scholarly journals Inquiring chemistry teacher: The teaching and learning of chemistry concepts and phenomena (part V): Historical approach to chemistry teaching 2

Author(s):  
Simo Tolvanen ◽  
Maija Aksela ◽  
Maija Ahola ◽  
Outi Haatainen ◽  
Jarkko Huusko ◽  
...  

In spring 2013, students attending the course The Central Areas of Chemistry Education II studied the history of key chemistry concepts as well as the research on the use of historical approach to chemistry teaching. Based on the research literature, they produced materials for chemistry teaching in secondary and upper secondary school. In addition to teaching the concepts and phenomena of chemistry, the historical approach was used to deal with nature of chemistry as a science. In the articles, the students present the theoretical background for historical approach and history related to the produced material. The teaching materials (in Finnish) can be found online from the site of KEMMA Centre for Chemistry Education: http://www.luma.fi/kemma.

Author(s):  
Maija Aksela ◽  
Simo Tolvanen ◽  
Jan Jansson ◽  
Veli-Matti Vesterinen

Historical approach is one way of supporting the learning of concepts and phenomena of chemistry, and nature of chemistry. In this article, project works dealing with the topics to chemistry (organic reactions and synthesis, acid and alkali oxides, mass and mole, Le Châtelier’s principle, atom models, electrochemistry, gas laws, and periodic table of elements) by the students of Central Topics of Chemistry Teaching II course are being presented. First, based on research literature, a summary on how history is used to teach each topic is presented in English or in Finnish, with the results of a case study regarding each topic. In most of the presented studies, it was noted that using historical approach increased the interest towards the subject. All designed materials and lesson plans can be found online: www.luma.fi/materiaalit. They can easily be implemented in chemistry teaching on different levels of education.


Author(s):  
Aija Ahtineva

As an integral part of scientific way of thinking, practical laboratory tasks are a pivotal part of chemistry education. element of chemistry education. The first section begins with a discussion of how to assess laboratory work according to the current frame curricula for comprehensive and upper secondary schools. The second section discusses laboratory work as a learning method. Several studies have shown, that laboratory work is used mostly to liven up the lessons and to arouse interest rather that to teach something in a goal oriented way. The systematic study on what students learn from laboratory tasks has begun as recently as the 2000s. This paper focuses on the results of two separate studies. In interconnected papers, Abrahams and Millar (2008) as well as Abrahams and Reiss (2012) analyze learning in laboratory tasks using a 2 x 2 effectiveness matrix for practical work. Lewthwaite (2014) discusses the teachers’ choice of laboratory tasks. Both studies highlight the influence of evaluation practices on learning. At the end section, the paper presents some tasks and evaluation models suited for comprehensive and upper secondary school chemistry education. These tasks are based on the levels of learning and taxonomy of leaning presented by Doran and colleagues (2002).


2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 45-51
Author(s):  
Karel Kolář ◽  
Rafael Doležal ◽  
Natálie Karásková ◽  
Nadezhda V. Maltsevskaya ◽  
Šárka Křížková

Abstract Molecular models derived from results of quantum-chemical calculations present an important category of didactic instruments in chemistry education in upper secondary school and, particularly, at university. These models can be used especially as tools for supporting the students’ understanding by visual learning, which can adequately address complexity of many chemical topics, incorporate appropriate didactic principles, as well as utilize the benefits brought up by the actual information technology. The proposed molecular models are non-trivial examples of didactic application of computational chemistry techniques in illustration of electron interactions in amidic group, namely the interaction of the free electron pair on the nitrogen atom with the carbonyl group and also the interaction of atoms in the amide group with other surrounding atoms in the molecule. By these molecular models it is possible to explain acid-base properties of amides applying knowledge of electron density distribution in the molecules and the resulting electrostatic potential. Presentation of the structure and properties of the amides within education is important also for the reason that amidic functions are involved in many important natural substances (e.g. proteins, peptides, nucleic acids or alkaloids), synthetic macromolecular substances (e.g. Silon) or pharmaceutical preparations (e.g. paracetamol). Molecular models then serve to support better understanding of the structure of these substances and, in relation to it, their properties.


2007 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 175-188
Author(s):  
Catherine Fagan

There is a move away from teaching Economics as a separate subject in Scotland. It is now mainly taught within Business Management courses in upper secondary school and is embedded within several subject areas in both primary and early secondary curricula, a move that is in step with broader curricular aims to break down artificial barriers among subjects. This writing discusses the need for clearly situated teaching and learning of economics, provided by teachers who have sufficient background knowledge to devise effective contexts for learning, whether or not it is taught as a discrete subject. The results of a survey of student teachers' levels of economic literacy are analysed and recommendations made for the preparation of teachers to deal effectively with embedded approaches to teaching about economics.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 243 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emilia Florio

This paper proposes an experimental path aimed at guiding upper secondary school students to overcome that discontinuity, often perceived by them, between learning geometry and learning algebra. This path contributes to making students aware of how the algebraic language, formalized in the most powerful form by Descartes, grafts itself onto the geometric language. This is realized by introducing a problem included in a text written by Abū Kāmil before the year 870. This awareness acquired by the students, when accompanied by some semiotic considerations, allows the translation of the problem from “spoken” algebra to “symbolic” algebra, and it represents the background for a possible use of the same problem within the framework of analytic geometry. This proposition manifests a didactic and popular efficacy that supports and favors the recognition of the object it is talking about in different contexts, helping to create a unitary vision of mathematics.


1987 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-52 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Bunting

In this article the author opens up some of the issues involved in teaching composition to individual pupils of the upper Secondary School age range. To do this he studies the work of two boys over two terms in detail, including many of their sketches, and pays particular attention to the role of the boys' teacher. This study leads to some general considerations: syllabus design, the relationships between composing, performing and listening, and methods of assessment.


2015 ◽  
Vol 68 (1) ◽  
pp. 6-21
Author(s):  
Kateřina Chroustová ◽  
Martin Bílek ◽  
Andrej Šorgo

Currently, the implementation of information and communication technologies (ICT) has been strongly recommended to science teachers. For identification the factors of successful ICT implementation the Unified Theory of Use and Acceptance of Technology (UTAUT) is applied, which works as the theoretical background of planned monitoring of Czech chemistry teachers´ attitudes to this problem. This theoretical review introduces the process of creating the modified UTAUT model serving as the basis for a research tool to be exploited for the future survey. Within this process three sources were exploited: (1) theories dealing with factors which influence user behaviour in relation to the use of modern technologies, (2) the analysis of research results focused on the acceptance and use of ICT in chemistry instruction and (3) results of researches conducted by the authors in the field of the effectiveness of the educational software used in chemistry teaching and learning. The conducted analysis of these three sources resulted in defining the presented survey and designing the appropriate theoretical model and research tool. Key words: chemistry education, educational software, The Unified Theory of Use and Acceptance of Technology (UTAUT), teachers´ attitudes.


1970 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-53 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karolina Broman ◽  
Margareta Ekborg ◽  
Dan Johnels

Explanations for a decline in the number of students studying chemistry at advanced level all over the world have been sought for quite some time. Many students do not find chemistry relevant and meaningful and there have been difficulties in developing school chemistry courses that engage students sufficiently and tempt them to further studies in the field. In this study, Swedish upper secondary school students (Ns=372) and their teachers (Nt=18) answered a questionnaire on their experiences of the content and the working methods of their chemistry course. They were also given the opportunity to express ideas on how to make chemistry courses more interesting and meaningful. The results point out some subject areas as both easy and interesting, e.g. atomic structure; while other areas are hard to understand but still interesting, e.g. biochemistry. The students find chemistry lessons teachercentred, something they appreciate. When teachers and students gave suggestions on how to improve the relevance of chemistry education at upper secondary level, more laboratory work and connections to everyday life were the most common proposals. But on the whole, these students seem quite satisfied with their chemistry courses.


Author(s):  
Veli- Matti Vesterinen ◽  
Maija Aksela ◽  
Toni Rantaniitty

This study investigated the Finnish upper secondary school students’ opinions on the rationale of chemistry education and their reasons for choosing or not choosing advanced courses in chemistry. In first phase of the research 49 pre-service chemistry teacher students answered open questions about their opinions about the rationale of chemistry education as well as reasons for choosing advanced courses in chemistry in upper secondary school. The same students then interviewed 44 upper secondary students about their opinions on the topic. The survey used for the second phase of the study was based on the content analysis of the answers of chemistry teacher students and the transcriptions of the interviews of upper secondary school students. Four categories of rationales were found in the first phase of the study: (i) everyday life and health, (ii) environmental issues, (iii) general knowledge, and (iv) further studies and working life. Based on the data from the survey (N = 137), further studies and working life related reasons for teaching chemistry were considered most important. The reasons for choosing advanced courses in chemistry were divided in four categories: (i) interest, (ii) self-efficacy, (iii) utility value for university admission, further studies and working life, (iv) influence of parents, peers and teacher. Results indicate that interest in chemistry and utility value for university admission and further studies were the most important reasons for choosing advanced courses in chemistry. Boys and students with good grades in chemistry emphasized self-efficacy significantly more than the others. Girls emphasized utility value for university admission and further studies more than the boys. Influence of parents, peers and teacher was in average considered the least important category of reasons. The main reasons for not choosing advanced courses in chemistry were being more interested in other subjects and not needing chemistry for university admissions. To improve the number of people choosing advanced courses in chemistry, there is a need to improve interest in chemistry – especially as part of general knowledge of every citizen.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tuomas Nurmi ◽  
Juha Siitonen

We discuss the pedagogical challenges associated with the current way of introducing extraction in upper secondary school chemistry education. These challenges were identified based on a survey of upper secondary school textbooks and verified through a questionnaire study. To address the identified challenges, we introduce a simple and effective extraction experiment which focuses on building a deeper conceptual understanding of extraction processes. The operationally simple extraction experiment and the accompanying questionnaire revealed that while students have several chemical misconceptions arising from the use of superficial everyday examples, they have all the necessary knowledge for developing a deeper understanding of chemistry. Providing a suitable experimental platform for developing and re-evaluating their knowledge allows the students to reasonably independently re-conceptualize their thinking toward a more coherent view of the surrounding world and the related scientific models. Furthermore, the work analyses the challenges that can be encountered when using everyday examples in teaching, and demonstrates that student-discovered examples of chemical systems can be a powerful method for generating meaningful and relevant ways to introduce scientific phenomena in STEM education.


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