THE EFFECT OF CONCEPT CARTOONS EMBEDDED WITHIN CONTEXT-BASED CHEMISTRY: CHEMICAL BONDING

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of concept cartoons embedded within context-based learning approach on 8th grade students’ alternative conceptions of “chemical bonding”. Within a nonequivalent pretest-posttest control group design, the study was conducted with 45 8th grade students. To gather data, Chemical Bonding Concept Test (CBCT) with 16 multiple choice questions and clinical interviews with 5 open-ended questions was used to probe their conceptions. Clinical interview questions were prepared in parallel with the same alternative conceptions asked in the CBCT. At the end of the study, context-based approach was found effective at remedying alternative conceptions about chemical bonding. On the other hand, although concept cartoons are found powerful tools to remedy alternative conceptions about chemical bonding, they did not show an extraordinary effect. This suggests that we may need to use more than one intervention method to effectively remedy the alternative conceptions in chemical bonding. Key words: alternative conception, chemical bonding, concept cartoons, context-based approach.