How Can We Rectify a Misconception in Learners?

Abstract

It is widely accepted that in order to rectify learners' misconception it is necessary to make them encounter scientific evidence that contradicts their misconception. In this paper an alternative strategy is proposed and its effect examined. The strategy was as follows. At the first stage a reading material was presented to learners which contained useful information that would help them to make solve aproblem in physics. At the second stage the problem was set and learners were asked two kinds of questions. One question requested them to solve the problem on the basis of their intuition. Their answers were generally wrong because they were guided by a misconception. The other question requested them to solve it on the basis of the information they had already read. Their answers were generally correct. At the third stage the consequence of the experiment in physics was presented and therefore the learners came to know which solution was correct. After these steps a transferable problem was set. Most of them could solve it successfully, being able to rectify their misconception. This teaching strategy was named "double reasoning method", because two contradictory reasoning processes (and answers) were provoked in each learner before he observed the consequence of the experiment.