Chinese Journal of Science Education


Vol. 12 No. 3 , Pages 289 - 310 , 2004

Student’s Conceptions of Animal Classification and Vertebrates: A Cross-age Study (Article written in Chinese)

Dar-Sun HUANG

Abstract

By using a cross-age research design, this study intends to explore student’s conceptions in animal classification and vertebrate’s animal classification at the 6th (N = 156), 8th (N = 146), and 11th (N = 166) grades. The researcher developed a questionnaire with multiple-choice and free-response items to probe the students’ understanding of attributes of animals, conceptions of animals, and conceptions of animal classification and vertebrates. A summary of the results is as follows: (1) The development of conceptual knowledge in the subjects about animal and animal classification shows a sequential order across ages. For example in conceptions of animal, there is an order going from “movable”, to “heterotrophic”, to “no cell wall”, to “centriole-own”. But the idea of “no alternative of generation in life cycle” is still undeveloped. (2) The conceptual knowledge of vertebrates appears in the minds of the researched subjects in the sequence that follows: having vertebral column (back bone), gill-slit, dorsal nerve cord, and skull. (3) A wide range of alternative conceptions in conceptions of animal and vertebrate animal emerged. For example, corals, sea urchins, and sea cucumber are not considered animals; and snakes, ells and tadpoles are considered invertebrates.

Keywords: alternative conceptions; conceptions of vertebrates; animal concept; attributes of animal; animal classification

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