Science Education in Museums with Preservice Science Teachers: Discovering the Power of Science in Museums

OpenAlex English

Museums, often described as cultural repositories, provide unique environments that help individuals connect the past, present, and future to understand their culture better. Beyond their cultural significance, museums serve as valuable educational spaces where teachers can enhance their scientific knowledge, develop pedagogical skills, and design meaningful learning experiences. Based on the idea that every object in a museum can serve as a teaching tool, the project “Exploring the Power of Science in Museums”, supported by the TÜBİTAK 2237-A Scientific Education Activities Support Program, was implemented to enable pre-service science teachers to establish meaningful connections between artifacts displayed in archaeology and maritime museums and science concepts. A qualitative research design was employed in this study. Data were collected through worksheets, lesson plans, and observation forms. The findings revealed that all pre-service teachers’ perspectives on museums changed positively; most could associate museum objects with science subjects and recognized the potential of museums as dynamic environments for science education.