DIFFERENCES IN TEACHING AND LEARNING CONCEPT NETWORKS OF PHOTOSYNTHESIS ACCORDING TO ACHIEVEMENT LEVELS

Abstract

Students comprehend most science concepts through in-class learning. Therefore, how teachers present concepts can decisively influence students’ understanding of scientific concepts. Accordingly, this study aimed to identify implications for concept teaching and learning by comparing the conceptual structure of photosynthesis reflected in the teaching concept networks used by teachers with the learning concept networks constructed by students. In this process, the construct of the concept network taught by the teacher and the concepts learned by students at each achievement level were compared and analysed using semantic network analysis. The concepts taught by the teacher and those learned by the students were largely similar, but the strength and complexity of the connections between concepts differed. Moreover, the teacher did not clearly distinguish between subtopics while teaching. As a result, the students recognised the concepts but often failed to distinguish between subtopics. High-achievers learned more concepts and showed a more complex connection between concepts than low-achievers. The findings suggest that teachers should explain scientific concepts by breaking them down into subtopics and presenting them in smaller, interconnected chunks to help students relate new knowledge to existing knowledge. Keywords: achievement level, concept network, connected concept network, learning concept, teaching concept