I decided to do some search about frequent misconceptions and how LfU may address them:
Misconceptions regarding earth sciences are common and can not only be found in students, but also in textbooks. Stein (2008) presents a 47-item “Science Beliefs Test” that accesses student’s science understanding. When applying it to 305 students, they found that many students held misconceptions (correct response rates ranged from 33% to 94%) such as misconceptions about moon gravity. Stein (2008) argues that students “develop ideas about a variety of science topics before beginning formal science education and that these ideas tend to remain persistent despite efforts to teach scientifically accepted theories and concepts“ (p. 2). Which means: We can teach what we want, misconceptions stay quite fixed.
How can LfU help to address these misconceptions?
LfU motivates students to observe a situation, collect data, communicate the findings, and draw conclusions. This practical work may help to overcome pre-developed misconceptions by inquiry. Communication and group discussion are especially useful to overcome misconceptions (Shapiro, 1988). Also, the teacher can prepare activities or situations where the student understands that his concepts are not appropriate – this dissatisfaction may support faster accommodation of new concepts (Confrey 1990). There is not one approach to support accommodation that suits all students, and thus the teacher has to adopt different strategies for different students (Saeli, 2011). LfU may help here by allowing students to work in open-ended investigation and hands-on labs and by this addressing different needs and skills of the students.
Do you have other ideas on how LfU addresses misconceptions?
References
Confrey, J. (1990). A review of the research on student conceptions in mathematics, science, and programming. Review of research in education, 16, 3-56.
Saeli, M., Perrenet, J., Jochems W.M.G., & Zwaneveld, B. (2011): Teaching Programming in Secondary School: A Pedagogical Content Knowledge Perspective. Informatics in Education, 10(1), 73–88.
Shapiro, B. L. (1988). What children bring to light: Towards understanding what the primary school science learner is trying to do. Developments and dilemmas in science education, 96-120.
Stein, M.; Larrabee, T.G.; Barmann, C. (2008): A Study of Common Beliefs and Misconceptions in Physical Science. Journal of Elementary Science Education, v20 n2 p1-11
Hi Elske
I remember taking earth science in high school and I thought I understood — but it was not until after graduation that I was in Garibaldi Park (near Whistler) that I had an aha moment. This is what cinder cones and flats were. We saw pictures and movies…but nothing can replace the real thing.
I wonder if getting outside the four walls of the classroom would decrease misconceptions.
A good next step might be to find out where these misconceptions are coming from? TV? Internet? Parents? Friends? or just not listening in the classroom?
Christopher
Hi Christopher,
thanks for your feedback! Regarding your question where misconceptions come from:
I found a very good discussion on https://www.tieonline.com/article/307/student-misconceptions-where-do-they-come-from-.
They say that “initial misconceptions are based on observations of the world, which lead to incorrect beliefs”. They present nice examples. And they argue that “the connectedness of the knowledge within this mental model makes it difficult, if not impossible, to clarify the misconception by dealing with only one piece of the puzzle.”
So it is not easy to modify misconception, apparently – adding information by direct instruction is in any case not very helpful in most cases.
Elske