• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.1018-1027
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• 2004

The purpose of this study was to identify and compare the types of scientific questions which were generated by elementary students and preservice teachers on the tasks of scientific observation. To identify the types of scientific questions, 4 observing tasks, dry grapes contained in soda pop, candlelight, celery, and a rock were administered to 40 sixth elementary students and 20 elementary preservice teachers. And then, the types and frequency of scientific questions generated by them were compared. The results showed that the types of scientific questions were classified into conjectural questions, causal questions, predictive questions, methodical questions and applicative questions. Further more, subordinate questions to the above questions were classified into object exploration questions and object verification questions, explicans exploration questions and explicans verification questions, result exploration questions and result verification questions, example exploration questions and example verification questions. Subordinate questions did not come out from the methodical questions. The types of scientific questions generated by elementary students and preservice teachers were identical, however, there were differences in frequency. This study supports that elementary students also have cognitive capability to generate various scientific questions. The results of this study may be used as a teaching strategy for the guidance of the direction and the method of scientific inquiry.