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The Influences of the National Curriculum on Children's Misconceptions about Astronomy and the Use of these Misconceptions in the Development of Interactive Teaching Materials

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 February 2018

John H. Baxter
John H. Baxter*
Affiliation:
St. Luke's College, Exeter University, Exeter, England

Extract

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It is now well established that children construct their own explanations for the easily observed astronomical events before they receive any formal education in astronomy (see Mali & Howe, 1985; Nussbaum & Novak, 1976; Vosnaidou, 1991. It is also generally accepted that childrens notions, or ‘alternative frameworks’ are tenacious and frequently pass into adulthood (Gunstone et al, 1981). Baxter's (1989) survey revealed a hierarchy of alternative frameworks about astronomy that became less naive as age increases, but also revealed that many pupils leaving school at the age of 16 years did not explain the easily observed astronomical events within a post-Copernican framework.

Type
Section Three
Information
International Astronomical Union Colloquium , Volume 162: New Trends in Astronomy Teaching , 1998 , pp. 139 - 146
Copyright
Copyright © 1996

References

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