ALTERNATIVE CONCEPTIONS ABOUT BURNING HELD BY ATAYAL INDIGENE STUDENTS IN TAIWAN

The purpose of this study was to investigate the alternative conceptions about burning phenomena among Atayal indigene elementary school students in Taiwan. The main difference from other relevant research is that this study assesses Atayal people’s worldview by means of a questionnaire developed specifically for this purpose. There were three stages in this study: First, three Atayal elders were interviewed to access their traditional knowledge about nature, naturally occurring events, and burning. Second, this knowledge was used to develop an open-ended questionnaire that was administered to 37 students at the third to sixth grade levels (ages 9 to 12); eight respondents were interviewed to document their worldviews. Third, a two-tier diagnostic questionnaire developed from these results was administered to 228 students with 44 respondents interviewed about the burning events assessed by the instrument. Results suggested that students held alternative conceptions about the five burning events: candles burning, factors of burning, fire extinguishment, material changes in burning, and traditional meanings of burning. In contrast with previous studies on burning, this study demonstrated the existence of other alternative conceptions. The origin of these alternative conceptions may be grounded in traditional culture, knowledge, environment, economy, medicine, and personal thinking.     

Students’ conceptions of assessment purposes in a low stakes secondary-school context: A mixed methodology approach

Though assessment in its early history was conceived as a measurement device, alternative approaches to assessment of student achievement have appeared the past few decades. In this context, studies have been conducted to investigate students’ conceptions of assessment approaches and purposes, as there is evidence that these will affect their learning and ultimately their achievement. This study uses a sequential mixed methods design to investigate students’ conceptions about the purposes of assessment and their definitions of assessment. A questionnaire was administered to 599 lower secondary school students in Cyprus, followed by group interviews with 15 students to explain and build upon initial quantitative findings. Results show that students’ perceptions are in alignment with the current shift in assessment to be used primarily for enhancing teaching and learning. Students seem to agree with the legitimate purposes of assessment and realize that it is an ongoing procedure linked with teaching and learning.     

Conceptions of Memorizing and Understanding in Learning,and Self-Efficacy Held by University Biology Majors

This study aims to explore Taiwanese university students’ conceptions of learning biology as memorizing or as understanding, and their self-efficacy. To this end, two questionnaires were utilized to survey 293 Taiwanese university students with biology-related majors. A questionnaire for measuring students’ conceptions of memorizing and understanding was validated through an exploratory factor analysis of participants’ responses. As for the questionnaire regarding the students’ biology learning self-efficacy (BLSE), an exploratory factor analysis revealed a total of four factors including higher-order cognitive skills (BLSE-HC), everyday application (BLSE-EA), science communication (BLSE-SC), and practical works (BLSE-PW). The results of the cluster analysis according to the participants’ conceptions of learning biology indicated that students in the two major clusters either viewed learning biology as understanding or possessed mixed-conceptions of memorizing and understanding. The students in the third cluster mainly focused on memorizing in their learning while the students in the fourth cluster showed less agreement with both conceptions of memorizing and understanding. This study further revealed that the conception of learning as understanding was positively associated with the BLSE of university students with biology-related majors. However, the conception of learning as memorizing may foster students’ BLSE only when such a notion co-exists with the conception of learning with understanding.     

Formal music education not only enhances musical skills, but also conceptions of teaching and learning: a study with woodwind students

This paper studies conceptions of woodwind students regarding learning and teaching music, within the framework of implicit theories. It analyzes whether there are differences related to participants’ instruction level, and whether it is possible to identify profiles according to their conceptions. Sixty-eight students from three different levels at 14 Spanish conservatories took part voluntarily in this study. A multiple-choice questionnaire was used, which comprised 16 dilemmas on different situations typical of learning and teaching music. Three answers were presented for each dilemma, corresponding to the three implicit theories identified in recent years: direct, interpretative, and constructive. For each dilemma, participants were requested to choose the option they most agreed with and the one they least agreed with. Data were analyzed using chi-square tests of independence, multiple correspondence analysis, and ascending hierarchical classification. From the results obtained we can state that as students’ age and level of instruction increase, so does the level of sophistication of their conceptions. Three conceptual profiles were identified: direct, direct-interpretative, and constructive, which are consistent with prior results on conceptions of teaching and learning in other domains. Implications for education are discussed.     

Students’ conceptions of distinct constructivist assumptions

The present studies were conducted to investigate students’ conceptions of distinct constructivist assumptions. To that end, a questionnaire was developed containing statements about four constructivist assumptions: The importance of knowledge construction, cooperative learning, self-regulation, and the use of authentic problems together with self-perceived inability to learn and motivation to learn. The studies demonstrate that the questionnaire was able to unearth students’ conceptions of the distinctiveness of constructivist assumptions. Students were able to identify the six factors underlying the questionnaire, as indicated by the fit of the hypothesized model. The test for measurement invariance showed that factor loadings were equivalent across groups and that the questionnaire’s underlying factor structure gave evidence of cross-validation. Testing alternative models with one and three latent factors resulted in poor model fits, supporting the questionnaire’s latent factor structure. The questionnaire developed appeared an adequate instrument to investigate students’ conceptions of constructivist assumptions of learning and students acknowledge the importance of these assumptions as distinct influences on their learning process.     

Conceptualizing climate change in the context of a climate system: implications for climate and environmental education

Today there is much interest in teaching secondary students about climate change. Much of this effort has focused directly on students’ understanding of climate change. We hypothesize, however, that in order for students to understand climate change they must first understand climate as a system and how changes to this system due to both natural and human influences result in climatic and environmental changes and feedbacks. The purpose of this article is to articulate a climate system framework for teaching about climate change and to stimulate discussion about what secondary students should know and understand about a climate system. We first provide an overview of the research on secondary students’ conceptions of climate and climate change. We then present a climate system framework for teaching about climate and climate change that builds on students’ conceptions and scientific perspectives. We conclude by articulating a draft conceptual progression based on students’ conceptions and our climate system framework as a means to inform curriculum development, instructional design, and future research in climate and environmental education.     

How do Dutch secondary teachers and students conceive the purpose of assessment?

How teachers and students deal with assessment practices is largely influenced by the conceptions they hold about the purpose of assessment. This means that, given the current plea for a paradigm shift from Assessment of Learning to Assessment for Leaning with a balance between the formative and summative purposes of assessment, the study of teachers’ and students’ conceptions of the purpose of assessment is of the utmost relevance. In this study Dutch secondary school teachers’ (n = 351) and students’ (n = 712) conceptions of the purpose of assessment were measured using a translation of the teachers’ conceptions of assessment questionnaire and a translated and shortened version of the students’ conceptions of assessment questionnaire. Maximum Likelihood factor analyses resulted in four teacher and five student conceptions of the purpose of assessment. The results indicate that the teachers in our sample did not distinguish between formative and summative purposes of assessment. They did discern classroom assessment (formative as well as summative) from school accountability. In addition, they conceive assessment as being of bad (in terms of measurement errors) or good quality. In contrast with the teachers, students do make a distinction between the formative and summative purpose of assessment. They also refer to school accountability and the affects that assessment triggers in them as further purposes of assessment.     

Students’ conceptions about a fair assessment of their learning

The objective of this study is to know the conceptions of primary and secondary school students about what constitutes a fair assessment. To achieve this aim, a phenomenographic study was carried out with 32 students. In a broad sense, the results showed that there were two types of conceptions. On one hand, a conception of fair assessment related to equality, transparency, objectivity, and evaluation of class content; that is, an egalitarian conception of fair assessment. On the other hand, a conception associated with ideas such as adaptation, diversification of tests, and qualitative assessment, even taking into account students' effort and attitudes, which define a conception of fair assessment linked to equity. These conceptions are associated with the concepts of legal justice and social justice, respectively and they contrast with the nature of external evaluations currently carried out.     

Scientific concept development in Solomon Island students: a comparative analysis

Abstract

This paper summarises the results of an investigation of Solomon Islands secondary school students’ interpretations of three concepts: vision, animals and burning. Internal comparisons among the three areas and external comparisons with findings reported from other societies are made. While some support is given to the idea that children from different cultures may develop similar conceptions, this support is qualified and is shown to be dependent on the type of phenomenon investigated. The degree to which there is immediate personal experience of phenomena may be important, as may the presence or absence of culturally supported explanations. The commonly reported resistance of children's conceptions to school science teaching is also shown not to be universally true. The article ends with a plea for caution in the cross‐cultural extrapolation of research into children's conceptions.     

An integrated analysis of secondary school students’ conceptions and beliefs about learning

Students’ conceptions and beliefs about learning are constructs that have been proposed in two independent lines of research, phenomenographic and metacognitive, and analysed using qualitative and quantitative methodologies, respectively. The present research examines and integrates in a single study both constructs and methodologies. Data were collected through an open-ended task (Tynjäla, 1997) and an epistemological questionnaire (Schommer, 1990), administered to a sample of 1,200 secondary students. Three major statistically significant findings emerged. First, students’ conceptions of learning and epistemological beliefs changed from simplistic to more complex as they progressed through school. Second, the two constructs were linked to each other. The most advanced category on the ‘dimension of depth’ of learning conceptions corresponded to the highest scores at the complex pole of the belief system. Third, learning conceptions as well as epistemological beliefs were predictors of academic performance. The more capable students were of constructing meaning, the better their academic achievement appeared to be. Theoretical and educational implications are discussed with regard to further research, classroom instruction, and the value of combining both research methodologies in order to deepen our understanding of students’ learning experience.     

Socio‐scientific controversies and students' conceptions about scientists

This article discusses the results of a mainly qualitative study into possible impacts of recent controversial socio‐scientific issues on a group of Portuguese secondary school students regarding their conceptions about scientists. The 86 participants: (1) answered a questionnaire with open‐ended questions; and (2) wrote a science fiction story involving a group of scientists working on a particular situation of her/his choice. Next, semi‐structured interviews were carried out to clarify and discuss the ideas embodied in the stories and mentioned in the questionnaire. All data underwent a process of content analysis. The socio‐scientific controversies recently discussed, and the way science and scientists are depicted in the media, seem to have produced some impact on students' conceptions about scientists. Based on the results obtained, some remarks and educational implications are discussed.     

The moderating effect of instructional conceptions on the effect of powerful learning environments

This study aimed at experimentally investigating the moderating role of instructional conceptions on the effectiveness of powerful learning environments (PLE) designed in line with the four-component instructional design model (4C/ID-model). The study also investigated the influence of learning in a 4C/ID PLE on students’ instructional conceptions. To achieve its goal, a study with a one by one by two pre-test post-test quasi-experimental design was done. Three functionally equivalent classes of students from three similar (secondary technical) schools were randomly exposed to three different treatments. The participants consisted of 129 (47, 41, 41) students. The treatments were one control group with a regular method of teaching, and two experimental groups: a 4C/ID PLE with ICT, and a 4C/ID PLE without ICT. The instructional conceptions questionnaire was administered both in the pre-and the post-test to assess students’ instructional conceptions. Pre- and post-tests contain retention and transfer items. Technical teachers were trained to implement the interventions. In contrast to expectation, findings show no moderating effects of students’ instructional conceptions on the learning environments. Finally, the results indicate that students’ instructional conceptions positively change after implementation of the three interventions. The theoretical, research, and practical implications of the results for the instructional design and technology community as well as educational practice are discussed.     

Undergraduate Students’ Conceptions of Mathematics: An International Study

In this paper, we report on an international study of undergraduate mathematics students’ conceptions of mathematics. Almost 1,200 students in five countries completed a short survey including three open-ended questions asking about their views of mathematics and its role in their future studies and planned professions. Responses were analysed starting from a previously-developed phenomenographic framework (Reid et al., 2003) which required only minor modification. Students’ conceptions of mathematics ranged from the narrowest view as a focus on calculations with numbers, through a notion of mathematics as a focus on models or abstract structures, to the broadest view of mathematics as an approach to life and a way of thinking. Broader conceptions of mathematics were more likely to be found in later-year students (p<0.001) and there were significant differences between universities (p<0.001). The information obtained from the study not only confirms previous research, but also provides a basis for future development of a monitoring questionnaire.     

Pre‐service Teachers' Conceptions about Teaching and Learning: A closer look at Singapore cultural context

A questionnaire was administered to 313 teacher education students of the National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore to examine their conceptions about teaching and learning. Two dimensions were identified, viz. traditional and constructivist conceptions about teaching and learning. While both conceptions were prevailing, there was a greater tendency for students to hold a constructivist conception about teaching and learning. Multivariate data analysis showed that there were significant differences in the two conceptions about teaching and learning across program groups, among different race groups, with respect to qualifications, but no significant differences for age, gender and subject groups. Explanations were sought in the ambit of educational initiatives and cultural premises. Implications were also drawn for future development and planning in teacher education.     

Development and Assessment of A Diagnostic Tool to Identify Organic Chemistry Students’ Alternative Conceptions Related to Acid Strength

The central goal of this study was to create a new diagnostic tool to identify organic chemistry students’ alternative conceptions related to acid strength. Twenty years of research on secondary and college students’ conceptions about acids and bases has shown that these important concepts are difficult for students to apply to qualitative problem solving. Yet, few published studies document how students’ prior knowledge of acids influences their understanding of acid strength in organic chemistry contexts. We developed a nine-item multiple-tier, multiple-choice concept inventory to identify alternative conceptions that organic chemistry students hold about acid strength, to determine the prevalence of these conceptions, and to determine how strongly these conceptions bias student reasoning. We identified two significant alternative conceptions that organic chemistry students hold about acid strength. Students who answered items incorrectly were more confident about their answers than peers who answered items correctly, suggesting that after one semester of organic chemistry, students do not know what they do not know. Implications for the teaching of acid strength are discussed.     

Working with students in higher education – professional conceptions of teacher educators

The objective of this research is to identify the professional conceptions that guide teacher educators in their work with students, to learn about the nature of these conceptions and to distinguish among them. This aim is important because the conceptions formulated by those working in higher education guide their professional practice and affect their everyday conduct. Multidimensional categorical content analysis of the data shows that the conceptions can be characterized according to specific criteria. The research findings reveal three types of conceptions. The first conception is that the role of teacher-educators is to assist students in succeeding in their studies and to expand ties with them. The second conception is that teacher-educators should empower students and help them grow and construct their professional identity as teachers. The third conception is that in guiding their students teacher-educators should mediate between teaching theories and practices.     

Understanding the Greenhouse Effect by Embodiment – Analysing and Using Students' and Scientists' Conceptual Resources

Over the last 20 years, science education studies have reported that there are very different understandings among students of science regarding the key aspects of climate change. We used the cognitive linguistic framework of experientialism to shed new light on this valuable pool of studies to identify the conceptual resources of understanding climate change. In our study, we interviewed 35 secondary school students on their understanding of the greenhouse effect and analysed the conceptions of climate scientists as drawn from textbooks and research reports. We analysed all data by metaphor analysis and qualitative content analysis to gain insight into students' and scientists' resources for understanding. In our analysis, we found that students and scientists refer to the same schemata to understand the greenhouse effect. We categorised their conceptions into three different principles the conceptions are based on: warming by more input, warming by less output, and warming by a new equilibrium. By interrelating students' and scientists' conceptions, we identified the students' learning demand: First, our students were afforded with experiences regarding the interactions of electromagnetic radiation and CO₂. Second, our students reflected about the experience-based schemata they use as source domains for metaphorical understanding of the greenhouse effect. By uncovering the—mostly unconscious—deployed schemata, we gave students access to their source domains. We implemented these teaching guidelines in interventions and evaluated them in teaching experiments to develop evidence-based and theory-guided learning activities on the greenhouse effect.     

First‐year secondary school mathematics students’ conceptions of mathematical proofs and proving

The aim of this study is to investigate students’ conceptions about proof in mathematics and mathematics teaching. A five‐point Likert‐type questionnaire was administered in order to gather data. The sample of the study included 33 first‐year secondary school mathematics students (at the same time student teachers). The data collected were analysed and interpreted using the methods of qualitative and quantitative analysis. The results have revealed that the students think that mathematical proof has an important place in mathematics and mathematics education. The students’ studying methods for exams based on imitative reasoning which can be described as a type of reasoning built on copying proof, for example, by looking at a textbook or course notes proof or through remembering a proof algorithm. Moreover, they addressed to the differences between mathematics taught in high school and university as the main cause of their difficulties in proof and proving.