An international exploratory study about the gap between school and university on science education

Abstract

This paper reports exploratory results of an international research whose main objective was to analyze, in a multicultural perspective, the gap between academic research and science teaching. The research involved subjects from six countries: Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Spain, Italy and Israel. In large-scale, 1819 teachers answered a questionnaire with open and closed questions. In small-scale, 157 subjects participated in interviews and focus groups, including teachers, school administrators, policy makers and researchers. The analysis of collected data in the different contexts is presented in the following categories: perceptions of science education, evaluation of public policies, school organization, gender issues, teaching practice, and interaction between research and teaching practice. For overall results, common instruments were used for data collection and quantitative and qualitative methodologies in all countries. Analysis shows that in all countries some categories results are very similar, as for example, the fact that teaching emphasis has a prevalent traditional approach. In other categories, such as cultural education policy and structural issues, the results vary according the context. Finally, we discuss how these similarities and differences can help to bridge the gap between school and university.