Educational Problems Facing Science Teachers At Higher Basic And Secondary Schools In North Of Palestine

This study aimed at investigating the educational problems that science teachers face at higher basic and secondary classes in northern Districts of Palestine. These problems were classified according to their relative significance from the teachers' point of view. More specifically this study attempted to answer the following questions: 1. What are the main problems that the science teachers face from their point of view? 2. Does the feeling of science teachers towards the problems differ due to their sex? 3. Does the feeling of science teachers towards the problems differ due to their scientific qualification? 4. Does the feeling of science teachers towards the problems differ due to their years of experience? 5. Does the feeling of science teachers towards the problems differ due to their educational qualification? The researcher used a questionnaire constructed by the researcher himself and it consisted of 66 items dealing with the following eight fields: Planning for science teaching - Science textbooks and curriculum - School administration and environment - Science laboratory - Educational supervision and in-service training - Professional development — Student - Students' evaluation. A test of validity and reliability was conducted, and it was judged that the questionnaire was valid, and reliability was calculated using Cronbach- α equation and it was found (0.91). The population of the study consisted of the whole science teachers in the schools of north Districts of Palestine and they were 808 teachers. The sample of this study was randomly selected as stratified random sample. and it was 155 (19.2% of the population). One way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to test the statistical hypothesis at 0.05 significance level. The results of the analysis were as follows: 1. The fields of the problems are arranged in terms of their relative significance as follows: Professional development (77.2%) - Student (70.0%) - Science laboratory (69.4%) - School administration and environment (62.0%) - Students evaluation (62.0%) - Educational supervision and in-service training (60.0%) ¬Textbooks and science curriculums (55.8%) - Planning for science teaching (46.6%). 2. There was no significant difference (α = 0.05) between the means of male and female teachers' feeling towards the problems that they face. 3. There was no significant difference (α = 0.05) between short, medium and long period of science teachers' experience towards the problems that they face. 4. There was a significant difference (α = 0.05) due to scientific qualification. The results showed that the science teachers who have only a bachelor degree face problems more than other categories (the holders of diploma and the holders of more than bachelor degree). 5. There was a significant difference (α = 0.05) due to educational qualification. The results showed that the science teachers who haven't an educational qualification face problems more than those who are educationally qualified. Due to these results the researcher suggested the following recommendations: 1. The Ministry of Education must set up an appropriate environment to encourage professional development of science teacher such as : • Supplying schools' libraries with adequate and suitable scientific books, references and journals. • Issuing a journal specialized in science teaching, in which science teacher can enhance his experience through other teachers' experience. 2.Planning a good in-service training programs which consistent with the real needs of science teachers. 3.Increasing the number of lessons specified for science laboratory to give the science teacher good opportunity to teach science in a practical way. 4. Recommendations for the researchers : • Repeating this study after one or two years to evaluate the effectiveness of educational policy in overcoming these problems. • Studying the perceptions of science supervisors towards science teachers' problems and their attitudes to solve these problems. • Conducting an evaluation study for the in-service training programs and their effects on decreasing science teachers' problems. • Studying the effect of educational qualification on the effectiveness of teaching science.