Developing Preservice Science Teachers’ Sense of Place Through Place-Based Socioscientific Issues Instruction

The main purpose of this study is to investigate how preservice science teachers’ sense of place (i.e., place attachment, place identity, place dependence) changes after place-based socioscientific issues (SSIs) instruction. It also explored to what extent preservice science teachers included the dimensions of sense of place (biophysical, psychological, sociocultural, and political) in their descriptions of sense of place. The designed course was a semester-long elective course specifically planned around a local issue of hydroelectric power plants in Giresun, northern Türkiye. The course lasted 16 weeks, encompassing both theoretical and practical classes that revolved around the sense of place, characteristics of SSI and SSI-based instruction, and an in-depth examination of hydroelectric power plants from multiple aspects, including scientific, social, ethical, economic, and political considerations. Throughout the semester, a field trip was arranged to one of the largest hydroelectric power plants in Giresun, incorporating pre-, during, and post-trip activities. A total of ten preservice science teachers actively participated in the study, and the data was collected through the Sense of Place Questionnaire, which consisted of Likert-type items and four open-ended questions. The findings showed that after the course, there was a statistically significant increase in the preservice science teachers’ sense of place identity, but there was no statistically significant change in their sense of place dependence and place attachment. Findings also showed that preservice science teachers incorporated biophysical and psychological dimensions more than political and sociocultural dimensions in their responses to the open-ended sense of place questions. Notably, the political dimension exhibited the lowest level of integration within their responses. Details of the implementation and the implications of the findings were provided.