Abstract
Abstract Studies have shown that inadequate definitions of scientific concepts could complicate the learning of science and could prevent students from understanding the definitions of scientific concepts. The article provides a framework for defining scientific concepts in primary, secondary, and university education by proposing teachers draw attention to five common features of a definition: object/system, nature/characteristics, cause/effect, mathematical expression/equation, and condition/ reference frame that can help students to consider four dimensions, including, ‘comprehensiveness,’ ‘precision,’ ‘consistency,’ and ‘circularity’ when learning science concepts. This framework can be used by science teachers to guide students to analyze and redefine scientific concepts in the classroom and may be especially beneficial for students in Asian countries where teachers and students often rely on rote memorization as a strategy for learning scientific concepts. We conclude by describing the need for future studies in educational contexts in Asian countries where pedagogical strategies have traditionally emphasized memorization of science concepts.
Highlights
It may seem impossible to establish a comprehensive framework that can guide scientists and science educators to define scientific concepts
We will identify common problems of circularity using the same five categories discussed hitherto
Scientific concepts can first be related to an object/system, and its nature/characteristics or properties should be specified
Summary
It may seem impossible to establish a comprehensive framework that can guide scientists and science educators to define scientific concepts. To develop a framework for defining scientific concepts, we propose to draw boundaries for five common features of definitions: broader and flexible categories that are neither fixed nor clear-cut, but fuzzy-edged. Properties, for example, can be further classified into biological, chemical or physical properties This is an important feature of definitions as it specifies the nature of a scientific concept. Scientists have to define numerous objects or systems and relate them to existing scientific concepts (Benfey, 2006) This is another important feature of science, because in order to conduct a scientific investigation, we may need definitions of living and non-living entities such as animals, plants, chemicals, subatomic particles, and planets. Via free access current definitions of scientific concepts by resolving definitional problems and by analyzing the common features of definitions
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