Analysis of the achievements of ninth graders at the 2017 National chemistry competition

Zveza za tehnično kulturo Slovenije vsako leto organizira tekmovanje iz znanja kemije za Preglova priznanja in plakete. Tekmovanje poteka na osnovni in srednji šoli. Na osnovni šoli se tekmovalci 8. in 9. razreda potegujejo za Preglova priznanja, na srednji šoli pa za Preglove plakete. Tekmovanje se uveljavlja kot pomembna in uspešna oblika dela z učenci, saj je vsako tekmovanje izziv za posameznika, ki daje tekmovalcu nekakšno potrditev samega sebe in mu pokaže, kakšne so njegove sposobnosti v primerjavi s sposobnostmi drugih. Študije kažejo, da učenci radi tekmujejo, saj tekmovanja vplivajo na njihovo samozavest in motivacijo za nadaljnje delo. Tekmovanje predstavlja tudi pomembno obliko dela z nadarjenimi učenci. S kvantitativnim raziskovalnim pristopom je bilo analiziranih 780 pisnih preizkusov znanja 51. državnega tekmovanja za Preglovo priznanje iz kemije v letu 2017. Analizirani preizkusi znanja so bili pridobljeni na Zvezi za tehnično kulturo Slovenije. Namen magistrskega dela je na podlagi analize reševanja nalog pridobiti informacije o tem, katere pojme učenci, tekmovalci iz kemije v osnovni šoli dobro razumejo in kje se tudi pri njih pojavljajo težave. Na podlagi podrobne analize odgovorov posamezne naloge iz preizkusov znanja je mogoče podati zaključke o tem, na katere vsebine mentorji tekmovalce ustrezno pripravljajo in katerim je potrebno dati večji poudarek. Namen magistrskega dela je tudi analiza najpogostejših napak, ki se pojavljajo. Iz rezultatov analize je mogoče ugotoviti zahtevnost posameznih nalog. Za posamezno nalogo je bilo ugotovljeno tudi število učencev, ki so pri nalogi podali pravilen odgovor, in število učencev, ki naloge niso reševali. Najpogostejši napačni odgovori so bili: nepoznavanje kemijskih pojmov in dejstev, napačno branje slik in submikroskopskih predstavitev, površno branje navodil, težave v razumevanju matematičnih odnosov. Tekmovalci so najboljše reševali naloge izbirnega tipa, pri katerih se pojavlja največji odstotek tekmovalcev, ki so dosegli vse točke. Največ težav pa je tekmovalcem povzročalo reševanje strukturiranih nalog, ki spadajo v višje kognitivne ravni. Ugotovljeni zaključki so uporabni kot predlogi za izboljšanje poučevanja in kot povratna informacija mentorjem ter sestavljavcem nalog o njihovem delu.Every year, the Association for Technical Culture of Slovenia launches a chemistry competition for Pregl award and plaques. The competition takes place at a primary school and at a high school. Competitors from the eighth and ninth grade of primary schools compete for the Pregl award, and students from high schools compete for the Pregl plaque. The competition is considered as an important and a successful form of working with pupils as each competition represents a challenge for the competitor, making them more confident and being able to compare their skills with the skills of other competitors. According to studies, pupils like to compete as competitions boost their confidence and motivation for future work. What is more, the competition is an important form of working with gifted pupils. With a qualitative research approach, 780 written examinations of the 51th national chemistry competition for Pregl award in 2017 were analysed. They were obtained from the Association for Technical Culture of Slovenia. The aim of the master\u27s thesis is to gather information, based on the analysis of the examinations, what terms the pupils, the primary school competitors, are familiar with and where they have problems. Based on a thorough analysis of the results from individual tasks of the examination, conclusions can be drawn about what contents the competitors are well-prepared for by their mentors and what contents should be given more attention. The aim of the master\u27s thesis is also to analyse the most commonly occurring mistakes. The results of the analysis show the difficulty of the tasks. The number of pupils who solved the task correctly was given, as was the number of pupils who did not solve the task at all. The most common wrong answers occurred due to: insufficient knowledge of chemical concepts and facts, misunderstanding of the pictures and submicroscopic presentations, negligent reading of instructions, problems in understanding mathematical relations. The competitors were the best at solving multiple-choice tasks, where the highest percentage of the competitors obtained all points. The competitors, however, faced the most problems solving structured tasks, which belong to a higher cognitive level. The determined conclusions can be used as suggestions for the improvement of teaching as well as a feedback to mentors and creators of the tasks about their work

Analysis of the achievements of ninth graders at the 2017 National chemistry competition

Every year, the Association for Technical Culture of Slovenia launches a chemistry competition for Pregl award and plaques. The competition takes place at a primary school and at a high school. Competitors from the eighth and ninth grade of primary schools compete for the Pregl award, and students from high schools compete for the Pregl plaque. The competition is considered as an important and a successful form of working with pupils as each competition represents a challenge for the competitor, making them more confident and being able to compare their skills with the skills of other competitors. According to studies, pupils like to compete as competitions boost their confidence and motivation for future work. What is more, the competition is an important form of working with gifted pupils. With a qualitative research approach, 780 written examinations of the 51th national chemistry competition for Pregl award in 2017 were analysed. They were obtained from the Association for Technical Culture of Slovenia. The aim of the master's thesis is to gather information, based on the analysis of the examinations, what terms the pupils, the primary school competitors, are familiar with and where they have problems. Based on a thorough analysis of the results from individual tasks of the examination, conclusions can be drawn about what contents the competitors are well-prepared for by their mentors and what contents should be given more attention. The aim of the master's thesis is also to analyse the most commonly occurring mistakes. The results of the analysis show the difficulty of the tasks. The number of pupils who solved the task correctly was given, as was the number of pupils who did not solve the task at all. The most common wrong answers occurred due to: insufficient knowledge of chemical concepts and facts, misunderstanding of the pictures and submicroscopic presentations, negligent reading of instructions, problems in understanding mathematical relations. The competitors were the best at solving multiple-choice tasks, where the highest percentage of the competitors obtained all points. The competitors, however, faced the most problems solving structured tasks, which belong to a higher cognitive level. The determined conclusions can be used as suggestions for the improvement of teaching as well as a feedback to mentors and creators of the tasks about their work

Distribution and abundance of invasive alien plant species along the river Ledava.

Cilj diplomskega dela je bil ugotoviti pogostost in pojavljanje invazivnih tujerodnih rastlinskih vrst vzdolž reke Ledave. Delo je potekalo poleti, leta 2016. Izbrali smo si 20 lokacij ob reki Ledavi. Prva lokacija je bila na mestu, kjer reka priteče iz Avstrije v Slovenijo, zadnja lokacija pa je bila na območju meje z Madžarsko. Na vsaki izmed lokacij smo s pomočjo vprašalnika ocenili stanje vodotoka ter prisotnost in pogostost invazivnih tujerodnih rastlinskih vrst. Popisali smo sedem invazivnih tujerodnih vrst. Invazivnim tujerodnim vrstam smo ocenili prisotnost, pojavnost, fenološko fazo, pogostost, pokrovnost in vitalnost. Opazili smo, da se najpogosteje pojavljata vrsti Solidago gigantea in Impatiens glandulifera. Rezultate smo predstavili grafično.The aim of this diploma thesis was to determine the frequency and occurrence of invasive alien plant species along the Ledava River. Research was carried out in the summer of 2016. Twenty locations along the Ledava River were surveyed. The first location was close to the Austrian border, while the last location was at the border with Hungary. At each location, the condition of the river and the presence and abundance of invasive alien plant species were assessed using a questionnaire. Seven invasive alien species were recorded. The presence, abundance, phenological phase, frequency, cover and vitality of these invasive alien species were assessed. Data analysis revealed that the two most frequent species were Solidago gigantea and Impatiens glandulifera. The results are presented in the graphic form

Use of augmented reality for teaching human anatomy

One of the key areas for realizing the aims of higher digital literacy as the driving force of contemporary society of 21th century is the educational area, which strives for developing new open learning environments and pedagogical strategies, based on the use of information and communication technology in the process of teaching and learning. The purpose of the article is to introduce designed teaching materials for learning human anatomy in primary school – structure and activity of the heart, which include the use of new technology – augmented reality, using mobile application Mirage AR9. Within the research we tested formed teaching materials among seventh and eighth grade students in primary school. We investigated students’ knowledge about the topic before and after performing lesson, to establish the effects of teaching materials application. We also wanted to measure the interest of learning with the teaching materials. Analyse of the results indicate statistically significant better knowledge among students after conquering new subject matter using mobile application. Students also expressed high interest in this sort of learning. Results of the research advertise guidelines for implementation of used technology in educational process

Use of augmented reality for teaching human anatomy

Eno ključnih področij za uresničevanje ciljev višje digitalne pismenosti, kot gonilo razvoja sodobne družbe 21. stoletja, je področje vzgoje in izobraževanja, ki si prizadeva za razvoj odprtih učnih okolij in pedagoških strategij, ki bi v polni meri izkoristile možnost uporabe IKT tako v procesu učenja kot poučevanja. V okviru prispevka želimo predstaviti oblikovana učna gradiva za pouk anatomije človeka v osnovni šoli – zgradba in delovanje srca, ki vključujejo uporabo novih tehnologij – obogatena resničnost s pomočjo aplikacije Mirage AR9. Zasnovana učna gradiva smo testirali na učencih sedmega in osmega razreda. Znanje učencev o izbrani temi smo preverjali pred in po izvedeni učni uri, da bi ugotovili učinke uporabe razvitih učnih gradiv na znanje učencev. Izmeriti smo želeli tudi interes za učenje z izbranimi gradivi. Analize rezultatov so pokazale, da so učenci pri osvajanju nove učne snovi z uporabo aplikacije osvojili statistično pomembno boljše znanje. Učenci so izrazili velik interes za tovrsten način učenja. Rezultati raziskave dajejo smernice za implementacijo uporabljene tehnologije v vzgojno-izobraževalni proces.One of the key areas for realizing the aims of higher digital literacy as the driving force of contemporary society of 21th century is the educational area, which strives for developing new open learning environments and pedagogical strategies, based on the use of information and communication technology in the process of teaching and learning. The purpose of the article is to introduce designed teaching materials for learning human anatomy in primary school – structure and activity of the heart, which include the use of new technology – augmented reality, using mobile application Mirage AR9. Within the research we tested formed teaching materials among seventh and eighth grade students in primary school. We investigated students’ knowledge about the topic before and after performing lesson, to establish the effects of teaching materials application. We also wanted to measure the interest of learning with the teaching materials. Analyse of the results indicate statistically significant better knowledge among students after conquering new subject matter using mobile application. Students also expressed high interest in this sort of learning. Results of the research advertise guidelines for implementation of used technology in educational process