The prospective science teachers’ perspectives of dissection experiments: Calf’s heart, fish and frog dissection

Faculty of Education, Department of Science Education, Sakarya University, Turkey

^a Corresponding author: edemirhan@sakarya.edu.tr

Abstract

This study aims to find out the sophomore prospective science teachers’ cognitive emotional reactions, physiological-motor reactions with regard to a calf’s heart, fish and frog dissection in biology laboratory experiments. Meanwhile to find out if they had a choice, they would prefer to do or not to do these dissections. In this study a phenomenological design was used which is involving a qualitative research method. The sample consisted of totally 43 (37 female and 6 male) sophomore prospective science teachers in 2013-2014 spring term. The data was collected with using of a questionnaire which was developed by one of the researcher. The data was analyzed through qualitative descriptive analysis. According to the results of the study, the prospective science teachers’ cognitive emotional reactions were mainly categorized as positive and negative feelings. Positive feelings were curiosity, interest, excitement, enjoyable and pleasure and also negative feelings were disgust, displeasure, sad, stress and fear. Also five physiological-motor reactions were found. These were queasiness, trembling hands, loss of appetite, dizziness and dry mouth.