Making sense of science in the reception class

Abstract

In the context of growing awareness of young children's capabilities, and debates about the nature of their reasoning in science, this study set out to explore the ways in which reception children make sense of classroom experiences in science. A particular challenge of the study was to develop appropriate and productive approaches to investigating young children's developing thinking. The first phase of research, reported in this paper, concentrated on the topic of electricity. A series of case studies was undertaken to examine children's learning in a classroom context. Classroom sessions were video recorded and transcribed to examine the development of children's practical competence in circuit making, and interviews were carried out to elicit children's views about electric circuits. Analysis of the classroom sessions revealed children's growing competence in circuit making through their self-directed efforts. The interviews prompted predictions and explanations that were not offered spontaneously. Responses indicated a range of models of the circuit and forms of explanation for what was happening in the circuit. The relationship between children's practical competence, predictions and explanations was not straightforward. Analysis revealed 1 marked differences in models of the circuit and forms of explanation in children with the same levels of practical competence. This has important implications for the ways in which children's views are assessed.

Squishing Circuits: Circuitry Learning with Electronics and Playdough in Early Childhood

“…Understanding To address RQs 1 and 2, video data captured semi-structured, whole-class conversations at both the start and end of the study to uncover students' emerging verbal understanding about electricity and circuits and to triangulate with the observational evidence (Glauert 2005(Glauert , 2009. Discussions were held with children seated on couches and the floor in a Breading area^as teachers posed a shared set of questions.…”

“…The leads and LED legs must be well embedded in the playdough for the components to work, which help children understand connections. Traditional circuitry materials (Glauert 2005(Glauert , 2009, consisting of insulated wires, battery packs without switches, and hidden unipolar bulb terminals, usually allow for limited ways to build a circuit. In Squishy Circuits, children can explore more ways of connecting the components; for example, the polarity of the components (positive and negative terminals or legs) can lead to working or not-working circuits depending on the alignment of their polarity with the battery.…”

“…However, we know that lingering misperceptions exist well into early adulthood about circuits (Evans 1978;Fredette and Lochhead 1980;Tiberghien and Delacote 1976;Masson et al 2014). We argue that these shortcomings of circuitry education are in large part due to the choice of tools (Kafai and Peppler 2014) as well as the lack of early tangible experiences that allow children to explore circuitry concepts in action, and to develop their conceptual understanding by manipulating materials within a social environment (Glauert 2005(Glauert , 2009.…”

“…Children's abilities at early ages are often underestimated, leaving seemingly more difficult conceptual engagement, including circuitry lessons, for much later in the school years. Here, we strategically build on the few prior examples that do exist of studies with young children learning circuitry (Glauert 2005(Glauert , 2009. In this work, Glauert worked with 4-to 7-yearold children in classroom settings using traditional electrical components like 1.5 V batteries, wires, bulbs, motors, alligator clips, and switches.…”

Διδασκαλία Του Ηλεκτρισμού Στην Προσχολική Εκπαίδευση: Ένα Δίλημμα Υπό Διαπραγμάτευση Με Χρήση Των ΤΠΕ

“…Οι έρευνες που έχουν εστιάσει στη διδασκαλία του ηλεκτρισμού για παιδιά προσχολικής ηλικίας είναι σχετικά περιορισμένες (Fleer, 1994;Solomonidou & Kakana, 2000;Glauert, 2005;Loureiro & Depover, 2005;Μωραΐτη & Βαβουγυιός, 2011). Στην ελληνική γλώσσα, η λέξη «ρεύμα» χρησιμοποιείται όταν αναφερόμαστε μεταξύ άλλων στο ηλεκτρικό ρεύμα, στο ρεύμα του νερού και στο ρεύμα του αέρα.…”