History of chemistry in chemistry education – chemistry teachers attitudes

Ideja o uključivanju istorije i filozofije nauke u kurikulume prirodnih nauka promoviše se decenijama. Primena istorije i filozofije nauke u nastavi/učenju pririodnih nauka okarakterisana je kao dobar način za poboljšanje naučne pismenosti učenika. Neke od prepreka za takav pristup u nastavnoj praksi su: perspektive nastavnika, njihova uverenja, razumevanje glavnih ideja i ciljeva nastave/učenja, kao i epistemološka shvatanja.1 U istraživanju, u kome je učestvovalo 272 nastavnika hemije osnovnih škola u Srbiji, putem upitnika ispitani su: stavovi nastavnika o sadržajima iz istorije hemije i efektima primene tih sadržaja u nastavi na učeničko razumevanje hemije, načini kako nastavnici prezentuju nauku učenicima, učestalost primenjivanja metoda nastave/učenja i aktivnosti koje podstiču razvoj naučnog rezonovanja kod učenika. Ispitano je i da li su nastavnici tokom inicijalnog obrazovanja učili sadržaje iz istorije i filozofije nauke i da li imaju uzore među naučnicima. Na osnovu dobijenih rezultata može se zaključiti da nastavnici uviđaju potencijal sadržaja iz istorije hemije za bolje razumevanje hemije, ali da takve sadržaje u praksi nedovoljno primenjuju. Rezultati istraživanja ukazuju i na nedostatak kurseva iz istorije i filozofije nauke u toku inicijalnog obrazovanja nastavnika.The idea of involving the history and philosophy of science in the science curricula has been promoting for decades. The involving of the history and philosophy of science in the science classes is characterized as a good way to improve scientific literacy of students. Some of obstacles for this approach in teaching practice are: the perspectives of teachers, their beliefs, understanding of the main ideas and goals of teaching/learning and epistemological understanding.1 In the research with 272 chemistry teachers from primary schools in Serbia, questionnaire was used to examine: the attitudes of teachers about the contents of the history of chemistry and about the effects of application these contents in teaching practice on student’s understanding of chemistry, the ways in which teachers present science to students, the frequency of application teaching/learning methods and activities that encourage the development of scientific reasoning of students. Also, we examined whether the teachers learned the contents of the history of chemistry and philosophy of science during their initial education and their personal preferences about scientists. Based on the results it can be concluded that teachers recognize the potential of the history of chemistry content for better student’s understanding of chemistry. However, they don’t apply these contents in practice enough. The results indicate the lack of courses in the history and philosophy of science during initial education of chemistry teacher

Students' Argumentation Skills Expressed in the Context of the History of Chemistry

The development of students’ abilities to formulate arguments, reason and think critically in scientific context is one of the goals of science education [1]. Episodes from the history of chemistry can serve as that scientific context. The research was conducted with the aim of examining students’ ability to apply the newly acquired knowledge about composition, structure and general properties of organic compounds to formulating arguments for and against the views of the scientists who had contributed to the development of organic chemistry in the 19th century. A total of 43 students aged 14 participated in this research in the school year 2017/18. Firstly, the students individually read the text about the composition, structure and general properties of organic compounds and how these compounds are different from inorganic compounds. After that, they listened to audio-voice recordings in which the views of scientists who are given the credit for the development of organic chemistry were interpreted (Jоns Jacob Berzelius, Friedrich Wоhler, Antoine - Laurent de Lavoisier, Friedrich August Kekulе von Stradonitz and Archibald Scott Couper). After each recording, students were expected to individually estimate whether the presented views of the scientists would be acceptable today or not and to write arguments for and against. The students were given the opportunity to use the text they had previously read as the source of information for formulating arguments. In this approach the students were in a position to apply the acquired knowledge in order to estimate the views of the scientists, and to improve their high-order cognitive skills. A conclusion supported by at least one justification was labelled as an argument in the analysis of students’ answers in this research. The structure and contents of arguments were evaluated jointly on a 0-to-5 scale according to the modified version of the methodology described in the literature [2]. One third of the total number of produced arguments contains a conclusion, justification and additional explanation of the justification. At the same time, this kind of argument is the most frequent. Based on the obtained results it can be concluded that the episodes from the history of chemistry in combination with some other sources of information can serve as a fruitful context for formulating arguments and stimulating high-order cognitive skills. References: [1] D. Katchevich, A. Hofstein, R. Mamlok-Naaman, Argumentation in the Chemistry Laboratory: Inquiry and Confirmatory Experiments, Res. Sci. Educ. 43 (1) (2013) 317-345. [2] A. Zohar, F. Nemet, Fostering Students’ Knowledge and Argumentation Skills through Dilemmas in Human Genetics. J. Res. Sci. Teach. 39 (1) (2002) 35-62

History of Chemistry as a Part of Assessment of Students' Understanding of the Law of Conservation of Mass

The aim of this research was to explore students' ideas about chemical reactions and difficulties in understanding the law of conservation of mass in such reactions by using an approach that started from presentations of scientists' work associated with the law. The developed test items relied on: 1) the historical contents that illustrate the experimental work of three scientists (Lavoisier, Landolt and Lomonosov); 2) the description of school experiments and 3) real life situation. In this way, students would have an opportunity to show understanding of the law of conservation of mass in two contexts, one based on the stories from the history of chemistry and the other contemporary, based on school laboratory experiments and real life situation. Students of different ages were selected for the research: the seventh and the eighth grade of primary school (age 13-14), and the second year of grammar school (age 16). The research involved a total of 301 students. The results indicated that students' difficulties were mostly associated with the predictions and explanations of mass changes in open reaction systems in which a gas was a reactant than with the reactions in which a gas was a product

Sima Lozanic as the writer of textbook: Chemistry for secondary schools

The teaching of chemistry, as an independent subject in secondary schools in Serbia, dates from 1874. Prior to that, chemistry was studied within the framework of physics and mineralogy. The rules on writing secondary-school textbooks in Serbia were passed in 1895. Within one year, Sima Lozanic wrote a textbook and submitted it for publication. Sima Lozanic (1847-1935) was a chemist, scientist, Professor, Chairman of the Academy of Sciences, the first Rector of Belgrade University, Ambassador to London, Minister of the Economy and Minister of Foreign Affairs, a diplomat. In the mid-1880’s, at the time of a reform and modernisation of grammar school, Lozanic worked on compiling a modern chemistry curriculum and introducing teaching through experiments in secondary schools.1 Apart from chemistry, Sima Lozanic also studied pedagogy (1868-1870) at the well-known school of pedagogy in Küsnacht near Zurich. At Zurich University, Lozanic studied chemistry under Johannes Wislicenus, and subsequently spent one year at August Wilhelm von Hofmann’s laboratory for organic chemistry.2 Scientific textbooks are at the crossroad between disciplines such as history of science, history of education and history of books and reading.3 We analysed Sima Lozanic’s textbook Chemistry for Secondary Schools, dating from 1896 to gain insight into what amount of chemistry knowledge was presented to young people in Serbia in the end of the 19th century, and what principles textbook written. We needed to develop the methodology for analysing and evaluating the quality of this textbook within the context of the period when it were created. Sima Lozanic’s textbook is characterised by the high level of systematicness when it comes to the manner of presenting its contents and consistency of approach throughout the book. It may be assumed that the mentioned approach was developed during the course of Sima Lozanic’s studies under Wislicenus and Hofmann

Mita Petrović’s chemistry textbook as a framework for learning chemistry in secondary schools in Serbia in the 19th century

The first secondary-school chemistry textbooks in Serbia dating from the second half of the 19th century. With aim to gain insight into chemistry knowledge that was presented to secondary school students in Serbia in the second half of the 19th century, and didactic organization of the textbooks from that period, we analysed secondary-school chemistry textbook written by Mita Petrović. The first edition of this textbook was printed in 1883. Mita Petrović (1848–1891) worked at the Serbian Teacher training School in Sombor, where he taught mathematics and natural sciences. His textbook Chemistry for Secondary Schools, based on Prokop Prohaszka and Others, was used more than 20 years and shaped the way of thinking in chemistry among the generations of students. In order to achieve the set goal, we needed to develop a methodology for analysing and evaluating the quality of this textbook within the context of the period when it was created. The contents of Mita Petrović’s textbook are organised into two sections: inorganic chemistry and organic chemistry. The material related to inorganic chemistry is interspersed with segments of material in which general chemical principles and laws are reviewed. The organic compounds are systematised in accordance with homologous series. Numerous structural and organizational components are identified in the textbook. Also, the indicators of didactic organisation of a textbook, such as explanations of scientific terms, a functional use of illustrative means of expression and variety of the examples used are present in the analysed textbook

History of chemistry and nature of science: what do these mean to chemistry teachers

The need of every person to understand the nature of science (NOS) in order to make decisions in a society highly influenced by developments in science and technology has been stressed in recent years. [1] The involving history and philosophy of science in the science classes is characterized as a good way for learning NOS and improving scientific literacy of students. Efforts for implementing history and philosophy of science in teaching practice cannot ignore: the perspectives of teachers, their beliefs, understanding of the main ideas and goals of teaching/learning and epistemological understanding. [2] The survey with 272 chemistry teachers from primary schools in Serbia was conducted during the realization of one in-service teacher training programme. The questionnaire used for the purpose of conducting this study contained four main parts: (I) questions related to the personal data of teachers (gender, age, years of service in education, the level of previous education, the presence of the courses of history of chemistry and philosophy of science in their previous education); (II) questions related to the views of the teachers on some features of NOS (for example: creativity in science, tentative nature of science) and about the importance of history and philosophy of science in science education; (III) questions related to the views of the teachers about the importance of history of chemistry in chemistry teaching for student’s better understanding of chemistry; (IV) questions related to the ways in which teachers present science to students and the types and frequency of students’ activities in classroom with potential to improve the level of their understanding of NOS. The questionnaire comprised closed-type questions (multiple choice questions and those with a Likert scale) and opentype questions, requiring the respondents to give appropriate information. The teachers answered to the questions anonymously. The obtained results showed that teachers recognize the potential of the history of chemistry contents to contribute to better student’s understanding of chemistry. The teachers’ answers showed that they are familiar with some features of NOS but they do not carry out a lot of the activities which provide possibilities to students to perceive NOS and learn about it. The results indicate the lack of courses from the history and philosophy of science during initial education of chemistry teachers. The difference in the acquired knowledge from the history of chemistry and philosophy of science during teachers’ initial education do not make significant difference among their teaching practice. Regardless of whether teachers had these courses or not, they rarely use contents associated with the history of chemistry in the classroom. References [1] R. Mamlok-Naaman, R. Ben-Zvi, A. Hofstein, J. Menis and S. Erduran, IJSME, 3 (2005) 485. [2] D. Hottecke and C.C. Silva, Sci & Educ, 20 (2011) 293Book of Abstract

The macroscopic, submicroscopic and symbolic level in explanations of a chemical reaction provided by thirteen-year olds

The aim of this research was to investigate whether pupils aged 13, at the end of their first year of studying chemistry, are capable of perceiving the macroscopic and the submicroscopic level of the previously learned contents on chemical reactions, and whether they relate them to the chemical equations (the symbolic representation). Another aim was to establish how much demonstration experiments contribute to a better linking of the mentioned levels. The research featured 69 pupils of the seventh grade from three primary schools. The pre-test was conducted, following which experiments were demonstrated, and the post-testing was carried out in the end. After the intervention, a total of 12 pupils were interviewed about which aspects of chemical reactions they thought of based on the chemical equations. A statistically significant difference in two out of five requirements of the post-test, compared to the pre-test, indicate that the demonstration experiments may contribute to a better linking of three levels of representing chemical reactions. However, when one compares the pupils' answers in the test and in the interview, it can be observed that the correct answers in the test are not always based on understanding the concepts in connection with the chemical reaction

The chemistry education of the elementary pre-service teachers

During the past fifteen years, students of the University of Belgrade - Faculty of Teacher Education learned chemistry within the course Introduction to Natural Sciences. In the realization of this course, teachers from three faculties of the University of Belgrade (the Faculty of Biology, the Faculty of Physics and the Faculty of Chemistry) were engaged. Elementary teachers educate children ages 6 (or 7) to 10. At the beginning of work we usually faced with the situation that the elementary preservice teachers did not like chemistry and they did not feel confident in their knowledge of chemistry. Because of that during the previous period we continually developed syllabus for chemistry teaching and learning within science education of elementary teachers and changed the activities in the classroom in order to improve their knowledge, skills and attitudes toward chemistry and to prepare them to teach chemistry contents within science effectively. In this presentation the structure of syllabus for elementary pre-service teachers’ education in chemistry, the directions of its development, the activities in the classroom, as well as the formative and summative assessment will be shown. We will also consider the problems and obstacles in the education of elementary teachers in the field of chemistry and sciences that are, despite our efforts, remain unresolved

The programme for professional development of chemistry teachers’ assessment competency

The aim of this paper is to investigate the effects of the programme for professional development of chemistry teachers on their competencies for conducting formative and summative assessment in chemistry teaching. The programme participants were 30 chemistry teachers from primary and secondary schools. Data were collected using a questionnaire at the beginning and at the end of the programme implementation. The programme included four workshops with the same structure: the introduction, group work and the discussion of the results obtained through group work. The workshops focused on: i) the assessment as a support for chemistry learning; ii) the harmonization of teaching and learning activities, formative and summative assessment, feedback from formative assessment and the criteria used to evaluate students in summative assessment; iii) the evaluation of the validity of tasks used for formative and summative assessment according to the curricula aims and the educational standards; iv) designing tasks for monitoring students’ progress towards certain educational standards. Teachers’ responses show the impact of the programme for the development of their competencies for assessment, particularly regarding formative and summative assessment and designing various kinds of assessment in accordance with the achievement standards

What do fourteen-year-olds think of science and scientific-research work?

The aim of this research was to investigate the attitudes of fourteen-year-old students towards science, scientific-research work and the importance of scientific work. The following research questions were raised: (i) What are students’ views on science and scientific-research work? (ii) What are students’ attitudes towards the contribution of scientific work to the development of an individual and the society? (iii) What are students’ preferences towards science? A total of 275 students (146 boys and 129 girls) from six primary schools in Belgrade participated in this research. The research instrument was a questionnaire through which the following data were collected: (i) students’ views on science, experiments and the main activities of scientists in natural and social sciences; (ii) students’ attitudes towards the importance of scientific work for an individual and the society; (iii) if there were some scientists and scientific discoveries that had made an impression on students and if they themselves wanted to pursue a career in science in the future. Based on the answers to the question What is science? it can be concluded that a larger percentage of students perceives science as dynamic (the answers which point out study, research, experimenting, making discoveries) than as static (the answers in which science is defined as a set of knowledge or as a discipline). In students’ opinion, experiment is a part of scientific-research work, it involves working under artificial, strictly controlled conditions (in a laboratory) and it most often involves working with substances. Conducting experiments is one of the major activities of scientists, while other activities mentioned also include the ones which are characteristic of scientific-research work, such as: observation, analyzing, constructing and testing hypotheses, proving and deduction. Students have identified certain similarities and differences in the activities done by scientists in natural and social sciences. In their opinion, regardless of whether a scientist conducts research in the field of natural or social sciences, he is hard-working, persistent and dedicated to his work, he has a thirst for knowledge, conducts research and makes new discoveries. The participants consider science important, both for them personally and for the society in general. According to their answers, science is important because it enables the acquisition of new knowledge and the development of an individual and the society and because it provides answers to many questions. The largest number of participants admire the discovery of electricity, and accordingly Nikola Tesla is the scientist whom the largest number of students admire. The periodic table of elements is the discovery in the field of chemistry which has impressed the students, while Mendeleev is the second most favourite scientist. It can be observed that students do not have any role models among today’s scientists. Both the discoveries which relate to modern technologies and the discoveries which represented a revolution in the development of the society have been mentioned in the students’ answers. Students’ attitudes towards their future career in science are divided. A lack of interest in science or their own poor achievements in science subjects are the most common reasons for not seeing themselves as scientists in the future. A statistically significant correlation between a student’s chemistry grade and his/her desire to pursue a career in science and a correlation between the participant’s gender and the affinity for the profession of a scientist (in girls’ favour) have been confirmed. In both cases the correlation is weak.Book of Abstract