
ERIC Number: EJ1009341
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2013-Apr
Pages: 27
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0022-4308
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Interpreting Student Views of Learning Experiences in a Contextualized Science Discourse in Kenya
Nashon, Samson Madera; Anderson, David
Journal of Research in Science Teaching, v50 n4 p381-407 Apr 2013
Despite the centrality of the informal manufacturing sector ("Jua Kali") to the Kenyan society and its richness in scientific phenomena, there is no strong link between activities in the Jua Kali and school science. And, although there has been an ongoing public discourse in Kenya to industrialize, this hope is unlikely without connecting classroom science to the real world of the Jua Kali. In view of this concern, an interpretive case study was framed to investigate Kenyan high school students' views of contextualized science learning in culturally relevant real-world science curriculum. This article reports the analysis of Kenyan students' views of contextualized science learning and school science curriculum and instruction elicited through an interpretive case study approach employing interview methods. The analysis of interview data reveals that the participating students interviewed expressed views that: (1) acknowledged the richness of Jua Kali in scientific phenomena and embedded science; (2) indicated existence of a lack of meaningfulness and relevance in existing science curriculum and instruction model; (3) revealed experience of resonance of group and real life learning strategies modeled in the curriculum unit with their preferred learning modes; and (4) revealed their metacognitive assessment of the traditionally used and the new contextualized science modeled learning strategies. Thus, this article offers insight about the Kenyan students on their journey through the experience of contextualized science learning. (Contains 3 tables and 2 figures.)
Descriptors: Learning Experience, Foreign Countries, Science Curriculum, Interviews, Student Attitudes, Manufacturing, Relevance (Education), Learning Strategies, Cognitive Style, Science Instruction, Metacognition, Units of Study, Sociocultural Patterns, Cultural Context
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Kenya
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A