A NEXUS OF SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATIONS, SCIENCE PROCESS SKILLS, AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS: PRE-SERVICE TEACHERS’ VIEWS CONCERNING MANGROVES FIELDWORK

Abstract

Initial teacher education should mould well-rounded teachers proficient in scientific investigations, and advocate sustainability amid global ecosystems’ degradation. The research sought to explore pre-service science teachers’ views concerning scientific investigations and sustainable development goals, and synergy between skills and different aspects of scientific inquiry within the context of the mangroves ecosystem studied. A four-part questionnaire was administered to 82 students registered for a Bachelor of Education degree. It included items on teachers’ confidence in planning and conducting scientific investigations, types of scientific investigations, sustainable development goals, science process skills and the different aspects of scientific inquiry. Statistical analysis of the data showed the importance of a constructivist approach, learner engagement and discerning and controlling variables when investigating scientific phenomena. However, only a fair number of teachers could correctly provide the scientific investigation they conducted during the mangroves study, the sustainable development goals embedded in it, and the synergy between science process skills and the aspects of scientific inquiry. The findings have implications for teacher education in terms of potential challenges in teachers’ understanding of scientific investigations, the synergy between them and sustainability, and science process skills that meld with the aspects of scientific inquiry. Keywords: pre-service teachers, science process skills, scientific inquiry, scientific investigations, sustainable development goals