ERIC Number: EJ760036
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2004-Apr
Pages: 32
Abstractor: Author
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0022-4308
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Scientists' Views of Science, Models of Writing, and Science Writing Practices
Yore, Larry D.; Hand, Brian M.; Florence, Marilyn K.
Journal of Research in Science Teaching, v41 n4 p338-369 Apr 2004
Written and oral communications and the processes of writing and reading are highly valued within the scientific community; scientists who communicate well are successful in gaining recognition and support from members of their own communities, the research funding agencies, and the wider society. Yet how do scientists achieve this proficiency? Are expert scientists equally expert writers in and of science? Do scientists' perceptions of the nature of science influence their writing strategies and processes, and their beliefs about the role of writing in knowledge construction? This study used a questionnaire and semistructured interviews to document these perceptions, strategies, processes, and beliefs in a nonrandom sample of Canadian university scientists and engineers. The results indicate that the scientists subscribed to a contemporary evaluativist view of science, used common writing strategies, held similar beliefs about scientific writing and nonscientific writing, and agreed that writing generates insights and clarifies ambiguity in science. The engineers held a different view of technology than the common views of science or technology as simply applied science. These findings were slightly different than those found for American scientists from a large land-grant university.
Descriptors: Technology, Scientists, Writing Strategies, Writing (Composition), Writing Processes, Questionnaires, Interviews, Foreign Countries, Beliefs, Content Area Writing, Engineering, Higher Education, Comparative Analysis
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Canada
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A