Satisfaction of high school biology teachers with a conceptual approach to teaching after the curriculum reform

Cilj ovog diplomskog rada bio je ispitati zadovoljstvo nastavnika biologije gimnazijskih programa s konceptom, razumijevanjem i provedbom važećeg kurikuluma u nastavi te razumijevanje konceptualnog pristupa u poučavanju biologije. Ispitano je postoje li značajne razlike između odgovora nastavnika različite duljine radnog iskustva te postoji li značajan utjecaj duljine radnog iskustva na odgovore nastavnika. Osmišljen je online upitnik koji je, posredovanjem Agencije za odgoj i obrazovanje, poslan nastavnicima biologije. Upitnik je ispunilo 78 nastavnika. Rezultati ankete ukazuju da se nastavnici često susreću s poteškoćama u razumijevanju konceptualnog pristupa i odgojno-obrazovnih ishoda te s poteškoćama u procjeni dubine nastavnog sadržaja. Uglavnom nisu opažene značajne razlike između odgovora nastavnika s različitom duljinom radnog iskustva niti značajan utjecaj duljine radnog iskustva na odgovore nastavnika. Ipak, opaženo je da nastavnici s više od 11 godina radnog iskustva iskazuju veće nezadovoljstvo važećim kurikulumom. Može se zaključiti da nastavnici prepoznaju potencijal nastave biologije temeljene na metodama aktivnog učenja usmjerenih na učenike, međutim, smatraju da važeći kurikulum samo djelomično ispunjava predviđene ishode učenja i očekivanja nastavnika u praksi. Stoga bi bilo dobro omogućiti redovitu reevaluaciju kurikuluma, koja bi uzela u obzir osvrt nastavnika, kao i stalnu sustavnu podršku nastavnicima, kako bi se uspješnije snalazili u ostvarenju odgojnoobrazovnih ciljeva nastavnog procesa.The aim of this thesis was to examine the satisfaction of biology teachers in high school programs with the concept, understanding and implementation of the valid curriculum in teaching and understanding of the conceptual approach in teaching biology. Significant differences between the answers of teachers with different length of work experience as well as the influence of the length of work experience on teachers' answers were examined. An online questionnaire was designed and sent to biology teachers via the Education and Teacher Training Agency. 78 teachers filled out the questionnaire. The results of the survey indicate that teachers often encounter difficulties in understanding the conceptual approach and educational outcomes, as well as difficulties in assessing the depth of the teaching content. No significant differences were observed between the answers of teachers with different length of work experience, nor a significant influence of the length of work experience on teachers' answers. However, it was observed that teachers with more than 11 years of work experience express greater dissatisfaction with the current curriculum. It can be concluded that teachers recognize the potential of teaching biology based on student-centered active learning methods; however, according to the teachers’ responses, the current curriculum only partially fulfills the intended learning outcomes and teachers' expectations in practice. Therefore, it would be beneficial to enable a regular reevaluation of the curriculum that would take into account the teacher's review, as well as constant systematic support for teachers, so that they can navigate more successfully in achieving the educational goals of the teaching process