The Effect of Metaconceptual Laboratory Activities on Pre-service Science Teachers' Conceptual Understanding: Photosynthesis and Respiration in Plants

摘要

The study focuses on the investigation of the effects of metaconceptual laboratory activities related to photosynthesis and respiration in plants on the conceptual understanding of pre-service science teachers. To this end, the current study was conducted with the participation of 34 pre-service science teachers who were taught the subjects of photosynthesis and respiration in plants through metaconceptual laboratory activities within the context of the General Biology Laboratory Applications Course, in the spring term of 2016-2017 academic year. The study employed the single-group pretest-posttest model. The data of the current study were collected by using the "Photosynthesis and Respiration in Plants Concept Test" and "open-ended questions". The collected data were analyzed through the descriptive analysis technique. As a result of the study, it was found that the use of metaconceptual laboratory activities in biology laboratory applications enhanced the conceptual understanding of the subject of interest and resulted in the elimination of some misconceptions. In this regard, it can be suggested that during biology laboratory activities focusing on teaching of abstract and challenging concepts, students should be rendered more active by means of activities such as constructing the concept map of their metacognition, preparing posters, conducting class and group discussions about experiments and writing journals.