This study investigates the methods and the questions or the tasks used for researching students’ ideas in the domain of elementary cosmology mostly in primary education. Astronomy seems to be fertile and attractive. This is mostly because, in many ways, the scientific perspective of the Earth and relative concepts is contrary to intuition or common-sense and contrary to appearance.
For instance, the Sun seems to move on the horizon during daylight hours, but actually it is the Earth that spins on its axes giving that impression. Young students’ developing understanding of the Earth and relative phenomena provides a fascinating natural experiment in the sources of young children's developing scientific knowledge. Most studies in this area involve children’s understanding of the shape of the Earth, the force of gravity and simple astronomical phenomena such as the day/night cycle.
In the last forty years, students’ understanding and ideas of scientific phenomena have been of considerable interest to researches in the field of science education. In Mouly’s (1978) words, the aim of a research is to promote progress and enable people to resolve their conflicts. In a similar vein, the purpose of the researches in science education is to ensure maturity and progression of education where lacks exist (Cohen and others, 2000). Nevertheless, in some cases the findings of such studies are not consistent and as a result there is disagreement about whether a lack exists or not. Several researchers have claimed that this inconsistency is related with the research approaches using different methods and reaching different conclusions.
Generally speaking, the word method concerns those techniques of eliciting answers to predetermined questions, measuring or recording information, describing a phenomenon and carrying out experiments (Cohen and others, 2000). In this study, the term will be referred to the range of approaches used in educational research to collect data and not for data analysis. This information has been used for interpretation, inference and explanation of children’s ideas. The methods for analysing the data will not be examined here, albeit there is a significant interrelationship between the data collected and the tools or approaches used for their interpretation. Therefore, even this not being the purpose of this study, some weaknesses of the methods used will be mentioned.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Questioning types: weaknesses and strengths
2.1 Open-ended questioning
2.2 Close choice questions
3. A review of the methods used in several researches
3.1 Forced-choice methods
3.2 Generative methods
4. Conclusions
Research Objectives and Core Themes
This study aims to investigate the various methodological approaches, questioning types, and specific tasks utilized in educational research to assess young children's developing understanding of fundamental astronomical concepts, such as the shape of the Earth and the day/night cycle.
- Comparison of qualitative (open-ended) and quantitative (forced-choice) research methods.
- Analysis of how specific questioning techniques influence children's responses.
- Critique of drawing tasks and model-based assessments in developmental research.
- Evaluation of the impact of research methodology on study findings and result consistency.
- Assessment of the role of artifacts (e.g., globes) in shaping children's reasoning.
Excerpt from the Book
Open-ended questioning.
This approach simply refers to asking a question to a participant of a survey in which the latter answers with no restriction. If the question is included in a questionnaire, it is put and then a space is left for an answer without constraints. The collected data in this case are in a verbal (oral or written) and pictorial form. In order to identify children’s ideas about basic cosmological notions, both kinds of data were obtained in open ended questions. As an approach, this type of questioning has distinctive features of qualitative methods (Cohen and others, 2000).
This method can lead to obtain more in depth information that could not be easily revealed by using quantitative methods. As Strauss and Corbin (1990) have argued, it can be used for a better understanding of a phenomenon and for gaining new insights about already known things. Many investigators in science education explained that they used such an approach so as to gain an in-depth comprehension of their participants’ views in as a natural setting as possible. Cronbach (1975) stated that quantitative methods do not have this ability of taking a full account of the interaction that takes place in social contexts. Having the features of qualitative methodology, an open-ended question is very attractive technique for small study samples offering information that might have been concealed in a questionnaire differently designed. Moreover, such questions provide the quality of the response of being honest, authentic and rich (Cohen and others, 2000). That is to say that respondents have the freedom to express their answer in the way they want. They do not have to try to understand what researchers mean with the question and then respond accordingly. In other type of questioning, like forced-choice questions examined below, a participant should choose a response even if his/her own perspective is not enlisted. In this sense, the respondent should understand the question and interpret it according to the options provided whereas in open questions the answer is free of such constraints. Of course, this could be an advantage of open-ended questioning but a disadvantage as well.
Summary of Chapters
Introduction: Outlines the purpose of the study, which is to analyze research methodologies used to investigate children's understanding of basic astronomical concepts like the Earth's shape and the day/night cycle.
Questioning types: weaknesses and strengths: Discusses the debate between qualitative and quantitative research methods, focusing on the specific advantages and limitations of open-ended versus closed-choice questions.
A review of the methods used in several researches: Reviews empirical literature using forced-choice and generative methods, highlighting issues such as bias, memory demands, and the influence of instructional phrasing on student performance.
Conclusions: Summarizes the findings by suggesting that methodology significantly impacts results, advocating for the use of pilot studies and the integration of different research approaches for more consistent findings.
Keywords
Science education, Astronomy, Elementary cosmology, Qualitative methods, Quantitative methods, Open-ended questions, Forced-choice methods, Generative questions, Research methodology, Children's ideas, Conceptual change, Drawing tasks, Data collection, Educational research, Scientific misconceptions.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this research?
The work focuses on the methodologies used to research children's understanding of elementary astronomy, specifically examining the efficacy of various questioning techniques.
What are the primary themes discussed?
The central themes include the comparison of qualitative and quantitative inquiry, the impact of questioning types on data reliability, and the influence of research design on findings regarding children's scientific conceptions.
What is the ultimate research goal?
The goal is to determine which methodologies most accurately elicit children's true scientific understanding and to suggest ways to minimize methodological biases that lead to inconsistent results.
Which scientific methods are analyzed?
The paper analyzes open-ended questioning (qualitative), forced-choice methods (quantitative), drawing tasks, and the use of models in structured interview settings.
What topics are covered in the main body?
The main body examines the strengths and weaknesses of open-ended vs. close-choice questions, the use of drawings and 3D models in data collection, and the ethical/pragmatic difficulties of interviewing young children.
Which keywords characterize this work?
The work is characterized by terms such as science education, conceptual change, methodological comparison, children's ideas, and elementary cosmology.
Why are drawing tasks considered problematic by some researchers?
Some researchers argue that drawing tasks underestimate children's knowledge because young children often lack the technical artistic skill to represent their actual beliefs, leading to potential misinterpretation by researchers.
What role do artifacts like globes play in the research?
Artifacts like globes are discussed as "prosthetic devices for thinking," which can help facilitate a child's understanding of the Earth as a sphere by providing a concrete model to relate to.
How does repeated questioning affect study participants?
Repeated questioning can lead children to assume their initial answers were incorrect, causing them to change their responses to satisfy the interviewer, which creates contradictions and data inaccuracies.
What is the significance of the "pilot phase" recommended in the conclusion?
The pilot phase is deemed essential to ensure that questions and tasks are phrased clearly and are comprehensible to the target age group, thereby reducing ambiguity and increasing the validity of the final research data.
- Arbeit zitieren
- Nikolaos Fotou (Autor:in), 2011, Methodological issues in exploring students’ ideas about elementary astronomy, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/316701
