Biyoloji Öğretmen Adaylarının Genel Biyoloji Kavram Anlayışlarını Ölçmek İçin İki Aşamalı Tanı Testi Geliştirilmesi ve Uygulanması

Abstract

Scientific misconceptions are scientifically incorrect understandings or intuitions that negatively affect the learning and teaching process and are resistant to change. Teachers are one of the most common and important factors that cause students to develop misconceptions. The purpose of this study was to develop and implement a two-tier diagnostic test in order to identify prospective biology teachers' misconceptions and level of understandings of selected general biology concepts. The sample of the study (N = 296, (235 (79.4%) females, 62 (20.6%) males)) was consisted of senior biology education students and graduates of biology programs who were enrolled in pedagogical formation programs in five state universities in Turkey. Survey research model within the scope of the quantitative research is used. The final version of two-tier general biology concept diagnostic test consisted of twenty items, measuring understandings in nineteen selected subjects. The average item difficulty index of content information, which is the first tier of items, is 0.39, and the average item discrimination index is 0.34. The average item difficulty of the rationale, which is the second tier is 0.28 and the average item discrimination is 0.33 The Cronbach alpha reliability coefficient of the whole test is r = 0.68. Conceptual understandings of participants were classified based on their answers to test items as conceptual understanding, misconception, memorized knowledge, and inconsistent knowledge. The findings showed that prospective biology teachers have common misconceptions in many general biology subjects that are in the high school curriculum. At least 80% of the participants had misconceptions in circulatory system, protein synthesis and cell division subjects. The most common misconceptions that are identified in each subject of general biology are discussed in the light of the related literature and suggestions for prospective biology teachers, college biology educators and teacher educators are offered.

Determination of Secondary School Students' Misconceptions About the Concept of Seed with the Four-Tier Misconception Diagnostic Test

“…Svandova (2014) determined, with the two-tier concept diagnostic test he developed for photosynthesis and plant respiration, that 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th grade students had many misconceptions such as plant respiration and photosynthesis are the same processes, photosynthesis occurs during the day and respiration occurs at night. Similarly, Uzunhasanoğlu et al (2020) determined, with the two-tier concept diagnostic test they developed for general biology topics, that prospective biology teachers had the misconception that plants photosynthesize during the day and respire at night. In their study with a two-tier test on the subject of photosynthesis, Atchia et al (2022) found that Secondary school Cambridge A level biology students had the misconception that photosynthesis occurs in the presence of light energy.…”

“…regarding respiration and photosynthesis in plants. As can be seen from all these studies conducted by Svandova (2014), Uzunhasanoğlu et al (2020), Atchia et al (2022), Urey (2018), Lin (2004) and Haslam and Treagust (1987), even though they are at different age groups and grade levels, students have an important misconception that sunlight is absolutely necessary for photosynthesis. The misconception coded M22, which was determined to be held by the 12th grade secondary school students with the four-tier SCDT developed for the concept of seed in this study, that the seed cannot photosynthesize in the light-free environment, is similar to the results of all these studies.…”

“…The aim of this study is to reveal secondary school students' misconceptions about the concept of seed by developing a "four-tier seed concept diagnostic test". As a result of the literature review, it was seen that there were studies on the development of multi-tier concept diagnostic tests on the subjects of plant biology, substance uptake and transport in plants (Akyurt & Akaydın, 2009;Vitharana, 2015;Wang, 2004), photosynthesis and plant respiration (Atchia et al, 2022;Haslam & Treagust, 1987;Lin, 2004;Lim & Poo, 2021;Svandova, 2014;Urey, 2018;Uzunhasanoğlu et al, 2020), reproduction in plants (Amelia, 2023) and growth and development of flowering plants (Lin, 2004). However, there were no multi-tier concept diagnostic tests directly related to the concept of seed.…”