Aims of science education are concerned not only with students' cognition but also with students' affect, an umbrella term for emotions, feelings, moods, and attitudes. Many studies have been conducted on student attitudes toward learning science in general; however, studies concerning attitudes toward chemistry are limited in number. The purpose of this research was to adapt and use the shortened version of Bauer's semantic differential, ASCIv2 (Attitude toward the Subject of Chemistry Inventory version 2), developed and validated by Xu and Lewis in 2011. Following the translation and adaptation procedures, the inventory was administered to a total of 503 high school students at four public schools in Turkey. Factor analysis was conducted to explore the internal structure of the instrument and compare factors across cultures. The results showed that the two-factor structure of the ASCIv2 measuring intellectual and emotional attitudes was valid. The alpha values suggested strong internal consistency for the instrument. According to descriptive analyses, the students in the sample had average intellectual (M= 3.60, SD = 1.47) and emotional (M= 3.93, SD = 1.75) attitudes. Univariate analyses of variance demonstrated that former success in chemistry courses as well as achievement in middle school had effects on high school students' intellectual and emotional attitudes toward chemistry. This finding supports the pattern established by previous research, suggesting that attitude and achievement are related. Conducted in a culturally and linguistically different context, this research confirms and provides strong evidence that the instrument yields reliable scores in diverse settings.
Middle School and High School Students’ Attitudes Toward Learning :
