An analysis of analogies used in secondary chemistry textbooks

Abstract

Analogies have been an important part of chemistry education for many years. Especially, analogies have been used to teach abstract concepts like chemical equilibrium, nature of matter and chemical bonding. Accordingly, analogies plays central role in supporting the understanding of complex concepts and topics. One of the main sources of analogies is textbooks. The purpose of this study to examine analogies found in the 9th and 10th the grades chemistry textbooks. As a result of this study, it was found that the use of the analogies were limited in both 9th and 10th grades chemistry textbooks. Also, it was determined that these analogies were very simple. © 2010 Published by Elsevier Ltd.