Pre-service Science Teachers’ Views and Content Knowledge about Models and Modeling

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate pre-service science teachers’ views and knowledge of models and modeling. The data were collected from seven participants through semistructured interviews and an open-ended questionnaire. The results indicated that variations and deficiencies existed among the participants’ views and knowledge of models. The participants were unable to distinguish exclusive characteristics of scientific models. It was also found that the pre-service science teachers favored a teaching model according to model’s aesthetic appeal, scientific context, and practicality. It is recommended that pre-service science teachers should engage in more modeling activities and gain more modeling experiences throughout their training programs to improve their content knowledge of models and modeling