Alternative conceptions in force and motion were very difficult to change: of 14 students, 6 showed substantial conceptual change, 1 some change, and 7 no change¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · design r2 · q2
Currency · newest study 1997 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person · overdue for a recheck since 2002: baselines and conditions change
Evidence quality · No study behind this claim is a peer-reviewed article with a DOI: it rests on an ERIC document (a report, conference paper or thesis). It is kept because 2 design pages cite it; treat it as a lead to check, not an established finding.

Subclaims¶

q2 i? After simulation-supported collaborative instruction, only 2 of the 14 students showed reasonably comprehensive understanding, confirming that alternative conceptions in force and motion were very difficult to change. → Tao 1997

Evidence¶

Tao 1997¶

Tao, Ping-Kee; Gunstone, Richard F. (1997). Conceptual Change in Science through Collaborative Learning at the Computer. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the National Association for Research in Science Teaching (70th, Oak Brook, IL, March 21-24, 1997). https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED406151

q2 · i? · design · r2

Conceptual Test administered as pre-, post- and delayed post-test (delayed post-test 5 months later to 10 students continuing physics); change determined from gain in answer scores and changes in open responses. Only Clive and Mike showed reasonably comprehensive understanding after instruction.

"Of the 14 students, 6 showed substantial conceptual change (one of whom achievedno conceptual change at the post-test but showed substantial change at the final interview),one showed some change, and 7 showed no change at the post- or delayed post-test."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Instruction that confronts science misconceptions (conceptual-conflict interventions, refutation text) produces conceptual change more often than standard exposition — the general claim this finding bears on, with the studies behind it

• Conflict-based instruction improves science conceptual learning, though staged contradictions helped only learners who reported being confused, and no study isolates disequilibrium as the mechanism — the general claim this finding bears on, with the studies behind it

• Computer-supported collaborative learning with simulation programs fostered conceptual change for students who were cognitively engaged and prepared to reflect on and reconstruct their conceptions — related
• High joint on-task engagement with high equality and mutuality of engagement did not necessarily mean cognitive engagement or ensure conceptual change — related
• Peer conflicts did not always produce conceptual change; they appeared to work only for students prepared to reflect on and reconstruct their conceptions — related
• Middle school students in inquiry-based computer-based learning environments gain more conceptual understanding of force and energy than peers in regular inquiry-based classrooms — related
• Playing EPIGAME produced a large, statistically significant pre-to-post gain in conceptual understanding of force and motion in 7th graders — related