Assessment of electrochemical concepts: a comparative study involving senior high-school students in Indonesia and Japan     

Sri Rahayu  David F. Treagust  A.L. Chandrasegaran  Masakazu Kita  Suhadi Ibnu 《Research in Science & Technological Education》2013,31(2):169-188

This study investigated Indonesian and Japanese senior high-school students’ understanding of electrochemistry concepts.

Sample

The questionnaire was administered to 244 Indonesian and 189 Japanese public senior high-school students.

Design and methods

An 18-item multiple-choice questionnaire relating to five conceptual categories (reactions occurring during electrolysis, differences between electrolytic and voltaic cells, movement of ions in voltaic cells, poles in voltaic cells, voltaic cell reactions) was administered.

Results

The findings of this study show that difficulties and alternative conceptions previously reported in the literature are held equally by students from a developing and developed country, Indonesian and Japan respectively.

Conclusions

Collectively, the findings suggest that students’ understanding of electrochemistry concepts is relatively weak. Students from both samples shared common difficulties and displayed several alternative conceptions dealing with electrolysis, electricity flow, the voltaic cell and the electrode reactions. Not surprisingly, the students displayed limited consistency in understanding of the concepts in the five categories. This study has implications for teaching and learning, particularly in classroom discussions using models and computer animations in order to reinforce understanding at the sub-microscopic level.  相似文献   

UNDERSTANDING ACID�CBASE CONCEPTS: EVALUATING THE EFFICACY OF A SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT-CENTRED INSTRUCTIONAL PROGRAM IN INDONESIA     

Sri Rahayu  A. L. Chandrasegaran  David F. Treagust  Masakazu Kita  Suhadi Ibnu 《International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education》2011,9(6):1439-1458

This study was a mixed quantitative–qualitative research to evaluate the efficacy of a designed student-centred instructional (DSCI) program for teaching about acids and bases. The teaching innovation was designed based on constructivist, hands-on inquiry and context-based approaches and implemented in seven 45-min lessons with a class of 36 grade 11 students (experimental group) from a public senior high school in Indonesia. Another class of 38 students (comparison group) from the same school was instructed using a traditional teacher-centred approach. Data were obtained using a (1) 12-item achievement test on acids and bases that was administered to both groups as a pretest and a posttest, (2) self-evaluation 13-item questionnaire on students’ perceptions of their competence and confidence in carrying out the inquiry activities that was administered to the experimental group and (3) 3-item open-ended questionnaire on students’ perceptions of the instructional process using the DSCI that was administered to the experimental group. The results of the study showed that the teaching innovation was effective in improving students’ understanding of acid–base concepts with significant difference between the two groups on the posttest mean scores. Moreover, the effectiveness of the innovation was supported by an increase in students’ interest in learning science as indicated by their (1) positive perceptions of their engagement and competence in doing inquiry activities, (2) positive perceptions of the learning environment and (3) positive outcome expectations. The findings have implications for chemistry teaching in any institution with similar achieving students as well as for the professional development of teachers.  相似文献