Optimizing Conditions for Learning: Situating Refutations in Epistemic Cognition

Textual and graphical refutations: Effects on conceptual change learning

Contents: Preface. G.M. Sinatra, P.R. Pintrich, The Role of Intentions in Conceptual Change Learning. Part I: Cognition, Metacognition, and Intentional Conceptual Change. M. Ferrari, N. Elik, Influences on Intentional Conceptual Change. N. deLeeuw, M.T.H. Chi, Self-Explanation: Enriching a Situation Model or Repairing a Domain Model? P. Thagard, R. Zhu, Acupuncture, Incommensurability, and Conceptual Change. M.G. Hennessey, Metacognitive Aspects of Students' Reflective Discourse: Implications for Intentional Conceptual Change Teaching and Learning. M.L. Luque, The Role of Domain-Specific Knowledge in Intentional Conceptual Change. Part II: Epistemological and Social/Motivational Factors in Intentional Conceptual Change. T. Andre, M. Windschitl, Interest, Epistemological Belief, and Intentional Conceptual Change. L. Mason, Personal Epistemologies and Intentional Conceptual Change. A.A. diSessa, A. Elby, D. Hammer, J's Epistemological Stance and Strategies. C. Hynd, Conceptual Change in Response to Persuasive Messages. S.A. Southerland, G.M. Sinatra, Learning About Biological Evolution: A Special Case of Intentional Conceptual Change. E. Linnenbrink, P.R. Pintrich, Achievement Goals and Intentional Conceptual Change. Part III: Prospects and Problems for Models of Intentional Conceptual Change. S. Vosniadou, Exploring the Relationships Between Conceptual Change and Intentional Learning. G. Hatano, K. Inagaki, When Is Conceptual Change Intended? A Cognitive-Sociocultural View. P.R. Pintrich, G.M. Sinatra, Future Directions for Theory and Research on Intentional Conceptual Change.

Underpinning science education reform movements in the last 20 years—at all levels and within all disciplines—is an explicit shift in the goals of science teaching from students simply creating a knowledge base of scientific facts to students developing deeper understandings of major concepts within a scientific discipline. For example, what use is a detailed working knowledge of the chemical reactions of the Krebs cycle without a deeper understanding of the relationship between these chemical reactions of cellular respiration and an organism’s need to harvest energy from food? This emphasis on conceptual understanding in science education reform has guided the development of standards and permeates all major science education reform policy docu

Research is needed to explore conceptual change in relation to achievement goal orientations and depth of processing. To address this need, we examined relations between achievement goals, use of deep versus shallow processing strategies, and conceptual change learning using a think-aloud protocol. Seventy-three undergraduate students were assessed on their prior knowledge and misconceptions about Newtonian mechanics, and then reported their achievement goals and participated in think-aloud protocols while reading Newtonian physics texts. A mastery-approach goal orientation positively predicted deep processing strategies, shallow processing strategies, and conceptual change. In contrast, a performance-approach goal orientation did not predict either of the processing strategies, but negatively predicted conceptual change. A performance-avoidance goal orientation negatively predicted deep processing strategies and conceptual change. Moreover, deep and shallow processing strategies positively predicted conceptual change as well as recall. Finally, both deep and shallow processing strategies mediated relations between mastery-approach goals and conceptual change. Results provide some support for Dole and Sinatra's (1998) Cognitive Reconstruction of Knowledge Model of conceptual change but also challenge specific facets with regard to the role of depth of processing in conceptual change.

This study evaluated the effects of cooperative learning on students' verbal interaction patterns and achievement in a conceptual change instructional model in secondary science. Current conceptual change instructional models recognize the importance of student–student verbal interactions, but lack specific strategies to encourage these interactions. Cooperative learning may provide the necessary strategies. Two sections of low‐ability 10th‐grade students were designated the experimental and control groups. Students in both sections received identical content instruction on the particle model of matter using conceptual change teaching strategies. Students worked in teacher‐assigned small groups on in‐class assignments. The experimental section used cooperative learning strategies involving instruction in collaborative skills and group evaluation of assignments. The control section received no collaborative skills training and students were evaluated individually on group work. Gains on achievement were assessed using pre‐ and posttreatment administrations of an investigator‐designed short‐answer essay test. The assessment strategies used in this study represent an attempt to measure conceptual change. Achievement was related to students' ability to correctly use appropriate scientific explanations of events and phenomena and to discard use of naive conceptions. Verbal interaction patterns of students working in groups were recorded on videotape and analyzed using an investigator‐designed verbal interaction scheme. The targeted verbalizations used in the interaction scheme were derived from the social learning theories of Piaget and Vygotsky. It was found that students using cooperative learning strategies showed greater achievement gains as defined above and made greater use of specific verbal patterns believed to be related to increased learning. The results of the study demonstrated that cooperative learning strategies enhance conceptual change instruction. More research is needed to identify the specific variables mediating the effects of cooperative learning strategies on conceptual change learning. The methods employed in this study may provide some of the tools for this research.

The theory of conceptual change is criticized because it focuses only on supposed underlying logical structures and rational process processes, and lacks attention to affective aspects as well as motivational constructs in students’ learning science. This is a vast underestimation of the complexity and diversity of one’s change of conceptions. The notion of conceptual ecology provides a context for understanding individuals’ conceptual change learning, as it is the environment through which all information is interpreted. This research investigated how high school students’ statements, made in answering questions, reflect selected components of their conceptual ecologies. Data for this study was collected from six interviews in which seven students took part. The data also include the science teacher’s profiles of each student, the students’ personal journals, their assignments, and their examinations and answers in class. The analysis presented will here include only those components that were represented in the discourse of the seven high school students who were interviewed. When students were asked questions, there was evidence of the engagement of the various components of conceptual ecologies. These components include: epistemological commitments, metaphysical beliefs, the affective domain and emotional aspects, the nature of knowledge, the nature of learning, the nature of conceptions, and past experience. Evidence from this study suggests that these components might function as constraints to learning. This study contributes to the field by expanding our knowledge of the components of high school students’ conceptual ecologies through its definition of the categories and themes associated with those components. In examining across the range of components, the study illustrates the variety and sources of science conceptions within high school students’ conceptual ecologies.

Inhibition is thought to help suppress interference from misconceptions in science learning. Using a pre-, post-, and delayed posttest design, we examined the influence on learning from science texts of three inhibitory-related functions—prepotent response inhibition, resistance to distractor interference, and resistance to proactive interference. Children in the fourth and fifth grades (N = 110) read two texts, one about energy and one about the food chain. One of the texts was a standard expository text; the other was a refutation text. We found that, regardless of text type, students’ conceptual knowledge increased between pretest and posttest, a result retained at delayed posttest. Prepotent response inhibition uniquely predicted conceptual learning but only from refutation texts at both posttests after controlling for prior knowledge and reading comprehension skills. Inhibiting proactive interference also contributed to long-term conceptual learning but only in refutation text readers. These findings suggest that specific inhibitory functions play a role in learning from science texts depending on text structure.

The purpose of this exploratory study was to investigate the cognitive processes used by individuals who read a refutational text about physics and demonstrated conceptual change learning. Four high school readers whose initial conceptions differed from the scientific conception of Newton's first law thought aloud while reading a refutational text. After reading, they completed a post‐test and participated in an in‐depth interview in which they were asked to provide interpretations of their think‐aloud comments. Qualitative analysis revealed that readers used a variety of cognitive processes during reading and their incorrect conceptions were revised to be more in line with the scientific conception explained in the text. The findings were consistent with the co‐activation hypothesis, which predicts that refutational texts can induce cognitive conflict and facilitate conceptual change learning.

The use of teaching strategies associated with a conceptual change model of science teaching was examined in a study of thirteen 7th‐grade life science teachers. Teachers taught units on photosynthesis, cellular respiration, and matter cycling in ecosystems in their regular classes under conditions varying as to whether or not conceptual change‐oriented instructional materials and training sessions were provided. Greater use of conceptual change teaching strategies was associated with use of the special instructional materials, but not with the training. Students in classes where teachers were provided with the materials tended to perform better on posttests than those where such materials were not provided. The use of the conceptual change strategies by teachers was also associated with higher student performance on tests designed to assess conceptual change learning. The results support claims for the usefulness of conceptual change teaching strategies, but few of the teachers in this study could successfully implement these strategies without the support of appropriately designed curriculum materials.

The present study explored the effects of a different type of teaching on epistemic cognition of 6th grade students through an intervention program in the science class. Epistemic cognition concerns how people acquire, understand, justify, change, and use knowledge (Greene, Sandoval, & Bråten, 2016). The study addressed the question of how the type of approach affected the development of epistemic cognition among young children, by extending previous research that examined the relation between epistemic cognition and intervention programmes in adults. Nine 6th grade classes completed paper-and-pencil instruments to measure their epistemic cognition and cognitive ability. Twelve of the students also participated in an individual semi-structured interview. Students’ epistemic cognition was assessed using a short version of Schommer’s questionnaire for students. The students’ cognitive ability was assessed through Raven’s Progressive Matrices (1998). The present study aspired to find which of the main approaches is more effective for the development of students’ epistemic cognition and if cognitive ability can predict epistemic cognition. Three of the classes were randomly put in the Control Group that had courses in science education, three were randomly put in the Experimental Group Α, following the multidimensional approach, and three were randomly put in the Experimental Group Β, following the developmental approach. The nine 6th grade classes completed paper-and-pencil instruments to measure their epistemic cognition and cognitive ability, to examine possible changes in epistemic cognition and a possible relation between epistemic cognition and cognitive ability. Students’ epistemic cognition was assessed using the short version of Schommer’s et al. questionnaire (2000) for young students. Students’ cognitive ability was assessed through the Raven’s Progressive Matrices (Raven, Raven, & Court, 1998). Then, twelve of these students participated in an individual semi-structured interview, where they were asked about the effectiveness of the intervention program. The results showed the effectiveness of multidimensional teaching, which is also confirmed through the analysis of qualitative data, in contrast to the developmental intervention. The analysis of the interviews showed that all students believed that truth can be found through research. Also, according to the results, the multidimensional teaching approach can predict cognitive ability at the level of epistemic cognition. The present study aims to assist in increasing students’ epistemic cognition which is so important for forming citizens capable of meeting the needs of the 21st century. The benefits that result from the long-term intervention will be communicated to the Ministry of Education and Culture and propose radical changes in the Curriculum in terms practices that could be implemented in the teaching of science that will help in the development of elementary school students΄epistemic cognition

Teachers are often tasked with changing their students’ conceptions about scientific topics. One strategy that has been found effective for conceptual change is the use of refutation text. However, reviewing the literature revealed that many practical questions around the use refutation text have not been adequately addressed. A secondary issue is that teachers often create instructional videos for their students to view outside of class, but little guidance exists on how to design these videos. This study begins to examine the intersection of refutation text, conceptual change, and instructional video design by testing (a) the effects of traditional refutation text and soft refutation text on conceptual change when presented as narration in an instructional video, (b) the effects of traditional refutation text compared to soft refutation text when presented as narration on conceptual change in an instructional video, and (c) the influence of the presence of a human hand in the instructional video on cognitive, affective, and conceptual change scores. The results indicated that traditional refutation text and soft refutation text retain their effectiveness when presented as narration in an instructional video; soft refutation text and traditional refutation text produced nearly identical conceptual change when presented as narration in an instructional video; and the inclusion of a human hand in the instructional video did not influence conceptual change, learning, or the learners’ perceptions of the instructor. The preliminary implications for theory and practice are discussed and suggestions for future research are provided.

The frequently encountered problems of students being unable to utilize schoollearned science in different contexts, and of students forgetting what they have learned in a short time after initial instruction, are two important problems for classroom practitioners. This paper advocates a shift in focus of conceptual change learning research in order to address these problems. It draws upon four overlapping areas: conceptual change learning is the broad subject area that sets the epistemological background; transfer and durability of scientific conceptions are the two problem areas under scrutiny, while metacognition is seen as potential mediator of improvement. The paper offers a brief review of existing literature on the four areas; it proposes confronting the two problems by incorporating metacognitive instruction in the learning environment of primary school science; and it reports on recently completed research.

This article reviews the literature on the relation between secondary school students' conceptual change learning and their epistemological beliefs about science. Researchers have established that students have immature beliefs about the purpose of science, the nature of scientific knowledge, and the notion of scientific facts. Students who hold certain immature beliefs are less likely to acquire an integrated understanding of particular science concepts, and they are also less likely to change their conceptions once they are formed. Several implications of these findings from literature on conceptual change learning are drawn, and instructional strategies are proposed for promoting mature beliefs among secondary school students. Finally, the need for further research on the relation between epistemological beliefs and conceptual change learning is highlighted.

The objective of this descriptive study is to provide a detailed examination of science teachers’ perspectives regarding scientific knowledge, science learning, science concepts, and science teaching. A total of 304 science teachers created metaphors to express their cognitions about the epistemological aspects of their work. A specifically designed metaphor construction task was used to capture the participants’ epistemic cognitions. The participants’ metaphorical reasoning was captured since the metaphors might deliver experience-based conceptions, perceptions, beliefs, or comprehensions about four concepts regarding epistemic cognition. In-depth, descriptive analysis was undertaken through open, axial, and selective coding procedures with higher validity and reliability. The participants’ epistemic cognitions were gathered around five-order themes: function (accepting science knowledge and science concepts and their teaching/learning as vital entities by adopting an instrumentalist or tool-based perspective), personal epistemological stance (seeing science knowledge and science learning as an endless and immortal accumulation of factual knowledge), motivational construct (scientific knowledge attaches importance so it should be taught in the school systems in the science lessons), sociological construct (science knowledge provides power), and pedagogical construct (not the science knowledge but the science concepts should be taught in the schools in the science lesson). This study concluded that the participant science teachers mostly held conventional orientations in externalizing their epistemic cognitions. Theory-based explanations are presented in terms of the participants’ traditional epistemic orientations in the sense of future directions of further research.

Students often have difficulties achieving conceptual change in both individual learning and collaborative learning environments. Although research in the fields of both conceptual change and collaborative learning are well documented, few studies examine the relations between computer support and collaborative conceptual change. This review addresses this issue and considers the potential of CSCL for promoting conceptual change. We first review the major findings in the fields of conceptual change and collaborative learning. We then review literature on CSCL and discuss why CSCL environments may help in overcoming barriers to collaborative conceptual change. Finally, implications are provided for future CSCL design.