Table 1 Nature of Science items included in this study
From: Assessing epistemological beliefs of experts and novices via practices in authentic science inquiry
Item | Source |
|---|---|
A person interested in birds looked at hundreds of different types of birds who eat different types of food. He noticed birds that eat similar types of food, tended to have similar shaped beaks. For example, birds that eat hard shelled nuts have short, strong beaks, and birds that eat insects have long, slim beaks. He wondered if the shape of a bird’s beak was related to the type of food the bird eats and he began to collect data to answer that question. He concluded that there is a relationship between beak shape and the type of food birds eat. Do you consider this person’s investigation to be scientific? | VASI; Lederman et al. 2014 |
A person interested in birds looked at hundreds of different types of birds who eat different types of food. He noticed birds that eat similar types of food, tended to have similar shaped beaks. For example, birds that eat hard shelled nuts have short, strong beaks, and birds that eat insects have long, slim beaks. He wondered if the shape of a bird’s beak was related to the type of food the bird eats and he began to collect data to answer that question. He concluded that there is a relationship between beak shape and the type of food birds eat. Do you consider this person’s investigation to be an experiment? | VASI; Lederman et al. 2014 |
What, in your view, is science? What makes science (or a scientific discipline such as physics, biology, etc.) different from other disciplines of inquiry (e.g., religion, philosophy)? | VNOS; Lederman et al. 2002 |
What, in your view, does it mean to practice science? In other words, what do you think scientists do when they engage in research? | This study |
Scientists perform experiments/investigations when trying to find answers to the questions they put forth. Do scientists use their creativity and imagination during investigations? | VNOS; Lederman et al. 2002 |
After scientists have developed a scientific theory (e.g., atomic theory, evolution theory), does the theory ever change? | VNOS; Lederman et al. 2002 |