This study aimed at designing a framework to help students develop a conceptual understanding of redox reactions, which draws on constructivist learning theory. This framework was in the form of participatory teaching and learning approach comprising Insight, Interaction, Task, and Forum. The framework was designed and developed based on the literature and used in a teaching trial. At the prototype phase of the design-based approach, a mixed methods design was employed in data collection. Fifteen students from a second-year senior high school class responded to the achievement test and interacted with the researchers. A stratified sampling procedure was used to select the students. In lessons on redox reactions, the framework helped the teacher to identify students" alternative conceptions and confronted them through cognitive engagements leading to conceptual understanding in redox reactions. Percentages, related samples t-test, and themes were used to analyse data. The results showed that there was an improvement in students" conceptual understanding of redox reactions. It is, therefore, recommended that chemistry educators and researchers should use the framework in large scale research to assure the scientific community the efficacy of it in developing conceptual change in students. Contribution/Originality:The study contributes to the existing literature by the design and development of an alternative framework for participatory instruction, which is all encompassing in approach. Unlike other instructions, the framework; Insight, Interaction, Task, and Forum, takes advantage of alternative conceptions and ends with students" ability to evaluate colleague"s presentations. INTRODUCTIONConcepts in electrochemistry (such as oxidation-reduction reactions) are considered to be challenging to high school students with associate alternative conceptions (Osterlund and Ekborg, 2009;Adu-Gyamfi et al., 2015;Bong and Lee, 2016;Adu-Gyamfi and Ampiah, 2019a;2019b). Students labelled the cathode of an electrolytic cell as the positive terminal and the anode, as the negative terminal, which is considered as an alternative conception. This was an alternative conception because students have explained oxidation occurs at the anode and the reduction, at the cathode, something they picked from text books with no conceptual understanding (Bong and Lee, 2016).Regarding balancing redox reactions, students" alternative conceptions are associated with the introduction of H2O, OH -, and H + . For instance, students have explained balancing of redox reactions in acidic medium as H + ions being introduced just because the reaction occurs in the acidic medium (Adu-Gyamfi et al., 2015). Students have

This study investigated the factors that contribute to the non-science students’ lack of interest in school science through the use of a 27-item questionnaire. This assisted in comparing the male and female non-science students’ lack of interest in school science. There were 259 male and female students from three senior high schools in three District Assemblies of the Ashanti Region of Ghana who participated in the study. Quantitative data were collected from the 259 students through a cross-sectional survey. The research questions were answered with mean, standard deviation, percentage, boxplot, and independent-samples t-test. The results of the study have shown that the factors that contribute to students’ lack of interest in school science include as higher demands of students’ time in learning science, less practical nature of science teaching and learning, failure of science students with larger aggregate from high school to gain admission into tertiary institutions, too broad nature of science content, lack of sponsorship for science students, school science as difficult subject compared to others, and teaching of science is a transmission of knowledge from science teachers or textbooks to students. The results of the study have further shown that there was a statistical significant difference between the mean scores of male and female non-science students’ lack of interest in school science. Science teachers are therefore encouraged to adopt strategies that could encourage students to develop and show interest in science related subjects and courses. Key words: factors; lack of interest; male and female; non-science students; school science.

The study explored chemistry students’ alternative conceptions associated with application of the processes of oxidation and reduction in real life context. As part of a design-based research approach, a case-study design was followed. Purposive and convenient sampling procedures were employed to select 213 senior high school students to respond to a diagnostic test. Data obtained were analysed using item difficult index, percentages, and themes. The results showed that alternative conceptions existed as preconceived notions, conceptual misunderstanding, and factual misconceptions. It is recommended that chemistry educators should select most appropriate instructional strategies to unearth and address alternative conceptions students may bring to the classroom.

The chemistry chief examiner of the West African Examination Council has complaint a lot about the weak performance of students on organic chemistry, including functional group detection. The study, therefore, investigated whether senior high school teachers who teach chemical concepts to students also demonstrated conceptual difficulties on functional group detection under organic qualitative analysis. The study adopted convergent mixed methods procedures to collect both quantitative and qualitative data from 47 chemistry teachers. The 47 teachers were sampled through multistage sampling procedures to respond to the Organic Qualitative Analysis Diagnostic Test for Teachers. The quantitative data was analyzed using means, standard deviations, and percentages to reflect no scientific understanding, partial scientific understanding, and scientific understanding of functional group detection. The qualitative data was open-coded and constantly compared to established teachers’ alternative conceptions and factual difficulties on functional group detection.

Some research works have showed that Ghanaian teachers, teaching chemistry in the senior high school, have conceptual difficulties in organic chemistry. This research explored the factors contributing to teacher's conceptual difficulties on teaching organic chemistry to high school students. Through explanatory sequential mixed methods design quantitative data were collected using questionnaire and qualitative data, using semi-structured interviews. The questionnaire was responded to by 71 teachers teaching chemistry in 31 schools, and six teachers, purposively selected, interacted with researchers through interviews to triangulate any quantitative findings. From the quantitative data, four factors, tertiary exposure, professional collaboration, professional competence, and pre-tertiary exposure emerged. These factors were then used as themes to guide the analysis and presentation of results from the qualitative data.To inform further research, it is recommended that chemistry educators and researchers should examine the four factors that predict most of the teacher conceptual difficulties on organic chemistry.

Organic qualitative analysis is one of the challenging chemical concepts in students learning of chemistry. The West African Examinations Council chemistry chief examiners for years, have lamented on students' poor performance in organic qualitative analysis at the senior high school level. This study, therefore, investigated chemistry students' conceptual understanding of organic qualitative analysis. Convergent mixed methods procedure was used to collect both quantitative and qualitative data from 263 chemistry students. The 263 students were selected through multistage sampling technique to respond to organic qualitative analysis diagnostic test for students. Quantitative data was analyzed using percentages, means, and standard deviations to determine students' level of conceptual understanding on organic qualitative analysis. The results from the study showed that, students demonstrated no scientific understanding on organic qualitative analysis. The qualitative data was open-coded and constantly compared to establish students' conceptual difficulties on organic qualitative analysis. Students demonstrated conceptual difficulties were in the form of alternative conceptions and factual difficulties. It was, therefore, recommended that chemistry teachers should select and use appropriate conceptual change instruction approaches in their teaching to help students conceptualize organic qualitative analysis contents in organic chemistry.

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<p>Identification and characterisation of the structures of unknown substances are important parts of learning organic chemistry. This paper reports on a study that investigated factors that influence the teaching and learning of organic qualitative analysis in organic chemistry. In all, three teachers and nine students from three different categories of schools participated in the study. Interview guides and an observation checklist were developed and used to obtain qualitative data. The qualitative data gathered from the interview were transcribed by reducing them to patterns and themes and analysed thematically. The study revealed, among others, that teaching and learning resources, practical-based instruction and the nature of the chemistry curriculum were the factors that impede chemistry teachers’ and students’ teaching and learning of organic qualitative analysis in organic chemistry.</p><p> </p><p><strong> Article visualizations:</strong></p><p><img src="/-counters-/edu_01/0945/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /></p>