A study of secondary students' conceptualization of Earth's deformational processes during successive phases of information presented visually on volcanic activities.

摘要

The purpose of this study was to examine high school students' post-instructional conceptualization of the earth's deformational features and processes that are associated with volcanism. This study focused on the conceptions, misconceptions, non-conceptions, or alternative conceptions students exhibited about the patterns and events that are associated with volcanoes. More importantly, the study also examined the extent to which students were able to identify those characteristics that are visible on earth's surface, including surface depressions, fractures, and crustal uplift that suggest relationships to the internal or external processes of magma activity. In addition, the study examined what conceptual strategies students used to integrate the relationships among these natural phenomena.;A large majority of students were able to identify the most common characteristics of volcanoes, such as an eruption identifies an active volcano, that volcanoes spew smoke, gas, ash, steam, and magma, and that lava was a consequence of volcanic eruption. They associated volcanism with the presence of a mountain. They distinguished between active and dormant volcanoes. There was some confusion about identifying the length of dormancy. In general, the students' knowledge about patterns and events of volcanic activity was fairly rudimentary. Very few students failed to go beyond the most obvious characteristics of active and dormant volcanoes.;Students' responses to questions about underlying processes that are responsible for the generation of volcanoes indicated that their understanding of such processes was tentative and was subject to numerous misconceptions. Students generally knew that volcanic activities occurred at plate boundaries. They knew the terms "convergence," "divergence," and "transformation." Many seemed to understand that volcanic activity was a consequence of convection cell movement, but could not adequately explain how convection cells led to volcanic activity.;Most students understood the concept of a subduction zone. They understood that subduction occurred when one plate moved over another. What caused more difficulty was figuring out the factors that led to one plate subducting under another. When students were queried about the surface expressions of volcanic activity, many demonstrated confusions about the relationship between surface manifestations of underlying volcanic processes.