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AUTHOR(S): Abdeljalil Métioui
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ABSTRACT The present qualitative research, a crucial investigation, focuses on the alternative conceptions (ACs) of one hundred and twenty (N = 120) elementary pre-service teachers (PSTs) from Quebec in Canada regarding Moon-Earth-Temperatures, Shadow-Sun-Earth, and Earthe-Cloud-Lightning. A multiple-choice questionnaire (MCQ) was meticulously constructed and administered. The results, with profound implications for science education, reveal that most of their ACs regarding these phenomena are erroneous compared to those accepted by the scientific community, underscoring a significant gap in understanding. These findings directly and significantly impact science education, highlighting the urgent need for targeted interventions to correct these misconceptions. Their ACs were: 1. The Sun is a warm light source; 2. The Moon is closer to the Sun than the Earth; 3. The distance between the Earth and the Sun and the Moon explains the difference in temperature between them; 4. The Moon's temperature is much higher than that on Earth because the Moon is much smaller than Earth's; and 5. The positive charges accumulated at the top of the cloud collide with the negative charges located at the bottom of the cloud. These electrical charges are attracted to the Earth, which has already been charged; 6. When hot temperatures meet cold temperatures, atmospheric pressure causes lightning to form; 7. Lightning forms when the cloud is sufficiently charged with a magnetic field. The results confirm the findings astronomy and physics education researchers highlighted worldwide and, in some cases, provide possible explanations for previously reported ACs. |
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KEYWORDS Qualitative study; multiple-choice questionnaire; elementary pre-service teachers; alternative conceptions; Moon-Earth-Temperature; Shadow-Sun-Earth |
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Cite this paper Abdeljalil Métioui. (2025) Evaluating Elementary Pre-service Sience Teachers' Alternative Conceptions about Earth and Space Using Diagnostic Multiple-Choice Items. International Journal of Environmental Science, 10, 60-72 |
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