The Influence of Direct Experience on Children's Ideas about the Formation of the Natural Scenery

Abstract

The relationship between 8-year-old children's ideas about the formation of the waterbased landscape features (a river, a lake and the sea) and their direct experience of these features is investigated in this study. In order to determine the extent of the influence of the physical environment on understanding, two groups of children living in different geographical environments were chosen and their understanding of the selected features was compared. Eighty primary children were interviewed about the features. No statistical test was used because of the nature of the data. Children's responses were categorised and interpreted so that comparisons could be made. The results tended to support the idea that the direct experience of the natural features has no influence on children's conceptual understanding. The results also showed that the children held a number of alternative conceptions relating to the formation of the water-based landscape features prior to the experience of formal instruction. The implications of these findings for teaching are discussed.