Beverly A. Joyce

Science-Related Attitudes and Science Course Selection: A Study of High-Ability Boys and Girls.

This study examined science‐related attitudes and science course selection of young high‐ability students. The sample consisted of 111 high‐achieving students between the ages of 9 and 13 who completed the Test of Science‐Related Attitudes (TOSRA) and the Course Selection Sheet (CSS). The results revealed significant correlations between specific science‐related attitudes and the number of science courses selected. The strongest correlations were between total number of science courses selected and three TOSRA subscales: Enjoyment of Science Lessons, Leisure Interest in Science, and Career Interest in Science (p < .001). The results of a regression model suggest that science‐related attitudes are important predictors of the number of science course selected by girls (R2 = .43). For boys, science‐related attitudes are not factors related to science course selection.