Student attitudes to studying A-level sciences

Abstract

This paper reports on a study of sixth form students' attitudes to the study of sciences at Advanced level, and the factors that influenced the students in deciding whether to take those subjects. In discussions about the public understanding of science, it is often assumed that the sciences can be discussed together. In this study, attitudes to biology are shown to be significantly different from attitudes to the physical sciences; and the perception of difficulty is a major influence on student choice. Perceptions of career prospects and reasons for the gender imbalance in physical sciences gave some unexpected responses. A purposive sample of 175 able students was taken from the lower sixth (year 12) in four schools in Gloucestershire, UK. The survey compared attitudes of those studying at least one science with attitudes of those who studied none.