The Teacher as One of the Factors Influencing Students’ Perception of Biology as a School Subject

• Main Authors: Milan Kubiatko, Gregor Torkar, Lenka Rovnanova
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: University of Ljubljana 2017-06-01
• Series: Center for Educational Policy Studies Journal
• Subjects: biology; perception; school subject; teacher; lower secondary school students
• Online Access: https://ojs.cepsj.si/index.php/cepsj/article/view/173

The main aim of our research was to determine whether the teacher is one of the factors influencing students’ perception of biology as a school subject. The study also aimed to identify the influence of certain other factors in this regard, specifically: students’ gender and place of residence, the number of biology teachers who have taught the students, and the teachers’ gender. The sample consisted of 261 lower secondary school students (ISCED 2) in Slovakia, aged 14 and 15 years. A questionnaire with Likert-type items was used as a research instrument. The findings confirm the impact of the biology teacher on students’ perception of the subject. After removing the influence of the teacher, the students’ gender and place of residence did not have any significant influence on their perception of the subject. Two additional significant variables were the number of biology teachers who had taught the students and the teachers’ gender. The research confirmed that the teacher’s personality is one of the significant factors that can influence students’ perception of school subjects.