitudes towards practical learning in various domains (cognitive, affective, and psychomotor). Nonetheless, significant differences were identified in the psychomotor domain between Grade 10 and Grade 12 students, with Grade 10 showing the most favourable attitudes, followed by Grade 12 and lastly Grade 11. With regard to the cognitive and affective domains, no significant differences were found. Moreover, the findings of the study also showed that a majority of Saudi students understood the importance of practical work in learning science in Saudi secondary schools.

Keywords: Attitudes, Practical work, School science, Secondary school.