Scientific Attitude, Attitude to Science and Science Achievement of Senior Secondary School Students in Katsina State, Nigeria

Abstract

The study examined scientific attitude, attitude to science and science achievement of senior secondary school students in Katsina State, Nigeria. The descriptive survey research design was used for the study. Random sampling technique was employed to select 204 senior secondary school students from the three geopolitical zones of the state. Three instruments were used to collect data viz: (1) Scientific Attitude Questionnaire (SAQ); (2) Attitude to Science Questionnaire (ASQ) and Science Achievement Test (SAT). Data were analysed using multiple regression, linear regression, Pearson Product-Momement Correlation and t-test. The findings show that attitude to science and scientific attitude together account for 0.7% of total variance in science achievement (R2 = 0.007, p>0.05); scientific attitude accounts for 0.06% of total variance in science achievement (R2 = 006, p>0.05); attitude toward science accounts for 0.01% of the total variance in science achievement (R2 = .001, p>0.05). The results further show that there is a significant positive relationship between scientific attitude and attitude to science (r =+0.581, p<0.05); relationship between scientific attitude and science achievement was positive but not significant (r = +0.077, p>0.05); relationship between attitude to science and science achievement was also positive but not significant (r = +0.024, p>0.05). There is no significant difference between male and female students in scientific attitude, attitude to science and science achievement (t = -0.375, 0.597 and -0.678, p>0.05 respectively). It was recommended among others that researchers should look more inwards to detect what factors hinder science achievement in schools.

DOI: 10.5901/jesr.2014.v4n1p445