Determined whether completing an environmental studies course affected the defensibility of environmental studies. The observed trend toward a more defensible attitude supports a hypothetical connection between cognitive/affective domains and suggests that student attitudes be examined for stronger attitudinal supports rather than attitude…

Assessed influence of subsidiary learning activities in a physiology class on attitudes of students (N= approximately 173) toward contraceptives. A significantly larger number of students possessed positive attitudes after engaging in such activities as reading assignments and large/small group discussions during the course of one semester. (JN)

Investigated (1) changes in community college students' (N=208) attitudes toward introductory biology, school, and academic self and (2) relationships between attitudes/achievement (measured by Nelson Biology Test and course grade). Data indicated that while cognitive behavior was changed during the course, attitudes either stayed the same or…

Describes two experiments with science method students that showed that writing an essay favorable to a particular topic resulted in an attitude change toward that topic. (MLH)

Assessed the effectiveness of conducting an elementary science methods course based on the Concerns Based Adoption Model (CBAM) on the concerns and attitudes of 85 preservice elementary teachers. Results indicate that neither traditional nor CBAM methods courses proved superior in affecting concerns or attitudes of the preservice teachers.…

Determined if subjects' (N=79) cognitive responses to a persuasive communication are more highly correlated with attitude change than the recall of arguments presented in the communication. Subjects were exposed to a systematically designed persuasive communication and then tested for their retention of arguments presented in the communication and…

This case study focused on a preservice teachers' (Morgan) efforts to explicitly emphasize nature of science (NOS) elements in her first-grade internship classroom. The study assessed the change in first grade students' views of the inferential, tentative, and creative NOS as a result of the explicit instruction. Morgan held appropriate views of…

Tested the effect of two systematically designed persuasive communications on attitudes toward energy conservation of 85 preservice elementary teachers differing in energy-related developmental advancement. One finding is that two-sided communication was more effective than one-sided communication regardless of level of developmental advancement…

Based on Hovland's four-part statement, "who says what to whom with what effect," opinions were surveyed from preservice elementary teachers (N=139) and mathematics educators (N=45) to establish characteristics of metric educators (who) and content (what) of persuasive communication useful in influencing attitudes of preservice teachers…

Tested effect of two persuasive messages presented by a credible communicator on energy conservation attitudes of 180 preservice elementary teachers. Focused on changes resulting from brief, belief-laden communication; dissipation of attitude gains after treatment; and whether integrated/nonintegrated communications affected energy attitudes of…

Investigated attitudes of Australian elementary school student teachers (N=67) toward science and science teaching. No change in attitude was reported (using Moore and Sutman's Attitude Toward Science and Science Teaching Scales) as a result of taking a content-base science unit, suggesting more effort in fostering desirable attitudes among these…

Tested were all-verbal or verbal-pictorial presentations followed by either pictorial practice or a control task with 96 undergraduates; results favored pictorial presentation with review. Also tested were effectiveness of pictorial review tasks to a read-twice control with 50 different undergraduates. Pictorial review facilitated performance and…

Effects of a sequence of two science content courses (earth science/biology and physical science) on preservice elementary teachers' attitude toward and anxiety about science teaching were examined. Results from two studies (1977-78, N=78 and 1978-79, N=71) indicate attitude/anxiety changed in a positive direction and continued in subsequent…