This study sought further evidence of the concurrent validity of concept mapping as a research and evaluation tool in science education. Specifically, the study examined the extent to which differences exist in the concept maps of advanced college biology majors (N = 25) and beginning nonmajors (N = 25) in the domain of mammals. Furthermore, it explored whether these differences are reflected in the way subjects assign class membership as revealed in a card sorting task. The results indicate that concept maps of biology majors are structurally more complex than those of nonmajors and that differences in the structural complexity and organizational patterns depicted in concept maps are reflected in the underlying dimensions used to assign class membership. Together, these findings suggest that the concept map provides a theoretically powerful and psychometrically sound tool for assessing conceptual change in experimental and classroom settings.

This study examined the concurrent validity of concept maps as vehicles for documenting and exploring conceptual change in biology. Students (N = 91) who enrolled in an elementary science methods course were randomly assigned to one of two treatment groups. Subjects in both groups were administered a multiple‐choice/free‐response inventory which assayed their knowledge of “Life Zones in the Ocean,” and then were asked to construct a concept map on the same topic. Those in the experimental group subsequently received 45 minutes of computer‐assisted instruction on marine life zones, while those in the control (“placebo”) group received an equivalent exposure to an unrelated topic (“Body Defenses”). Upon completing the instructional sequence, subjects were again administered the “Life Zones” inventory and asked to develop a postinstruction concept map on marine life zones. The data analysis employed a split plot factorial design with repeated measures. Differences among treatment groups were documented by analysis of variance and chi‐square procedures. Subjects in the experimental group showed evidence of significant and substantial changes in the complexity and prepositional structure of the knowledge base, as revealed in concept maps. No such changes were found in the control group. Results suggest that concept mapping offers a valid and potentially useful technique for documenting and exploring conceptual change in biology.

No abstract

This study explored and documented the frequencies of conceptual difficulties confronted by college students seeking to understand the basic processes of cellular respiration. Using concept maps, clinical interviews and an open-ended instrument, viewpoints were elicited from 100 (novice) introductory biology students before and after relevant instruction in cellular respiration and from 100 (experienced) students enrolled in advanced biology courses. Chi-square analyses revealed significant differences among groups in the frequencies of scientifically acceptable and alternative conceptions. The findings suggest that novices harbor a wide range of conceptual difficulties that constrain their understanding of cellular respiration. Furthermore, many of these difficulties persist after instruction and new ones arise. Often these conceptual problems remain intact among experienced students despite well-planned, repeated instruction at advanced levels.

This cross-age study explored the structural complexity and propositional validity of knowledge about and attitudes toward sharks, and the relationships among knowledge and attitudes. Responses were elicited from a convenience sample of students (5th, 8th and 11th grade, and college level) and senior citizens (nˆ238). All subjects constructed a concept map on sharks and responded to a Likert-type attitude inventory. Based on the work of Novak and Gowin (Leaning How to Learn, Cambridge University Press, 1984), concept maps were scored for frequencies of non-redundant concepts and scientifically valid relationships, levels of hierarchy, incidence of branching and number of crosslinks. The attitude inventory, emerging from Kellert's (The Value of Life: Biological Diversity and Human Society, Island Press, 1996) work, generated subscale scores on four affective dimensions: scientific, naturalistic, moralistic and utilitarian/negative. Significant differences were found among subject groups on all knowledge structure variables and attitudinal dimensions. Gender differences were documented on three of four attitude subscales. A series of simple, mulitiple and canonical correlations revealed moderately strong relationships between knowledge structure variables and attitudinal dimensions. The pattern of these relationships supports conservation education efforts and instructional practices that encourage meaningful learning, knowledge restructuring and conceptual change (Mintzes et al.

This study examined successive and progressive changes in the structural complexity of knowledge held by introductory, college‐level biology students and how those changes are affected by the students' primary learning mode and gender. To examine the way learners restructure knowledge over the course of a semester, subjects constructed concept maps at 4‐week intervals throughout the term. The maps were then evaluated for structural complexity and change based on the works of other investigators. Results suggest that a substantial amount of knowledge restructuring takes place and that much of it is incremental in nature; “accretion” and “tuning” accounting for 75% of the observed structural changes. Of potential importance, however, is that “radical” changes involving higher order, superordinate concepts are concentrated in the first 4 weeks of the semester. The observed relationships between knowledge restructuring and predominant learning mode and gender of students are potentially significant. The evidence suggests that students who use “active,” “deep” information processing strategies construct more elaborate, well‐differentiated knowledge structures. Furthermore, it appears that gender may be an important mediator of meaningful learning. It is particularly notable that where gender differences were found, they tended to favor females. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Sci Ed 81:193–215, 1997.

Science Education 69(5): 721-733 (1985) Q 1985 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. CCC Oo36-8326/85/05072 1-1 3$04.Oo

Employing a cross‐age design, this study examined students' alternative conceptions in animal classification at the elementary, secondary, and college levels. Based on a previous study that made use of clinical interviews and a classification task, subjects (N = 468) were administered a multiple‐choice/free‐response instrument that probed understanding of the concept animal, the vertebrate/invertebrate distinction, and the principal vertebrate classes. Results suggest that students subscribe to a highly restricted view of animals; applying the label almost exclusively to vertebrates, especially to common mammals. When asked to distinguish between vertebrate and invertebrate animals and to classify several species into vertebrate groups, a wide range of alternative conceptions emerged. Cross‐age comparisons indicate that many of these alternative views remain intact throughout the school years, while others yield more readily to formal instruction and/or nonschool experiences. Considered within the context of a neoconstructivist view of learning, several suggestions are offered for teaching concepts in animal classification.