Esera2011

Periodic Table in 9Periodic Table in 9thth grade textbooksgrade textbooksa critical analysis of the pedagogical approaches

Orlando FigueiredoCecília Galvão

Institute of Education — University of Lisbon

Lyon, September 5th to 9th

www.ie.ul.pt

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• Introduction• The importance of textbooks• Contextualization of this work• Purpose

• The Periodic Table: a very short history

• The Portuguese Curricula

• Methodology

• Results

• Final Discussion

Figueiredo, O. & Galvão, C. — Institute of Education — University of Lisbon — www.ie.ul.pt

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• The importance of textbooks


• As, by norm, a significant amount of teachers do not use syllabus and curricula […] or construct their own materials, the textbooks authors become the main interpreters of the official documents […]. That is why we claim that textbooks strongly influence what is going on in the classroom.

[…]

• The mediating function between the intentional and the implemented curricula is deviated from the teachers to the editors.

• In accordance with UNESCO’s primary mandate to promote peace through education, the foundation of its strategy to textbooks is based on their potential as media for introducing new concepts, teaching skills and shaping attitudes.

Apple, 2002, 2004; Morgado, 2004; UNESCO, 2005

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• Work contextualization


• In 2007/08 the Portuguese government approved a law that obliges the certification of all textbooks by a multidisciplinary commission of experts.

• Science textbooks from 7th to 9th grade were evaluated by two commissions — one for Physics and Chemistry and another to Biology and Geology — headed by the same coordinator (the second author of this presentation).

• I was a member of the Physics and Chemistry team.

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• Purpose


• Understand the (degree of) compliance of textbooks with the National Curricula suggestions to teach the Periodic Table to 9th grade students.

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• A very short history


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Figueiredo, O. & Galvão, C. Institute of Education — University of Lisbon — www.ie.ul.pt

• In 1649 - Henning Brand (1630-1710)

• a merchant and alchemist;

• identifies phosphorus, the first chemical element from modern times.

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• 1829 Johann Dobereiner (1780-1849)

• Ca - Sr - Ba (1817)

• Cl - Br - I andLi - Na - K (1829)

• Dobereiner's Triads

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• 1862 - Beguyer de Chancourtois (1820-1886)

• Geologist

• Published the first PT based on atomic weights

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• 1863/64 - John Newlands (1837-1898)

• Newlands’ octaves

• New version of the Periodic Table consisting of columns of eight elements (an octave) with similar properties

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• 1864 - Lothar Meyer (1830-1895)

• 1869 - Dimitri Mendeleiev (1834-1907)

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• 1869 - Dimitri Mendeleiev

• Loves to play solitaire cards

• Makes 63 cards containing the atomic weight, physical and chemical properties of all known elements

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• 1913 — Atomic Number

• Henry Moseley (1887-1915) corroborates the Van den Broek’s suggestion that central charge in Rutherford’s atom was equal to its position in the Periodic Table.

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• Although modern Periodic Table is supported on the scientific concept of atomic number and atomic theory, its construction was mainly an inductive process with no theoretical framework to sustain it.

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• Two documents


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• Curriculum


• General and Specific Competencies

• Global themes• Earth in Space• Earth in transformation• Sustainability on Earth• Living better on earth

• Main scientific subjects to teach in each theme

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• Guidelines


• Emphasis on the Specific Competencies

• Global themes: more detailed approach to main scientific subjects to teach in each theme

• Suggestions of didactic strategies and tasks

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• The Periodic Table


• Emphasis on the Specific Competencies

• Start with the Periodic Table (before the concept of atomic number)

• Students should group cards (made by them), with the identification of the elements (not necessarily all elements from the PT) and their main physical and chemical properties, using criteria decided by them.

• Discuss criteria used by students in grouping the elements

• Ask students to group the element cards by similarity of chemical properties

• Sustained by this new organization, introduce the modern Periodic Table

• Investigate the reasons behind the fact that some elements have similar chemical properties.

• Introduce the atomic structure and the concept of atomic number as an explanation to the similarity of chemical and physical properties

• Global themes: more detailed approach to main scientific subjects to teach in each theme

• Suggestions of didactic strategies and tasks

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• The Periodic Table


• Portuguese Curricula advices an inductive strategy to teach the periodic table subject.

• Besides the scientific knowledge about the Periodic Table, this strategy facilitates the study of the PT within the context of its construction.

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20Figueiredo, O. & Galvão, C. Institute of Education — University of Lisbon — www.ie.ul.pt

Res

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TextbookNumber of

schools using itCategory A Category B Category C

A 34% (441) Traditional Traditional Not compliant

B 18% (238) Traditional Traditional Not compliant

C 18% (230) Traditional Traditional Not compliant

D 11% (145) Traditional Traditional Not compliant

E 7% (93) Innovative Traditional Not compliant

F 7% (93) Traditional Traditional Not compliant

G 5% (60) Traditional Traditional Not compliant

H 1% (8) Innovative Innovative Partially compliant

Res

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Res

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• authors opted by a traditional approach

• it introduces the atomic structure and explains the concept of atomic number before the presentation of the periodic table;

• textbook (D) has some innovative tasks for students — web and book research and presentation of the results to the class;

• textbook (F) is seriously worsened by several scientific errors.

Res

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• the Table of Contents presents the study of the PT before the atomic structure. However before introducing the PT, both textbooks present a rather incomplete, summary, and confused idea of the atomic number and proceed from there, to the periodic table explanation;

• both from the same editor.

Res

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Res

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• Textbook (E) does not use the card activity suggested in the curricula, but it uses an innovative approach to the TP study. It presents the PT of the elements departing from the elements characteristics and not from the constitution of the atom. However all the strategy is very expositive and tasks are very traditional and induce the students into a role of “listen and reproduce”.

Res

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• although it does not use the card activity suggested by the curricula it shows a socio-constructivist approach to the PT, complemented by activities of the same type;

textbook (H) is adopted by less then 1% of the Portuguese schools with 9th grade classes.

Fina

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Fina

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• A big majority of Portuguese 9th grade Physics and Chemistry textbooks do not comply with curricula recommendations and prefer a deductive teaching strategy to an inductive one;

• A big majority of Portuguese 9th grade Physics and Chemistry textbooks convey traditional teaching strategies and traditional pictures of scientific knowledge;

• Criteria for science textbooks adoptions should be better understood by science education researchers.

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Thanks for attention.Merci pour votre attention.

Bem-haja pela vossa atenção.

[email protected]

Esera2011

Education

workpurposethe periodic

short historyfigueiredo

science textbooks

textbooks authors

grade students

implemented curricula

national curricula suggestions

portuguese government