A Study on the Student's Classificatory Ability (IV) -on the classification of metals-

Abstract

(Purpose of the study) The study aimed to survey the elementary school children's ability to classify the different kinds of metals. (Methodology) The researchers administerd a pre-test to determine the children's levels of understandings of the different physical attributes of metals. Responses to the questions given were checked, tabulated and analyzed. Experimental lessons were prepared and administerd to the children to help them have a better understanding of the physical attributes of metals, moreover, to help them classify the metals correctly. After administering all the experimental lessons, a post-test was given to children to evaluate their mastery of the concepts developed. Finaly, the researchers compared the ratio between the pre test an-d the obtained post-test. (Description of subjects) The research population was represented by a sample of 107 pupils (the 4th-6th grades) of the public elementary school in Kawasaki city for the school year 1980~1981. (Findings) In the above mentioned study, the following findings were obtained : 1) The results of the pre-test revealed that only 20% of each grade level (4~6) could identify correctly some of the physical attributes of metals. Further they showed that none of the subjects could identify all the physical attributes. 2) The frequency of errors showed that the electroconductivity and the malleability were the least identified as physical attributes. 3) The subjects misconstrued hardness, specific gravity and magnetism as physical attributes of metals. The percentages of incorrect response were more than the percentages of correct attributes identified. The researchers inferred that the higher percentages of incorrect attributes given could be due to their past knowledges of the physical attributes of iron. 4) Presented some experimental lessons on predicting physical attributes of metals (iron, copper and aluminium in various shapes) showed that electroconductivity of coins were the least mentioned attributes. The 20~30% of the subjects indicated that a copper wire posseses magnetism. The researchers inferred that this could be due to the subjects knowledges of electromagnet and detecting of an electric current by magnetic needle. 5) The ratio between the obtained pre-test and post-test scores revealed that there is a difference of 50%．This indicated that 70% of the subjects could now, after the experimental lessons, correctly recognized the physical attributes of metals.