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Finding out what students are thinking concerning light and sight
Citation
Toh, K. A., & Boo, H. K. (1999). Finding out what students are thinking concerning light and sight. In M. Waas (Ed.), Enhancing learning: Challenge of integrating thinking and information technology into the curriculum: Proceedings of the 12th Annual Conference of the Educational Research Association ( pp. 772-777). Singapore: Educational Research Association.
Author
Toh, Kok Aun
•
Boo, Hong Kwen
•
Woon, Ta Li
Abstract
This paper reports on the results of a study on how 238 ninth and tenth grade students
from 6 schools interpret everyday phenomenon involving light and sight. The study uses the
Structure of the Observed Learning Outcomes (SOLO) Taxonomy (Collis and Biggs, 1991) to lay
the foundation for a Students' Seeing Framework (Jones, Collis, Watson, Sprod and Fraser,
1995a) based on notions of light, eye and object.
The instrument used for the study probed students' understanding of the topic with
respect to the mechanism by which they see. A one-to-one interview was also carried out with
14 randomly selected students after the administration of the questionnaire, principally to
validate their responses. The results indicate that more than 50% of the students did not
demonstrate complete understanding of the concepts of light and vision, even after formal
instruction on the topic. Grade level was a factor influencing the development of concepts of
light and vision.
Date Issued
1998
Description
This paper was published in the 1999 Proceedings of the ERA Annual Conference held at Plaza Parkroyal Hotel, Singapore from 23-25 November 1998