Science Education in the 21st Century

Abstract

The traditional centrality of laboratory programs to tertiary science education, and a number of significant issues emerging in respect of them, make fertile ground for an examination of the thinking of academics and students on a range of educational matters. In designing the project, it was determined that a focus on first-year mainstream courses would allow consideration of the student population at its most diverse, and when the group is not far removed from the secondary school student population. The study was therefore based on interviews with staff and students involved in first year laboratory classes in nine universities covering a range of disciplines and types of university. It sought and analysed their reflections through a grounded theory approach involving detailed interview analysis.