Exploration of High School Science Teachers’ Perceptions on Instruction and Assessment of Science II Elective Courses in the 2015 Revised Curriculum

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the status of the field application of the Science II career electives with the application of the 2015 revised curriculum up to the 3rd year of high school. This study focused on examining high school science teachers' perceptions of the student-participatory class and process-centered assessment in Science II subjects, which are career-intensive high school science electives. A total of 192 science teachers responded to the survey questionnaire, and 12 teachers participated in interviews. In the in-depth interviews conducted to supplement the survey results, questions were asked about changes in the overall class, the status of student-participatory classes, and changes in the assessment of Science II subjects due to the emphasis on process-centered assessment. The main research results included teachers'perceptions of changes in teaching and assessment methods with the application of the revised curriculum, the degree to which the eight skills used in Science II classes develop the key competencies of science, and the teaching and assessment methods commonly used in Science II classes. Science teachers generally agreed with the purpose and necessity of introducing student-participatory classes and process-centered assessment, which are the core purpose of the 2015 revised curriculum. However, they had difficulties in practice due to the excessive content of Science II subjects. Problems were also encountered with securing objectivity and fairness during assessments and the operation of online science classes due to COVID-19.