Abstract
This study aims to identify the effectiveness of constructivist-based hands-on activities to reduce misconceptions of students about image formation by a plane mirror. For this purpose, a total of 112 14-year-old Form 2 (equivalent to grade 8) students were randomly assigned to comparison and experimental groups. Students in the comparison group were instructed using a more traditional teacher-centred teaching method while students in the experimental group were taught using constructivist-based hands-on activities. The Test of Image Formation by Optical Reflection (TIFOR) was administered prior to the treatments to both groups to measure the students’ pre-conceptions and again after instruction to identify the effect of the treatments. The results clearly indicated that constructivist-based hands-on activities caused a significantly better acquisition of concepts and remedied misconceptions related to image formation by a plane mirror compared to the traditional instruction. As such it is suggested that constructivist-based hands-on activities be used as alternative to the traditional teaching approach to enhance students’ understanding and to reduce the incidence of misconceptions.
Keywords
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Ling, T.W. (2017). Fostering Understanding and Reducing Misconceptions About Image Formation by a Plane Mirror Using Constructivist-Based Hands-on Activities. In: Karpudewan, M., Md Zain, A., Chandrasegaran, A. (eds) Overcoming Students' Misconceptions in Science. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-3437-4_11
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