Funded Research Project

Conceptual complexity and student engagement with science in secondary school

Chief Investigator: Dr Christina Hart

Funded by: ARC Discovery Project grant 2004–2006

Project Summary: Research demonstrates that negative student attitudes to school science are associated with the subject’s difficulty and its lack of relevance to real-world experience. However, teachers who link learning to students’ experience may exacerbate the difficulty of science, because real-world applications of concepts are complex. This study will initially investigate teachers’ perceptions of this dilemma, and then focus on two classrooms where teachers acknowledge the complexity involved. Using a novel conceptual framework and an innovative data collection technique the study will explore how the students’ experiences of complexity shape their attitudes to science. The findings will help improve student engagement with science.