EFFECTS OF TRAINING PRE-SERVICE SCIENCE TEACHERS WITH RESPECT TO THEIR PREFERENCE FOR AND PERFORMANCE OF INQUIRY BEHAVIORS IN RELATIONSHIP TO OPEN OR CLOSED-MINDEDNESS IN EGYPT

Purpose. This study was designed to determine the effect of inter-active practice-oriented instruction on the teachers' stated preference for and actual classroom performance of the inquiry teaching behaviors. The relationship between the teachers' dogmatism (open or closed-mindedness) scores and their preference for and use of inquiry teaching behaviors was also examined.;Methodology. Fifty-two students enrolled in a Methods of Teaching Science at the College of Education, Tanta University, Egypt, 1979/1980 academic year participated. Subjects were randomly divided into experimental and control groups. The experimental group received nine-days of interactive practice-oriented instruction on inquiry teaching behaviors--the level of questions, probing techniques, and the use of inquiry encouraging behaviors. The control group received traditional lecture instruction including the use of questions, lecture method, and problem-solving in teaching. Data was collected by using the Inquiry Preference Inventory (IPI), Inquiry Behavior Observation Form (IBOF), and Rokeach Dogmatism Scale (RDS). The t-test, analysis of variance, analysis of co-variance, and Pearson product correlation coefficient were used to statistically examine the data obtained.;Findings and Conclusions. Analysis of the data permitted the investigator to conclude that the interactive practice-oriented inquiry instruction provided the experimental group prepared teachers who stated a significantly greater preference for and used significantly more inquiry teaching behaviors than did the control group teachers. The inquiry teaching performance of the trained teachers can be predicted from their preference scores. Teachers dogmatism (open or closed-mindedness), as measured, was not significantly related to either the teacher preference or use of inquiry teaching behaviors.;Recommendations were made suggesting research that would involve greater varieties of practice oriented inquiry instruction, search for factors that may influence teachers' stated preference or performance of the inquiry teaching behaviors, and explore the utility of using practice oriented instruction in other areas of the curriculum.;The study attempted to answer the following questions: (1) Are there any significant differences in the stated preference for using inquiry teaching behaviors that can be attributed to the methods course instruction? (2) Are there any significant differences in the use of actual classroom performance of the inquiry teaching behaviors that can be attributed to the methods course instruction? (3) Are there any significant relationships between the teachers' stated preference for and teaching performance in using the inquiry teaching behaviors? (4) Do pre-service teachers who score low on Rokeach Dogmatism Scale (RDS) show significantly more willingness to use the inquiry behaviors than subjects who score high on RDS as measured by using the Inquiry Preference Inventory (IPI) and Inquiry Behavior Observation Form (IBOF)? (5) Do pre-service teachers who received practice-oriented instruction and score low or high on RDS, state a significantly greater preference for and use significantly more inquiry teaching behaviors than subjects who score low or high on RDS and received traditional instruction as measured by the IPI and IBOF?...