Antonio García-Carmona

Introduction to Semiconductor Physics in Secondary Education: Evaluation of a teaching sequence

The present article presents a didactic proposal oriented to teaching notions of semiconductor physics in secondary education. The methods and the results of a pilot study designed to analyse the effectiveness of a teaching sequence on the topic are also described. The subjects were 60 students, aged 14–15 years, of a secondary school in Seville, Spain. The levels of knowledge acquired by the students were evaluated by means of a test and personal interviews, which we also used to detect the most frequent obstacles they encountered against learning. Also, we employed personal interviews and analysis of the students’ notebooks to evaluate their attitudes towards semiconductor physics and its learning, and to evaluate the degree to which the teaching sequence fosters cooperative learning and the self‐regulation of learning. The results indicated that the students in general acquired ideas and reasoning in the appropriate line, although with some mistakes or inaccuracies with respect to scientific conceptions, and acquired positive attitudes towards the learning of semiconductor physics, with a high degree of motivation during the teaching–learning process. The conclusion is that it is possible to initiate teaching the basic notions of semiconductor physics in secondary education, although it is necessary to continue going deeper into the topic with new research. As a proposal for improvement in future actions, we formulate new objectives oriented at overcoming the students’ commonest obstacles against learning with respect to the topic.

Naturaleza de la ciencia en notícias científicas de la prensa: análisis del contenido y potencialidades didácticas

Se destaca el potencial didactico de ciertas noticias cientificas de la prensa diaria para introducir la naturaleza de la ciencia (NDC) en la educacion cientifica. A fin de ponerlo de manifiesto, se analiza interpretativamente el contenido de un repertorio de cuarenta noticias relacionadas con la Fisica, publicadas en periodicos espanoles de gran difusion. El analisis revela la idoneidad del repertorio, tanto por la sintonia de su contenido con la vision actual de la NDC como por las posibilidades didacticas para su uso en el aula, de acuerdo con las tendencias actuales en la ensenanza de esta. Se sugiere, asimismo, su utilizacion en los programas de formacion del profesorado, a fin de mejorar su comprension sobre la NDC y, consecuentemente, su ensenanza

An Analysis of the Questions Proposed by Elementary Pre-Service Teachers When Designing Experimental Activities as Inquiry.

ABSTRACT A qualitative study of an interpretative nature is presented of the topics that elementary pre-service teachers (EPTs) choose and the types of questions they propose when designing an experimental activity (ExA) as inquiry, after receiving explicit instruction about it. The participants in the study were 154 EPTs organised into small groups to design an ExA. The data were processed using a rubric designed and applied through processes of inter- and intra-rater analysis. The results showed the instruction they had received to be, in general, effective for their formulation of quality questions that can generate ExA-based inquiry. Questions dealing with relations between variables were the commonest. In their free selection of the topic, the EPTs were most likely to ask high-order questions (i.e. ones that foster inquiry) on a wide variety of physics content. There were very few questions concerning biology, and none on chemistry, the environment, health sciences, and so on. After a discussion of the results, specific actions are proposed to improve future EPT training in the formulation of questions with which to initiate school science inquiry.

Prospective Teachers’ Difficulties in Interpreting Elementary Phenomena of Electrostatic Interactions: Indicators of the status of their intuitive ideas

Student teachers were tested before and after a teaching unit on electrostatic interactions in an attempt to consider their intuitive ideas and concept development. A study was made of students’ explanations of basic interactions: those between two charged bodies, and those between a charged body and a neutral body. Two indicators of the cognitive status of the explanations were investigated: “context dependence” and “certainty or confidence index”. This allowed cognitive comparisons to be established between the explanations of different electrostatic interactions, and between the degrees of difficulty they represent for satisfactory conceptual evolution. The greatest difficulties were found with explanations of the phenomena of electrostatic induction. The sample consisted of 52 students in primary school teacher education who participated in a teaching unit designed to overcome these obstacles.

La controversia Pasteur vs. Pouchet sobre la generación espontánea: un recurso para la formación inicial del profesorado en la naturaleza de la ciencia desde un enfoque reflexivo

The Pasteur-Pouchet controversy about spontaneous generation is presented as an interesting story from the History of Science to learn about the Nature of Science (NOS). The aim is to use this controversy for addressing some NOS issues in science education from an explicit and reflective approach. The didactic proposal is focused on the pre-service Secondary Education science teachers training in NOS and its teaching. Attention is given to both epistemic and non-epistemic aspects in the text of the controversy and the NOS questions asked. In addition, finally some methodological recommendations for implementing and assessing the didactic proposal in science classroom are offered. This involves the following: (1) in small groups, the students read the controversy and respond to some questions on NOS; (2) they present their responses to the whole class; and (3) they revise their initial responses in light of the whole-class discussion.

UN ESTUDIO DE CASO SOBRE LA EFICIENCIA DE LOS PROCESOS DE AUTORREGULACION EN EL APRENDIZAJE DE LA FISICA

En este articulo presentamos el proceso de autorregulacion como una practica fundamental en la construccion de significados en Ciencias. Se trata de un proceso orientado a fomentar el aprendizaje autonomo del alumno, mediante estrategias que le permitan conocer, desarrollar y emplear sus propias capacidades, a fin de autogestionar su aprendizaje. Con el proposito de valorar la eficacia de los procesos de autorregulacion en el aprendizaje de la Fisica, presentamos los resultados de un estudio de caso realizado con alumnos de 3° de ESO (15 anos). Se describen las estrategias seguidas para su puesta en practica en el aula y se analiza el modo en que dicha metodologia contribuyo al aprendizaje de los alumnos.

Modelos científicos: significado y papel en la práctica científica- Scientific models: meaning and role in scientific practice

El proposito de este articulo es contribuir a una mejor comprension de los modelos cientificos como uno de los componentes clave de la naturaleza de la ciencia. Para ello se aborda, en primer lugar, el significado epistemologico de los modelos cientificos y su papel en la practica cientifica. A continuacion, se trata la funcion de los modelos cientificos como intermediarios o mediadores entre una teoria y el mundo real, la cual esta relacionada con el caracter parcialmente autonomo de los modelos respecto de ambos. Se incluyen varios ejemplos de modelos cientificos para ilustrar la exposicion sobre el funcionamiento de los modelos cientificos. El articulo concluye con una breve referencia a las concepciones epistemologicas semanticista e instrumentalista sobre los modelos, que discurren paralelas al debate clasico entre el realismo y el pragmatismo acerca de la interpretacion de las teorias cientificas.

Comprensión de futuros profesores de ciencia sobre aspectos epistémicos de la naturaleza de la ciencia en cuatro controversias de historia de la ciencia

Se presenta un analisis global de los resultados de cuatro estudios que evaluan la comprension de futuros profesores de ciencia de secundaria sobre aspectos epistemicos de la naturaleza de la ciencia (NDC). Para ello, se utilizan cuatro controversias de historia de la ciencia (HDC) como contexto de ensenanza/aprendizaje, cuya implementacion en el aula se lleva a cabo mediante un enfoque critico y reflexivo. El analisis realizado se concentra en determinar las referencias en las respuestas de los futuros profesores de ciencia a los distintos indicadores epistemicos de las rubricas de evaluacion, asi como la cantidad de veces que esos indicadores son aludidos en total. Los resultados obtenidos permiten concluir que los futuros profesores de ciencia, en general, mejoran significativamente su comprension sobre la influencia de los aspectos epistemicos de la NDC en las cuatro controversias de HDC empleadas.