Research Report No.20 
"Teaching Science and Mathematics Concepts 
to Young Thai Children" 
by 
Chancha Suvannathat 
and BSRI Staff (1974) 
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Purpose of the study 
        The purposes of the study were (1) to investigates the behavior of Thai children of different home backgrounds at specific age group (7-8 year old) in response to teaching of certain science and mathematics concepts, (2) to determine the extent to which this form of cognitive ability was related to achievements in school, and (3) to determine the effect of concept teaching on children in different locations. 

Research methodology 
      Sample 
        The sample population were children aged from 7-8 years on the date of experiment, who did not have science and mathematics concepts. The sample consisted of 180 children who were randomly selected from 400 children at the initial stage of sampling. From each of the 3 strata (urban, slum, village), into two equal groups. There were 6 groups of 30 subjects of control and experimental conditions. 

       Instruments 
        The experimental measures of concepts were translated from Piagetian tests for subject selection. The tests were : one to one correspondence, conservation of liquid, class inclusion (flowers), conservation of substance, conservation of length, mental imagery (static), class inclusion (animals), and conservation of weight. 
        Construction of experimental lesson plans was carefully made. The lessons consisted of 3 lessons for preparing the children’s readiness in concept learning, and the other 8 lessons designed for developing in children certain science and mathematics concepts. There were also other lesson plans for the control children consisting of 7 types of activites designed not to affect science and mathematics concepts. Besides, there were two achievement tests, one in science, the other in mathematics, to measure the students’ learning outcomes. 

     Collection of data 
        After the careful selection of interviewers and arranged workshops for training the interviewers and personnels in specific tasks, the definite arrangements were made with sampled schools concerning the time table scheduled for teaching the sample population. During the time schedule mutually set, the two experimenter teachers were to teach the children in the experimental groups twice a week. Each period took one and a half hours. The two other experimenter teachers were also scheduled to teach the children in the control groups at the same time as the first pair of experimenter-teachers. For the four same time as first pair of experimenter-teachers. For the four and a half month period of treatment, the experimenter-teachers kept careful records of pupils’ reactions and progress in each lesson taught. A careful and detailed recordings in each activity of the lessons were kept to evaluate the outcome of the actual use of the experiment lessons. 
        Prior to the treatment, the children were given individually the first set of Piagetian tests to measure their concepts. And after the treatment, the children were again given individually the second set of Piagetian tests and two achievement tests to assess their concept attainments and learning aptitude consecutively. 

     Analysis of data 
        The statistical hypotheses were tested by F-test, Q-test and correlation technique. 

    Main findings. 
        As for the research findings, it was found that the overall effects of treatment yielded the differences between the experimental groups and the control groups in both the concept scores and the achievement scores. But for the differences of treatment effect upon children from different locations namely nonstum, and rural, the result did not show different effects of treatment. However, there was a trend indicating that the differences in concept scores between the nonslum, urban and the rural children were greater than those between the slum and the rural children, and also than those between the slum and the nonslum children. Another trend indicated that the slum children performed better in both Piagetian tasks and the achievement tests than those in rural environment. 
        It was also found that there were relationships between the science and mathematics concepts, and school achievements. However, the result revealed a low predictive validity between the two variables when the co-efficient of determination was computed. 



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