Catherine Aurah

• Doctor of Education; Science Education, Biology Major
• Head of Department at Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1016/j.dib.2023.109429.].

The proliferation of global environmental problems has necessitated the need to re-examine the environmental impacts caused by human-nature relations. Yet individual attitudes and environmental literacy remain among the critical determinants of environmental sustainability. Consequently, environmental psychology has been one of the most effective t...

Despite the extant literature that discusses the potentiality of environmental identity in shaping people’s engagement with nature, there is little evidence of which specific domains of environmental attitudes and knowledge are connected with environmental identity. The present article reports on the results from two studies that were conducted wit...

This paper presents part of the preliminary findings of a baseline survey for "Project Impact: Empowering East African Students in STEM Education" research project. Grounded in a mixed method research approach, this baseline study sought to investigate the relationship between STEM resources and academic achievement in STEM subjects in selected sch...

Best instructional methods are essential tools to bring desirable changes in pre-service science teachers. The available literature lacks enough meta-analytic review illustrating the effect of various instructional methods on pre-service science teachers' learning outcomes. This meta-analytic review identified instructional methods used for teachin...

The role of personal values in understanding pro-environmental attitudes and behaviors has received considerable attention from psychological researchers. However, little is known about the mutual interaction of personal values and the Theory of Ecological Attitudes (2-MEV) in explaining pro-environmental behaviors (PEBs). To explore the mediating...

This dataset belongs to a large doctoral research project in Biology education conducted under the African Center of Excellence for Innovative Teaching and Learning Mathematics and Science (ACEITLMS), University of Rwanda College of Education (URCE). The data were collected from students undertaking biology education as their future teaching career...

Linking motivation and learning is central to understanding students’ motivation toward learning and learning itself as complex cognitive phenomena. Some studies focused on students’ motivation toward learning biology in general; however, the shortage of studies on the effect of animation-based instruction and small-group laboratory activities as R...

A positive attitude correlates to successful learning; while a negative attitude leads to poor learning. The present study aimed to compare the pre-service biology teachers’ attitudes towards learning biology and assessing their attitudinal change before and after being taught by resource-based instructions (RBI) in Rwanda. A survey-research design...

An increasing trend of environmental problems is largely associated with human interaction with nature. While individual attitudes and behavior play a pivotal role in attaining sustainable ecological actions, this article questions whether there is adequate coverage of the current environmental issues in the existing scales measuring environmental...

Observing classroom practices and checking the effect of instructional methods on academic achievement are crucial in the teaching and learning process. The present study was aimed at discovering the dominating pre-service biology teachers’ and instructors’ activities in microbiology classes and their respective effects when animations–based instru...

Education of pre-service science teachers necessitates inquiry and resource-based instruction to ensure the production of both hands-on and mind-on skilled science teachers. This becomes possible when a variety of instructional resources regularly support the teaching process. This study aimed to identify the types of available biology instructiona...

Education of pre-service science teachers necessitates inquiry and resource-based instruction to ensure the production of both hands-on and mind-on skilled science teachers. This becomes possible when a variety of instructional resources regularly support the teaching process. This study aimed to identify the types of available biology instructiona...

This study was designed to investigate the teachers’ attitude towards classroom discourse and how their attitude is associated with their classroom instructional practices. Their attitude was characterized by their conceptions about the nature of mathematics and their views about classroom discourse in the face of current reforms in mathematics. Mi...

The aim of this study was to explore the relationships between science self-efficacy, gender, and academic achievement in genetics among form four (12th grade) students in Kenya and to investiPSTe gender differences in science self-efficacy and academic achievement in genetics. A total of 2,139 students responded to a science self-efficacy question...

The importance of raising students competence in mathematics in a developing country such as Kenya cannot be overstated. This is because to produce professionals in areas such as engineering, medicine and accounting requires a good score in mathematics. Students that will further their studies in these areas will find that vectors is pre requisite...

The paper reports findings of a study which sought to examine the pedagogical factors that affect the integration of computers in mathematics instruction as perceived by teachers in secondary schools in Kenya. This study was based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). A descriptive survey design was used for this study. Stratified and simple ra...

This study examined and compared science teacher efficacy beliefs of elementary pre-service teachers in Kenya and U.S.A. by surveying 168 Kenyan and 189 US Pre-service teachers through a cross-sectional survey research design. Data were collected using STEBI-B scale, an inventory developed by by Enochs and Riggs (1990), with a reported Cronbach's A...

Grounded in social cognitive theory of self-efficacy and self-regulation, this study examined the influence of metacognition and self-efficacy beliefs on genetics problem solving ability among high school students in Kenya using a quasi-experimental research design. The study was conducted in Western Province, Kenya. A total of 2,138 high school st...

This study investigated the effectiveness of using metacognitive prompts during testing for improving results in a Genetics Problem Solving Test (GPST). The study, a pre-test post-test, control group quasi-experimental design involving 2x2x2 analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) also investigated the moderating effects of gender and school type. A total...

This research demonstrates that the experience of international students on U.S. university campuses is replete with cultural, social, relational, work-related and linguistic challenges. This study explored the experiences of two international graduate students from Africa (male = 1, female = 1) as they adjusted to campus life at a Mid-Western publ...

This study investigated the effect of Self-efficacy Beliefs and Metacognition on Academic Performance among high school students using a mixed method approach. A total of 2,138 form four (12 th grade) students participated in the study. The mixed-method study consisted of a quasi-experimental approach and in-depth interviews. Quantitative data were...

This study investigated sustainability of the methods used to manage plastic bag waste in Nairobi city, Kenya. Plastic bag waste appears in very high proportion in the municipal solid waste stream in Nairobi and is causing environmental problems such as choking of animals and soils; blockage of waterways; health problems, and resource depletion. Ha...

This study investigated sustainability of the methods used to manage plastic bag waste in Nairobi city, Kenya. Plastic bag waste appears in very high proportion in the municipal solid waste stream in Nairobi and is causing environmental problems such as choking of animals and soils; blockage of waterways; health problems, and resource depletion. Ha...

Metacognition is an important dimension of problem solving because it includes problem-relevant awareness of one's thinking, monitoring and regulation of cognitive processes, and application of heuristics. This study investigated the effect of Metacognition on problem solving among 150 students at Muraka Primary School, Kenya in June 2010. Students...