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ERIC Number: EJ1249409
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2020
Pages: 15
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0021-9266
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
What's in the Body? Children's Annotated Drawings
Journal of Biological Education, v54 n2 p176-190 2020
This paper presents a study of children's ideas of the body's internal structure. Children between four and 13 years (N = 170) individually produced drawings. During each drawing session the children explained their drawings to a facilitator and added written labels either by themselves or, if they were too young to write, with the facilitator's help. The results provide an updated comprehensive picture of children in different age groups and their views on the internal structure of the body. The type and numbers of organs drawn are similar to those documented in previous studies. However, in comparison to recent studies, the children drew more organs, the brain was indicated almost as often as the heart, and the Valentine heart was frequently used as a symbol. In contrast with previous research, children drew connections between organs. This result calls for caution regarding conclusions made from decontextualized questions. The importance of providing children with the opportunity to clarify their drawings is emphasised since it otherwise becomes a question of the researcher's interpretation. The connections they draw, and explanations they give to their drawings, have interesting implications for understanding children's ideas, and hence both for teaching and learning and for science education research.
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Early Childhood Education; Preschool Education; Elementary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A