• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.121-131
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• 2009

In this study, we investigated the elementary school students' perceptions toward scientific and/or technological professions in the views of accuracy, complexity, and diversity, and compared them by the students' grades and their science-related career aspiration levels. We also studied the relationships among the students' perceptions toward scientific and/or technological professions and their cognitive (science achievement), affective (enjoyment of science lessons, attitude to scientific inquiry, self-efficacy), and behavioral (participation in science-related activity) characteristics. The subjects were 369 students of 4th and 6th grades at three elementary schools in Seoul. The results revealed that the students were relatively well aware of what works and professions in science and/or technology were, but they did not have good understanding of them in the views of complexity and diversity. The 6th graders had better perceptions toward science and/or technological professions than 4th graders, although they showed the lower scores of attitude to scientific inquiry. Moreover, the higher science-related career aspirations were, the higher scores in all tests of the perceptions and the personal characteristics were. The students' perceptions toward scientific and/or technological professions were found to have relationships with their cognitive, affective, and behavioral characteristics. The multiple regression analysis of the personal characteristics on the perceptions toward scientific and/or technological professions indicated that science-related activity, science achievement, and self-efficacy were significant predictors. Educational implications are discussed.

• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.307-317
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• 2008

In this study, we investigated the elementary school students' perceptions of the scientific and technological professions by using the 'drawing scientific and technological workplaces'. The subjects were 401 students of 4th and 6th grades at three elementary schools in Seoul. The results revealed that many students drew the interiors of laboratories or factories as scientific and technological workplaces, and explained the nature of the work- place, but students' images were superficial and general. Most students' drawings also exhibited the stereotypical images of science and technology as androcentric and negative perceptions. Students were mainly inclined to perceive that the works relevant to science were experiments, and the works relevant to technology were productions and repairs. Most students answered more than two examples of scientific and technological professions, but their responses were not various and were biased toward basic scientists, blue-collar workers, and repairers. Educational implications of these findings were discussed.