New Perspectives in Science Education
Application of Principal Component Analysis to the Interpretation of the Emotional Dimension of Secondary Students towards Learning Physics and Chemistry
Florentina Cañada, University of Extremadura (Spain)
Dávila Maria Antonia, University of Extremadura (Spain)
Miriam Hernández, University of Extremadura (Spain)
Jesus Sanchez Martin, University of Extremadura (Spain)
Diego Airado, University of Jaen (Spain)
Abstract
It is well established in the related literature that both cognitive and affective aspects influence the teaching and learning process, since the subjective and emotional vision that each individual develops about their external reality gives meaning to their relationships and allows them to understand their place in the world [1,2]. In this study, emotions that Compulsory Secondary Education students experienced towards the learning of Physics and Chemistry have been studied, since lately, a decrease in the number of students at the different itineraries related to Science has been detected. A questionnaire has been employed as data collection instrument. In this questionnaire fourteen emotions are presented to the students and they are asked to score how they feel each one of them in an 11-points Likert scale. The considered emotions were seven positive ones (joy, trust, fun, enthusiasm, satisfaction, surprise, tranquility) and seven negative ones (boredom, anxiety, disgust, fear, nervousness, worry, sadness). Data analysis has been successfully performed by means of the principal analysis (PCA) and results demonstrate the clustering of emotions as negative and positive ones and the high correlations inside each group of emotions. The results reveal that pupils mainly experienced more positive emotions towards the content of Chemistry than towards that of Physics. Pupils who experienced positive emotions towards Chemistry content relate these to their teacher's method and attitude. Nonetheless, those who experienced negative emotions towards Physics contents relate these to the exclusive use of the textbook, solving Physics problems, or giving oral presentations of the topics in class.
Keywords: Compulsory Secondary Education; emotions; Physics and Chemistry
References:
[1] Hargreaves, A. (2003). Teaching in the Knowledge Society. Maidenhead: Open University Press
[2] Shapiro, S. (2010). Revisiting the teachers' lounge: Reflections on emotional experience and teacher identity. Teaching and Teacher Education, 26(3), 616-621.
