Science Education in Museums with Preservice Science Teachers: "Discovering the Power of Science in Museums


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Sürmeli H., Aydın G., Öztuna Kaplan A., Saka Melen M.

REVISTA ROMANEASCA PENTRU EDUCATIE MULTIDIMENSIONALA, vol.17, no.4, pp.398-430, 2025 (ESCI)

Abstract

Museums, often described as cultural repositories, provide unique environments that help individuals connect the past, present, and future to understand their culture better. Beyond their cultural significance, museums serve as valuable educational spaces where teachers can enhance their scientific knowledge, develop pedagogical skills, and design meaningful learning experiences. Based on the idea that every object in a museum can serve as a teaching tool, the project “Exploring the Power of Science in Museums”, supported by the TÜBİTAK 2237-A Scientific Education Activities Support Program, was implemented to enable pre-service science teachers to establish meaningful connections between artifacts displayed in archaeology and maritime museums and science concepts. A qualitative research design was employed in this study. Data were collected through worksheets, lesson plans, and observation forms. The findings revealed that all pre-service teachers’ perspectives on museums changed positively; most could associate museum objects with science subjects and recognized the potential of museums as dynamic environments for science education.Museums, often described as cultural repositories, provide
unique environments that help individuals connect the past, present,
and future to understand their culture better. Beyond their cultural
significance, museums serve as valuable educational spaces where
teachers can enhance their scientific knowledge, develop pedagogical
skills, and design meaningful learning experiences. Based on the idea
that every object in a museum can serve as a teaching tool, the project
“Exploring the Power of Scien
ce in Museums”, supported by the
TÜBİTAK 2237
-A Scientific Education Activities Support
Program, was implemented to enable pre-
service science teachers to
establish meaningful connections between artifacts displayed in
archaeology and maritime museums and science concepts. A qualitative
research design was employed in this study. Data were collected through
worksheets, lesson plans, and observation forms. The findings revealed
that all pre
-service teachers’ perspectives on museums changed positively;
most c
ould associate museum objects with science subjects and recognized
the potential of museums as dynamic environments for science education.