PERCEPTIONS OF THE UPPER PRIMARY STUDENTS ON RESPIRATION AND RESPIRATORY SYSTEM

Abstract

The research studies from a developmental or psychological perspective indicate that many children reside in an ideal world devoid of appropriate scientific understanding. They are thought to accumulate a huge variety of naive concepts, which are a product of their ideas supplemented with the surrounding social milieu. The mismatch in the opinions portrayed in the scientific world versus their ideas gradually compels the students to develop alternative conceptions, leading to their entrapment into a highly interwoven web of misconceptions. The living world and various physiological systems housed within a living body are areas of great familiarity for the students. However, it cannot be negated that in reality the upper primary students are only exposed to the superficial images of the organ systems and are totally in the dark about the mechanisms of processes occurring within a living body. This gradually leads to imbibing certain alternative conceptions and misconceptions in them. This study is focused on investigating the variety of probable misconceptions of several concepts under the topic of respiration and highlighting the relevant genesis. Proper administration of the tests comprising of open-ended questions to a lot of 34 students of Class VIII, who are already acquainted with the topic in their previous classes and interviewing a few of them provides detailed qualitative and quantitative data of the misconceptions along with their origins. A search through the literature reveals that the formal, informal and non-formal learning resources contribute to the inhibition of misconceptions, a few of which include textbooks, reference books, teacher’s language, cultural beliefs, etc. The questionnaires asked in the interview are an indirect attempt to create a cognitive conflict in the students’ minds and challenge their misunderstandings to facilitate the students to overcome them. Hence, it highlights the importance of the skill of questioning in the teaching-learning process as well as its efficiency in serving as a remedy for misconceptions.