ADDRESSING YOUR STUDENTS’ MISCONCEPTIONS: Breaking Through the Barriers to Student Learning NWO Symposium 2008

Barriers to student learning  Correct science concepts won’t stick  Misconceptions often function well in everyday life  Children often separate concepts into “school concepts” and “everyday concepts”  Misconceptions vs. You

Where do misconceptions come from?  Classroom instruction  Students draw conclusions that were not intended  Everyday experiences  Incorrect explanations  Textbooks

What’s the big deal? STUDENTS TEACHERS

Only you can prevent the continuation of misconceptions! 1. Mastering science content 2. Correcting misconceptions with instruction 3. Being aware of your students’ misconceptions

Mastering science content  Lack of content knowledge = inadvertently providing students with scientifically incorrect information  Teachers (and adults) often have the same misconceptions as students  Heavy objects fall faster than light objects  Gases are inherently lighter than solids and liquids

Correcting misconceptions with instruction  Creating “cognitive conflict”  Students must question their previous conception  Present students with a viable alternative  Applicable to the real world  Hands-on explorations are great, but your guidance is needed!

Being aware of your students’ misconceptions  In order to correct student misconceptions, you must FIRST know what they are  Dive into the research AAAS Benchmarks, Making Sense of Secondary Science  Pre-assessments Your students may have unique ideas

Why Should I Pre-assess?  Ensures that you are giving your students EXACTLY what they need  Align your instruction to their misconceptions  Lessons are slightly modified each year  Provides pre-instruction data  Compare to post-assessment

Pre-assessment Ideas  Hands-on  Sorting activities  Writing things down  Written probes

Big Magnet, Little Magnet Noah and Emily have two magnets. One magnet is big, and the other magnet is little. They want to know how many paperclips the magnets can pick up. To find out, they dump a pile of paperclips on the table and use the magnets, one at a time, to pick up the paperclips. What do you think Noah and Emily will discover about their magnets? Circle your prediction. A.The big magnet will pick up more paperclips. B.The little magnet will pick up more paperclips. C.Both magnets will pick up the same amount of paperclips. Explain your thinking. Describe the “rule” or reasoning you used to make your prediction.

Pre-assessment Ideas  Hands-on  Sorting activities  Writing things down  Written probes  Watching cartoons or viewing comics  Science Concept Comics

Pre-assessment Ideas  Hands-on  Sorting activities  Writing things down  Written probes  Watching cartoons or viewing comics  Science Concept Comics  Animated cartoon

Useful Resources  Uncovering Student Ideas in Science (Volumes 1 to 3) by Page Keeley  75 total formative assessment probes  Making Sense of Secondary Science: Research Into Children’s Ideas by Rosiland Driver  Student misconceptions about numerous topics