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The development of children's concept of a substance: A longitudinal study of interaction between curriculum and learning

Johnson, P.M.

Authors

P.M. Johnson



Abstract

This paper is a reflection on a three-year longitudinal study that explored the development of children’s concept of a substance, for which detailed results concerning children’s understandings have been reported elsewhere. The attention in this paper is on the methodological features related to the longitudinal nature of the study and the insights into pupils’ learning that were afforded by its design. There is, of course, an extensive literature on children’s understandings of scientific ideas, and the nature of conceptual change involved in learning is a contested area. I argue in the paper that longitudinal studies are uniquely placed to inform the debate, and by focusing on this particular study the aim is to demonstrate the kind of contribution that can be made.

Citation

Johnson, P. (2005). The development of children's concept of a substance: A longitudinal study of interaction between curriculum and learning. Research in Science Education, 35(1), 41-61. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-004-3432-3

Journal Article Type Article
Publication Date 2005-03
Deposit Date Jan 29, 2007
Journal Research in Science Education
Print ISSN 0157-244X
Electronic ISSN 1573-1898
Publisher Springer
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 35
Issue 1
Pages 41-61
DOI https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-004-3432-3
Keywords Chemical change, Methodology, Particles.