Refutation Text as an Assessment Tool in Exploring Misconceptions of Students

Abstract

When a misconception develops into a habit or founded behavior/way of thinking, it is very difficult to change. In this way, the difficulty in learning concepts causes problems. Several studies adhered that misconception hinders conceptual understanding of the science content among students specifically in learning Newton's laws of motion. As this is a recurring problem in learning physics, this study aims to explore the misconceptions of students using refutation text as an assessment tool. This study utilized descriptive case study using the qualitative research design. It employed the Knowledge Revision Component (KReC) Framework as a guide. Participants ($\mathrm{N}=12$) from grades 8, 9, and 10 have undergone the think-aloud method and were asked to answer a two-tier concept test afterward. It was found out that students who read refutation texts were able to answer more questions correctly though the persistence of the misconceptions is observed across grade levels. This supports the use of refutation text as an instructional material in exploring students' misconceptions in Newton's laws of motion. In addition, this paper presented the implication of this study with regards to the use and development of refutation text in teaching physics and future studies.