The effect of the system dynamics approach on students attitude, scientific success and different skills in middle school science and technology course

System dynamics is a well formulated teaching and learning methodology for analyzing a system that includes cause-effect relationships and their underlying mathematics and logic, time delays, and feedback loops. System dynamics studies caused important changes in the fields of engineering, management, economy, physics, chemistry and biology. Having inspired by these successful policy changes in lots of fields, the system dynamics researchers targeted to apply the system dynamics approach in the educational fields too. First educational applications showed that important improvements can be obtained in this field as well. The students in the schools, where system dynamics approach is used, run voluntary projects in relation with their school courses even after the school time. Also the students became so enthusiastic with the subjects that they made their parents to take part in the projects.The aim of this study is to 1) apply system dynamics approach in 7th grade middle school students in science and technology course, 2) determine the problems in field application, 3) improve the students? attitude towards course and some skills such as problem solving, understanding the causal relationship and graphing with analyzing the relationship, 4) provide an effective learning and teaching tools for students and teachers. Another aim of this study is to investigate how system dynamics approach help constructivism.In this study the sample consisted of 81 (40 in experimental group, 41 in control group) 7th grade students who were studying in different two middle schools in İstanbul. The research was applied in fall semester of 2007-2008 academic year.The experimental design with pre-post test with control group is applied in this research. Independent variable is ?system dynamics approach?. Whereas experimental group was taught with system dynamics approach, control was taught with standard syllabus. The students in experimental and control group were selected randomly. The teaching of the curriculum material was the same for both control and experimental groups. The topics of spring mass systems, work, energy, energy sorts and energy conservations were taught. There were four study hours available in each week. Two of them were used for the teaching of curriculum material in both control and experimental groups. Remaining two hours were used for exercises in control group whereas these hours were used for system dynamics approach in experimental group.In order to assess the sub problems of the study, eight assessment tools are used: Science and Technology Course Attitude Scale, Scientific Success Test, Cause-Effect Relationship Scale, Graphing and Analyzing Skills Scale, Problem Solving Skills Inventory, system dynamics concept test, identifying students? profile inventory and constructivist learning environment scale. The data obtained through these evaluation tools are analyzed by statistically. The statistical models were used to analyze the data are descriptive statistics, dependent and independent t-tests. The meaningful level of the results was accepted .05.In the boundaries of this research, system dynamics approach had no effect in the following attitudes: perceived understanding causality relationships (causality 1 scale), perceived graphics drawing and reading ability (graphics 1 scale), perceived interest into science and technology course. Scientific success tests show that students had a higher success when supplementary material is taught with system dynamics approach. Control group?s post-tests show an increase as well in comparison to their pre-tests. System dynamics approach is consistent with constructivist method and is an effective supplementary method to reinforce constructivist learning. It is reasonable to conclude that system dynamics approach has a positive impact on the ability of understanding causality relationships, graphing and analyzing and problem solving. The experiment showed that system dynamics approach has a significant improvement in these abilities. Students think that system dynamics approach provide a learning environment which is more constructivist.Apart of the quantitative analysis, the qualitative analysis such as interviews, observations and recordings of system dynamics models, that is done at the application process supports these facts.Thus the results of this study show that system dynamics is an education approach that helps long term learning. It achieves this by letting the students to reflect about the events in a systems thinking perspective and to construct cause and effect relationships and feedback loops with the help of a mathematical simulation tool.