Students' Understanding of Flowering Plants Growth and Development

Author: Lin, Sheau-Wen(Nationl Pingtung Teachers College, Department of Science Education, Professor)

Vol.&No.：Vol. 48, No.1
Date：April 2003
Pages：47-62
DOI：10.6300/JNTNU.2003.48(1).03

Abstract：

The purpose of this study was to investigate students' understanding of flowering plants growth and development. The research group developed an interview guideline that was validated by four biologists. Individual interview, guided by the guideline, was used to collect 120 grade 4, 6, 7, and 10 students (30 students from each grade) views on flowering plants growth and development. Group response percentage frequencies for the interviews were reported. Students' understanding on life cycle, reproduction, plant nutrition, seed respiration, and tropism increased as they progressed through the junior and senior high school. However, there were some alternative conceptions among four groups. For example, development was synonymous to growth, only root, stem, and leaf would grow, life cycle was linear, plants got food from soil, and tropism was an outcome of trapping sunlight for photosynthesis. Sixth grade students performed better on flowering plant asexually reproduction and origin of fruit and seed than other graders. This better performance of sixth graders seemed result from the exposure to similar textbook information at fifth grade. In general, all students understood little on mechanism of flowering plants growth and development. The result could be the base for further exploration on origins of student alternative conceptions and could contribute to science teaching and science material developing.

Keywords：Individual interview, Conceptual development, Flowering plant growth and development

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