Using design-based research to analyse the development of an inquiry-based approach for teaching direct current electricity to pre-service teachers

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT : This study uses a design-based research (DBR) approach to develop pre-servicescience teachers' (PSSTs) conceptual understanding in the domain of direct currentelectricity. A preliminary study was conducted with a group (n=51) of PSSTs in 2010to examine the literature, outline conceptual trajectories for the activities andassessments, and to investigate various pedagogical strategies. This was followedby a transformative conjecture-driven teaching experiment that was conducted withthree cohorts of PSSTs from 2011 to 2013. The three cycles of the teachingexperiment consisted of four phases each that were followed by a retrospectiveanalysis of all the data to place it in a theoretical framework. The conjecture wasadvanced that an inquiry-based science teaching strategy within a socialconstructivist learning environment will promote the development of PSSTsconceptual understanding in the domain. Various pedagogical strategies such asscience investigations, modelling, argumentation and problem-solving were adoptedto help achieve this goal. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected usingstudent assessment records and transcriptions of video data which were analysed asevidence of their conceptual understanding. The findings show that an inquiry-basedscience teaching approach can help to foster a better conceptual understanding ofdirect current electricity with varying degrees of success. The development of thestudents' multimodal translation skills are reasonably developed, but most lack theability to interpret data and draw adequate conclusions. Most of the students areable to construct a physical model as evidence using principles of electricity, but notmany produce appropriate arguments to explain their model. Quantitative andqualitative problem-solving is an area where the students performed poorly, exceptfor the 2013 cohort. The findings support previous studies in the domain that students have a poor understanding of direct current and potential difference,especially as far as parallel combinations are concerned. Another important designprinciple to emerge is that inquiry-based science teaching strategies are not effectiveall the time. In such instances there is a need to complement it with traditionalexpository teaching strategies to develop the student's conceptual understanding ofdirect current electricity. The study concludes with the theories of domain-specificlearning and the means to support that learning.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University