Attityder och intresse för biologi hos högstadieelever och hur läraren påverkar detta

Abstract

Interest for biology tends to be fairly neutral. Pupils generally have neither a negative nor a positive attitude towards the subject. If the pupils have a biology-oriented hobby they are more likely to be interested in, and retain an interest, for biology as they get older. Both parents and teachers have an effect on pupils’ interest and motivation to study and learn biology. Pupils with an internal motivation tend to be more interested in biology. Eleven one-on-one interviews were done with Swedish 9th grade pupils to ascertain their interest in biology and how the teacher impacts this. The pupils had generally a fairly amicable view towards biology as a subject. Most studies point to a decrease in interest for biology as the pupils advance in grade, however this was not the case here. Rather the pupils either had a retained interest from childhood or they got their interest during the 7th grade. Their teachers did have a direct influence in how interesting they perceived the subject to be. It also mattered what sort of lessons they had. Generally, they preferred a variation between and during lessons, mixing practical aspects with theory.