Comparison of student Positive Attitudes Towards Science (PATS) with students’ results in Australia, England, Norway and Sweden

This study investigates the relationship between student achievement in science and students positive attitude towards science according to the results collected in TIMSS 2007. Four countries with some similarities and differences in the school system and science education were selected. The students’ results have a strong correlation to the index PATS in all four countries, but there are some differences between Sweden in particular to the other three countries. In Sweden the students have answered questions particularly to Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Geography and the other countries questions to science as one subject. The conclusions from the study is that the differences in TIMSS points when students’ PATS is regresses against students results as plausible values in science compared to the countries mean is that this measure in Sweden is approximate half a standard deviation in TIMSS points. Differences in students’ PATS regresses against students results as plausible values in science compared to the countries mean for the three other countries in this study are approximate half of the same measure of Swedish students, and even lower for Norway. Some tentative explanations for this difference are discussed in this paper, with focus of countries difference of curriculum structure, assessment habits and school culture.