Differences in the attitudes of Australian rural and urban high school students towards school science

Abstract

This paper reports and discusses findings from an Australian survey of Year 10 (15 -16 year old) students (N=3759) showing that those in small rural and remote areas tend to enjoy school science significantly less than their peers in larger towns and cities (Lyons & Quinn, 2010). Further, the study found that rural and remote students were less inclined than those in other locations to enjoy science relative to other subjects. Such a result has not previously been recorded in the science education literature and raises a number of questions about the relevance and quality of the science curriculum experienced by rural and remote students. It also raises timely questions about the applicability of a centralised National Science Curriculum to rural and remote students. The paper explores these issues and their implications for policy and research.