John M. Rogan

Bridging the educational research‐teaching practice gap: Curriculum development, Part 1: Components of the curriculum and influences on the process of curriculum design

This article summarizes the major components of curriculum design: vision, operationalization of the vision, design, and evaluation. It stresses that the relationship between these components is dynamic, and that the process of curriculum design does not proceed via a linear application of these components. The article then summarizes some of the major influences on curriculum design: policy, local context, societal expectations, research trends, and technology. Then, it provides examples of how these influences affect the design of a curriculum and ends with a comprehensive set of questions that instructors could use to guide their curriculum development process. Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education Vol. 39, No. 1, pp. 68–76, 2011

Exploring the development of conceptual understanding through structured problem-solving in Physics

A study on the effect of a structured problem‐solving strategy on problem‐solving skills and conceptual understanding of physics was undertaken with 189 students in 16 disadvantaged South African schools. This paper focuses on the development of conceptual understanding. New instruments, namely a solutions map and a conceptual index, are introduced to assess conceptual understanding demonstrated in students’ written solutions to examination problems. The process of the development of conceptual understanding is then explored within the framework of Greeno’s model of scientific problem‐solving and reasoning. It was found that students who had been exposed to the structured problem‐solving strategy demonstrated better conceptual understanding of physics and tended to adopt a conceptual approach to problem‐solving.

Bridging the Educational Research-Teaching Practice Gap: Tools for Evaluating the Quality of Assessment Instruments.

Student assessment is central to the educational process and can be used for multiple purposes including, to promote student learning, to grade student performance and to evaluate the educational quality of qualifications. It is, therefore, of utmost importance that assessment instruments are of a high quality. In this article, we present various tools that instructors could use, both to improve instrument design and validity before presentation to students and, to evaluate the reliability and quality of the assessment after students have answered the questions. In keeping with our goals of the Bridging‐the‐Gap series, we also present various ideas from the educational literature regarding the evaluation of assessment quality and end with a list of criteria that instructors could use to guide their evaluation process.

Bridging the educational research‐teaching practice gap: Curriculum development, Part 2: Becoming an agent of change

Many faculty members in science departments are experiencing pressure to improve their courses, particularly with respect to the ways in which students are taught and assessed. The purpose of this article is to provide some insights and practical ideas on how curriculum change can be brought about—how motivated individuals can become agents of change. Change almost always elicits opposing and supporting forces, examples of which are given. Finally, we discuss examples of strategies to deal with these forces and highlight various factors that need to be considered when implementing such strategies, including the concepts of a zone of feasible innovation, the zone of tolerance, and the development of communities of practice. Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education Vol. 39, No. 3, pp. 233–241, 2011

Chemical concepts inventory of grade 12 learners and UP foundation year students

Abstract Incoming chemistry students at tertiary institutions have a variety of academic backgrounds that influence their prospects of success at first-year level. The proficiencies of incoming students are currently changing due to the introduction of outcomes-based education and new syllabi for physical science in secondary schools. In order to ensure a smooth transition from secondary to tertiary education, university lecturers should be well informed about the content knowledge, conceptual understanding and skills development of prospective first-year students. This study evaluates the proficiencies of Grade 12 learners in physical science in terms of a number of clearly identified problem areas: conceptual understanding, logical scientific reasoning, basic mathematical ability, knowledge of subject content and scientific process skills. A test instrument was developed that consisted mainly of conceptual questions rather than recall or algorithmic items. Paired questions (two-tier methodology) and pictorial representations were used extensively. A follow-up question about certainty of response was included for all fixed-response items in order to evaluate the influence of guessing on response distributions. The test instrument was administered at the end of the third term to Grade 12 learners taking Physical science at three schools in privileged environments (1 English and 2 Afrikaans medium) and four township schools, and to all University of Pretoria Foundation Year (UPFY) students. Analysis of results highlighted the generally poor performance of students from township schools and the significant improvement in performance after one year of intensive instruction of UPFY students, who generally came from similar or more impoverished backgrounds. The poor performance for all cohorts on basic concepts, such as the mole concept, stoichiometry and the limiting reagent, as well as on several special topics, indicates that students lack a sound basis for tertiary chemistry. Of real concern is the evidence of over-confidence obtained from the certainty of response analyses. This result indicates that respondents failed to judge the complexity and level of difficulty of questions accurately. Learners/students from all groups displayed weak understanding of events at molecular level. In order to address this situation, lecturers at tertiary level will have to actively promote conceptual understanding of all basic concepts in chemistry and resist the temptation to teach and assess mainly procedural fluency. Analysis of certainty of response data showed that the guess factor was less serious a complication than anticipated.

The effect of a structured problem solving strategy on performance in physics in disadvantaged South African schools

Abstract A quasi-experimental study was undertaken to extend first-world research on physics problem solving into disadvantaged South African classrooms. Sixteen urban high schools, involving 189 learners, participated in the study, investigating the effect of a structured problem solving strategy on performance and conceptual understanding. This article focuses on the enhancement of problem solving performance in classroom tests and the midyear examination. The treatment group outperformed the control group by 8% in the midyear examination. Using ANOVA, this increased average score was statistically significant at the.001 level, indicating enhanced problem solving skills. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that the strategy was not transferred successfully to topics studied prior to implementation of the problem solving strategy. A theory is presented to explain the results in terms of the co-development of conceptual understanding and problem solving skill.

The implementation of the Natural Science Outcome Three : embedding the learning of science in societal and environmental issues

Abstract The revised National Curriculum Statements for the Natural Sciences include an outcome that expects learners to demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between science and technology, society and the environment. This study seeks to determine the extent this outcome is being realized in grades 8–9 in Mpumalanga, and to identify factors which might promote its implementation. Data were collected by means of both case studies and a survey. Results indicate that the intention of this outcome is only being achieved at very low levels, if at all. The meeting of teachers with colleagues, sharing ideas, and generally supporting each other were found to be strongly associated with higher levels of achieving this outcome, as well as a positive school ethos.