Teaching Chemistry in Context-ULFA RAHMI

8/7/2019 Teaching Chemistry in Context-ULFA RAHMI

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ESS 712

Assignment 2

Teaching Chemistry in Context: Using

Issues-based and Community-based

Approach

By. Ulfa Rahmi

211077007

Table of ContentsIntroduction .................................................................................................................................................. 1

Rationale ....................................................................................................................................................... 1

Example of learning chemistry in context .................................................................................................... 3Conclusion ..................................................................................................................................................... 4

Reference ...................................................................................................................................................... 5

Appendix ........................................................................................................ Error! Bookmark not defined.


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Teaching Chemistry in Context: Using

Issues-based and Community-based

Approach

Introduction

Currently, in Indonesia particularly in Aceh, most teachers are using content-based instruction.

This is happening because teachers emphasize a wide range of topics in the written curriculum

to prepare students for the standardized assessment. As a consequence, most teachers teach

superficially and seem to forget the main purpose of teaching science, that is, to make students

scientifically literate. Additionally, students are disenchanted with science and find it

unimportant, un-engaging, and irrelevant to their life (Rennie, 2006).

New research has confirmed that teaching science contextually is more effective in order to

make students scientifically literate as they can build a relationship between context and

concept. Hence, this paper will discuss how contextual learning could benefit students in

making meaning about the knowledge. Additionally it will present as example of learning

chemistry in context by using an issues-based approach and a community-based approach.

Rationale

Many students view and experience chemistry as a difficult subject to understand. This is

because chemistry has a lot of abstract concepts with its technical terms which are very difficult

for the students to relate with their everyday life. The situation is aggravated since most

teachers tend to use a chalk and talk or drill and practice instruction. As a result, the

knowledge that the students receive is overloaded yet superficially understood and isolated as

they are unable to give meaning to what they have learnt. This situation could lead to low

engagement in classes and the forgetting of material afterward. Lack of relevance also could be

the case where the students can solve problems only if it is presented in the ways they were

taught and lack of transfer where the students are unable to relate the concept with the real

life context (Gilbert, 2006). Also, the emphasis on solid foundation, correct explanation and


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scientific skill development seems to be inadequate emphasis since science should be more

focused on the development of scientific literacy (Pilot & Bulte, 2006:1088).

Context-based learning is considered as solution of the unsatisfactory outcomes of traditional

school science. It is believed that teaching in context will give students a clear understanding on

the canonical science concept. Teaching contextually is not about teaching the chemistry

content and then providing real application but it is about using the real situation that can be

explained by the use of chemical concept (Corrigan & Rodriguez, n.d). It is expected that the

recognizable context could attract students attention and the desire of finding out the

phenomena will drive the need-to-know stimulus for understanding the chemical concept

(Bulte, Westbroek, Jong & Pilot, 2006:1063; Gilbert, Jong, Justi, treagust & Driel, 2002). Hence,

an issues-based and a community-based approach will be used as the way of teaching the

chemical concept contextually.

It is a human nature that when faced with controversial issues in society, we tend to have

discussions in seeking explanations. Similarly, students are more interested in learning

chemistry when they are given an issue or problem that they can relate to. An active learning

approach which places science content within a social context in a way that supplies both

motivation and the ownership of learning to the student is known as issues or socio-scientific

based approach (Pedagogy in action, 2010). With this approach, students might find the issues

raised by the teachers are personally relevant and socially shared and might be in conflict with

ones existing conception. Compared to the conventional instruction that uses a closed

question and often works in isolation, the question that is raised by the teachers in the socio-

scientific approach is an open-ended one which requires the students to explain the problem by

using a conceptual understanding and evidence. Generally, this approach requires cooperative

learning which could promote students communication skills, scientific problem-solving and

socio-scientific decision-making skills (Holbrook, 2005). Wongsri and Nuangchalerm (2010) also

explain that by learning using socio-scientific, it could increase learning achievement as

students could understand the conceptual knowledge, analytical thinking and moral reasoning.


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Since it involves cooperative learning, it is in line with the socio-cultural perspective. In this

perspective, the knowledge and understanding are constructed when a person engages socially

in activities and conversation about shared problems or tasks (Driver, Asoko, Leach, Mortimer,

Scott, 1994). Cooperative learning not only happens among the students, but it also involves

teachers and others elements of community. Hence in this situation, a community link should

be included. Community link or the community-based approach is a learning process where

students are exposed to the real community situation such as institutions, organizations and

industrial companies (Rennie, 2006). In chemistry, visiting an industry could provide a

meaningful learning experience as the students could see the real application of chemistry

concept (Corrigan & Rodriguez, n.d.). In brief, using experiences in the community could

increase students engagement and interest as they perceive chemistry is relevant and

worthwhile to their life. Additionally, it could develop and practice the skill of the students

which could contribute to a scientific (chemistry) literate citizenry.

Example of learning chemistry in context

In order to have meaningful learning, the stimulus of need-to-know is important. It is obvious

that teachers creativity is crucial in implementing this approach and becomes a special

challenge for them (Schwartz, 2006). Teachers need to find out the community issues that

could attract student interest as well as building up students understanding of chemical

concept. Later, teachers will set-up a scenario containing issues and questions that teachers

want students to solve. In solving the problem, students then need some chemical concepts

and knowledge that they could get from the teachers or from the community. The community

contribution could help the students in making sense of the concept which could be done in

two ways: students go to the institution or the experts visit the school (see appendix 1). In

short, the community link is integrated in the socio-scientific issues approach.

An example of an issue that has currently emerged in Indonesia is the use of Formalin and

Borax in food. Students might already know the danger of these compounds as they hear from

media but they might not know that those issues contain a lot of science-chemical concepts. As

the teachers have already prepared the problem for the students to solve, the need-to-know


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stimulus will drive the students to learn the concepts. This is the time when the teachers teach

the concept related to the issues. For instance, teachers will explain about the chemical

structure, stochiometry, organic chemistry and additive substances which all relate to the

problem. Teaching chemistry, then, becomes teach as a flow, which means teaching the

concept that is needed to solve the problem. This method is more beneficial for the students as

they could understand the use of the concepts as well as knowing the relation between those

concepts (King, Bellocchi & Ritchie, 2008). Finally, in order to make chemistry concepts more

relevant, the next step is to bring the students to food industries that use additive substances

or invite the expert/chemist-analyst to the school (see learning sequence at appendix 2).

As already described above, clearly, this approach could benefit the students. The most and

foremost advantage is it could prepare the students to be scientifically literate citizen as well as

make the students remain interested and enthusiastic to science-chemistry. It also could

promote the opportunities for students to perceive science as a relevant subject to their life so

that the learning will be meaningful and long lasting (Rennie, 2006). Furthermore, teaching

chemistry in context could increase students skill in scientific problem solving and socio-

scientific decision making (Holbrook, 2005). However, there are some difficulties in

implementing this approach in Indonesia particularly in Aceh. Time constraints, insufficient

resources and knowledge of the teacher are the main factors that potentially inhibit the

implementation (Blake and Campbell, n.d). In Indonesia, time is really difficult to deal with as in

the Indonesian curriculum there are so many subjects and concepts that students need to

learn. Moreover, there is not enough scientific equipment to support the students in

conducting the investigation and also the insufficient knowledge of the teachers make it not

possible to implement this approach as the teacher could not act as a facilitator.

Conclusion

Teaching chemistry in context by using the integration of a community-based approach into

issues-based approach is an effective way of preparing the students to be scientifically literate

citizens. Using community issues that are known to the students will drive the need-to-know

stimulus of the students to learn the chemical concepts. As learning is happening better when it


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is socially shared, involving the community that relate to science will increase their

understanding. As a consequence, students are able to making-meaning of the knowledge and

relate the science concepts to their life. Also, teaching chemistry in context could increase

students skills in analytical thinking, problem solving, decision making and moral reasoning.

Reference

Blake, D & Campbell, C n.d. Developing a rural and regional science challenge to utilize

community and industry-based partnership, Deakin University

Bulte, AMW., Westbroek, HB., Jong, OD & Pilot, A 2006. A research approach to designing

chemistry education using authentic practices as context, International Journal of

Science Education, vol. 28, No. 9, pp 1063-1089, accessed on 6 February 2011 fromRoutledge.

Corrigan, D & Ridriguez, S n.d. Teaching Chemistry in Context: the risks and realities accessed

on 6 February 2011 from

http://www.modelab.ufes.br/xioste/papers/xioste_paper020.pdf

Driver, R., Asoko, H., Leach, J., Mortimer, E. & Scott, P 1994. Constructing scientific knowledge

in the classroom, Educational Researcher, vol. 23, no. 7, pp 5-12, from American

Educational Research association, accessed on 24 January 2011.

Gilbert, JK 2006. On the nature of context in chemical education, International Journal ofScience Education,vol.28, no. 9, pp 957-976, accessed on 6 February 2011 from

Routledge.

Gilbert, JK., Jong, OD., Justi, R &Treagust, DF 2002. Chapter 8: Context-based approaches to

the teaching of chemistry: what are they and what are their effects?, Chemical

Education: Towards Research-based Practice, pp 165-184, Kluwer Academic Publisher.

Netherlands.

Holbrook, J 2005. Making chemistry teaching relevant, Chemical education International, vol.

6. no. 1. pp 1-12, Paper based on the lecture presented at the 18th

ICCE, Istanbul, Turkey

3-8 August 2004, accessed on 7 February 2011 fromhttp://old.iupac.org/publications/cei/vol6/06_Holbrook.pdf

King, D., Bellocchi, A & Ritchie, SM 2008. Making connections: Learning and teaching chemistry

in context, Research Science Education, vol. 38, pp 365-384, accessed on 31 January

2011 from http://www.springerlink.com.ezproxy-

m.deakin.edu.au/content/n43k22x243461m52/fulltext.pdf
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Pedagogy in Action, 2010. What is socioscientific issues-based instruction?, accessed on 7

February 2011 fromhttp://serc.carleton.edu/sp/library/issues/what.html

Pilot, A & Bulte, AMW 2006. The use of context as a challenge for the chemistry curriculum: Its

successes and the need for futher development and understanding, International

Journal of Science Education. vol. 28, no. 9, pp. 1087

111, accessed on 6 February 2011from Routledge.

Rennie, L 2006. The communitys contribution to science learning: Making it count, 2006-

Boosting Science Learning-What will it take, ACEReSearch

Schwartz, AT 2006. Contextualized chemistry education: The American experience,

International Journal of Science Education, vol.28, No. 9, pp. 977-998, accessed on 6

February 2011 from Routledge.

Wongsri, P & Nuangchalerm, P 2010. Learning outcomes between socioscientific issues-based

learning and conventional learning activities, Journal of Social Sciences, vol. 6, no. 2, pp

240-243, accessed on 7 February 2011 from

http://www.scipub.org/fulltext/jss/jss62240-243.pdf
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AppendixAppendix 1 Learning Sequence


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Appendix 2 Example of an issues-based learning

Teaching Chemistry in Context-ULFA RAHMI

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