Examined seventh grade students' (n=24) conceptions of science, technology, and society (STS) issues. Reports that both male and female students at this grade level have developed clear conceptions of STS issues that are relevant to them personally; however, they had not developed clear conceptions of broader environmental issues. Discusses…

Optometry educators can be assisted in making complex concepts understandable to students by using rhetorical devices such as metaphors, similes, analogies, parables, and allegories. As an example, the difficulties in communicating everyday but complex clinical concepts regarding inflammatory disorders are discussed and use of rhetorical devices…

Six types of remedial projection slide programs were tested on male students (n=120) who showed difficulty in visualizing rotation from molecular diagrams. There were no significant differences in improvement of understanding which were dependent on the number of remedial diagrams. However, when slides contained multicolored diagrams, which were…

Concepts used by two classes of grade eight students, one advanced and the other average, to explain the changes that occur when water is heated to boiling are presented. Little difference was found between groups in terms of the personal misconceptions used to explain boiling. The changes that take place in conceptual knowledge immediately after…

Discusses the meaning of velocity in the Lorentz force law and to what the velocity of the charge is relative. Provides a brief summary of the history of the magnetic force. (23 references) (MDH)

Reports a study using the F-Sort of Biology Concepts to assess understanding of 37 concepts. Analyses indicated that college student biology majors and experienced secondary science teachers were separated from scientists by a dimension based on a deep-versus-surface structure understanding of the concepts. (over 40 references) (Author/PR)

This research used semistructured interviews to investigate students' (n=32) understanding of electrochemistry following a 7-9 week course of instruction. Three misconceptions were identified and incorporated with five previously reported into an alternative framework about electric current involving drifting electrons. Also noted was the tendency…

The authors argue for the necessity of integrating general education and professional preparation and present a conceptual framework for professional preparation. They identify areas where interdisciplinary cooperation can provide meaningful educational experiences for nursing students. (SK)

Examined are first-year medical students' (n=160) explanations of complex concepts in cardiopulmonary physiology following a lecture series. The results revealed systematic misconceptions by the students in developing a pathophysiological model of the problem. The implications for science instruction within a medical curriculum are discussed.…

Discusses a longitudinal study of children's evolving concept of "word." Concludes that tacit awareness of word in spoken and written language precedes explicit awareness. Finds that children in different developmental stages perform differently on reading tasks. Suggests that development of the concept of word relates to experience with writing…

This study investigated 117 preschoolers' perceptions of authority in sexual and benign situations and how these might influence acquisition of sexual abuse prevention concepts. Results indicate that preschool children are able to recognize limits to adult requests to engage in sexual behavior, and their sophistication about these limits increases…

To resolve tension between general stages and conceptual specificity in neo-Piagetian theory, R. Case introduced the idea of central conceptual structures. To resolve difficulties of separating developmental level and conceptual diversity, this article reconceptualizes central conceptual structures as self-organizing systems that stabilize in…

Comments on Lewis's ideas about reconciling stage and specificity in neo-Piagetian theory in this issue. Summarizes R. Case's central conceptual structure and its relation to other neo-Piagetian theories. Notes similarities between Lewis and Piaget, suggesting that differences adhere to a limited number of general laws instead of being…

Discusses activities to teach Cartesian graphing to young children in a conceptual way. Activities are organized around the concepts of finding one's way around in a plane and using the plane to represent variables in two dimensions by graphing equations in the usual way. (25 references) (MKR)

Describes a project that explores the use of interactive computer software for teaching Einstein's special theory of relativity to secondary students. Also describes ways to use computers to help students visualize and experiment with otherwise inaccessible phenomena. (ZWH)