A Logistic Regression Model Comparing Astronomy And Non-Astronomy Teachers In Québec’s Elementary Schools

Abstract

Based on the results of an online survey of 500 Québec’s elementary (K-6) teachers conducted in 2015 that probed the way respondents teach astronomy to their classrooms, their background in S&T, their pre-service education, their aims and goals for astronomy teaching, their attitude toward teaching astronomy, the resources and materials they use, their view on the effectiveness of pre- and in-service training, and their need for in-service training, we present a logistic regression model comparing elementary teachers in our survey that teach astronomy to their class (“Astronomy” teachers, N = 244) and those who don’t (“Non-astronomy” teachers, N = 256), to reveal factors that seem to facilitate or hinder astronomy teaching in Québec’s elementary classrooms. Based on the model, several ways to enhance the teaching of astronomy in Québec’s K-6 classrooms are proposed: offer high-quality pre- and in-service training in astronomy to elementary teachers, raise the profile of science teaching in elementary schools, and help teachers realize the importance of teaching astronomy in their classrooms to cover the curriculum standards.