A Content Analysis on the Misconceptions in 9th Grade Chemistry Subjects

Abstract

Significantly different interpretations of scientific concepts by students cause misconceptions. When misconceptions cannot be removed from the mind of the student, the learning process is seriously affected. The main purpose of this study is to determine the misconceptions, which negatively affects the learning process of students and is a very difficult process to eliminate. For this purpose, firstly, a comprehensive review of the literature was made by examining documents such as articles, thesis, electronic books, and papers, and misconceptions encountered in 9th grade chemistry subjects were determined. Then, a content analysis was carried out on which units and subjects/concepts these misconceptions were distributed in the 9th Grade Chemistry Curriculum. At the end of the analysis, frequency and percentage calculations of misconceptions were made according to the units and concepts in these units, and the findings were presented with the help of tables and graphics. As a result of the examination of the documents included in the research, a total of 338 misconceptions about the 9th grade level chemistry lesson were determined. When these misconceptions were analyzed, it was concluded that the most common misconception was related to the “Atom and Periodic System” unit and the “atom” concept explained under this unit. It is thought that the findings of the research will make important contributions to the field in terms of preventing the formation of misconceptions and therefore the correct structuring of scientific knowledge. In addition, the results of the study; can also help chemistry teachers and prospective chemistry teachers to be informed of misunderstandings in 9th grade chemistry and take precautions to prevent these misconceptions in their students.

Keywords

• 9th grade
• chemistry lesson
• misconceptions