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Student reflections on choosing to study science post-16.
journal contribution
posted on 2023-06-07, 22:25 authored by Angela Pike, Mairead DunneMairead DunneThe research recounted in this paper was designed primarily to attempt to understand the reasons for the low uptake of the natural sciences beyond compulsory education in England. This has caused widespread concern within governmental quarters, university science departments and the scientific community as a whole. This research explored the problem from the position of the students who recently made their choices. The student voices were heard through a series of interviews which highlighted the complexities of the process of post-16 choice. Social theories of pedagogy and identity, such as those of Basil Bernstein, were used in an analysis of the interview texts. Dominant themes used by the students in rationalising their post-16 subject choice related to their past pedagogical experiences, school discourses of differentiation and the students¿ notions of their future educational and occupational pathways. This study provides no simple solutions but highlights the importance of student voice to our understandings of what influences subject choice at this critical post-16 stage.
History
Publication status
- Published
Journal
Cultural Studies of Science EducationISSN
1871-1502Publisher
SpringerExternal DOI
Issue
2Volume
6Page range
485-500Pages
15.0Department affiliated with
- Education Publications
Notes
50% contributedFull text available
- No
Peer reviewed?
- Yes