Mapping for Conceptual Change

by: Kent J. Crippen and Cindy Kern

Students’ understanding of science develops through everyday experiences. As a result, they come to the science classroom with their own notions of how the world works. As teachers, we often must help students overcome their prior naïve notions and move them toward a more scientific understanding. This process, known as conceptual change, is fundamental to student learning. It can be aided with strategies designed to help students rationalize their perceptions in light of accepted scientific understanding. This article outlines one such strategy: a process of recursive concept mapping the authors call “mapping for conceptual change.”

Details

Type Journal ArticlePub Date 9/1/2008Stock # tst08_075_06_32Volume 075Issue 06

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