Investigation of the effects of science teaching supported by virtual museums on students' attitudes and motivation towards science lesson

This study aimed to examine the effects of science teaching supported by virtual museums on students' attitudes and motivation towards science lessons. The study group of the research consisted of a total of 61 students studying in the 5th grade of İmam Buhari İmam Hatip Secondary School in Haliliye district of Şanlıurfa in the 2022-2023 academic year. Convenience sampling method was adopted in the study. 5-A was determined as the experimental group and 5-B was determined as the control group. In the experimental group, virtual museum activities were implemented in the lessons. In the control group, the lessons was taught only with the activities in the textbook, in accordance with the science teaching curriculum. With the pre-test-post-test application, the attitudes and motivation of the students were evaluated before and after the application. In the study, data were collected with the Science and Technology Attitude Scale, the Motivation Scale for Learning Science and semi-structured interviews. In the study, SPSS statistical program was used to analyze the data obtained from the science and technology attitude scale and motivation scale. After the research, it was concluded that science lessons taught with a virtual museum increased motivation and attitude towards learning science. It has been observed that students find science lessons taught with virtual museums more entertaining, that virtual museums increase their interest in science lessons and reinforce their science learning positively. Suggestions have been made for science courses to show themselves in the fields, to consider virtual museums as an alternative application in science teaching, and to raise awareness of students and teachers about the use of virtual museums. Keywords: Out-of-school learning, scienceteaching, virtual museum, virtual museum education