Christina Solomonidou

Conceptual reorganization and the construction of the chemical reaction concept during secondary education

Aspects of 40 pupils’ (aged 12‐18) conceptual reorganization and change, related to the construction of the chemical reaction concept were studied. Data were collected with the Free Categorization Task and the Interview About Instances techniques, both involving a clinical interview with each pupil. The dynamic of conceptual change is described through (a) case studies refering to the pupils’ categorizations of 19 everyday life physical and chemical phenomena, and collective representations of the semantic categories spontaneously activated by the pupils in order to categorize the 19 phenomena and (b) the pupils’ identifications of chemical reactions among the 19 phenomena, and their definitions of the chemical reaction concept. The outcomes show how pupils reorganize their conceptual domain and proceed to the construction of the chemical reaction concept in three distinct stages. A number of misconceptions were revealed, as well as problems with chemistry teaching, concerning the lack of construction of ...

Preschool Children's Conceptions about the Electric Current and the Functioning of Electric Appliances.

SUMMARY In this work we describe a research project with 38 preschool children, aged 5.5 to 6.5, aiming at the detection and study of childrens ideas and conceptions about the functioning of common electric appliances, and about the electric current and its properties. The investigation was realised in preschool premises, with semi-structured personal interviews and with the help of 15–19 cards, each showing an electric appliance. The analysis of the answers showed that children of this age have no difficulty in recognising and naming the electric appliances they are familiar with. As regards to the electric current, they hold a variety of preconceptions. They represent electric current in quite a static way, they think that electricity is included into electric appliances, wires, plugs/wall sockets or the power grids pylons. They confound electric current and water flow, they believe that electricity outdoors (‘external’) is completely different from electricity indoors (‘internal’), and they have not formed any idea for the provenance, flow or movement of electric current. In contrast, they know quite well the hazards provoked by electricity, in the case that one puts his/her fingers into sockets. Those data will be taken into account in order to conceive and realise a proper didactical intervention in preschool education, aiming at helping children construct certain valid preconceptions about electric current, which could subsequently evolute to conceptions valid from a scientific point of view.

The role of constructivist educational software on students' learning regarding mechanical interaction

This paper mainly describes the role of the multimedia software package ‘Interactions between Objects’ on students’ learning of mechanical interaction forces and Newton’s laws. We designed and developed this software within social constructivism on the basis of 226 students’ initial conceptions (categorized in six categories), in order to help students construct appropriate knowledge about the subject. Teaching with the software was conducted in 13 primary, lower secondary and upper secondary school classes. In the software’s evaluation research 226 students (aged 11–16) and 13 teachers of the classes participated. Data analysis showed students’ substantial learning gains with respect to their initial alternative conceptions of the six conceptual categories. Particularly, the students’ incorrect answers to the post-test questionnaire have perceptibly decreased (a mean of 65%). In contrast, their correct answers to the questions reached high percentages, from 60% to 90% depending on the question and the students’ age. Also the teachers’ opinions and comments enhanced software’s evaluation. The contribution of the software’s specific characteristics on students’ learning is discussed along with implications for designing constructivist science learning tools.