Abstract:

This study is an attempt to examine the socio-scientific texts written by pre-service science teachers through using the creative writing technique. The study was conducted with the final year pre-service teachers studying in science education at a state university in Turkey. Qualitative research method was employed to examine and interpret the data in depth. Data were collected with the socio-scientific texts through the creative writing technique. Descriptive and content analyses were used during data analysis. Prior to the data collection process, the pre-service science teachers were informed about creative writing. The results revealed that the pre-service teachers mostly wrote texts in conversation-dialogue, informative text and story types; moreover, they mostly preferred socio-scientific issues such as environmental problems, GMOs and nuclear power plants. The results also suggested that the most frequently used concepts while writing socio-scientific texts were identified as "waste, garbage, filter, global climate change, ozone layer, gene transfer, genetic change, organism, clean energy, uranium, energy efficiency and danger". On analysing the socio-scientific texts written by the pre-service science teachers through the creative writing technique in terms of language and expression, they were at a satisfactory level in terms of language fluency, clarity of the text, use of appropriate statement, punctuation-spelling and suitability for the structure of text creation. As regards the socio-scientific texts written through the creative writing technique in terms of the presentation and order of scientific concepts, the texts were generally noted to be at a satisfactory level. The pre-service teachers may be provided the opportunity to perform such creative writing activities and write their concepts and knowledge regarding their fields in an original way.

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