Latest / New Teacher Talk / Ep 128: Breaking Through Barriers: Understanding and Addressing Student Misconceptions (3 of 3 episodes)

Transcript

Ep 128: Breaking Through Barriers: Understanding and Addressing Student Misconceptions (3 of 3 episodes) · New Teacher Talk

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  Welcome to New Teacher Talk.
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  My name is Ken King.
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  I'm an education professor at Aurora University.
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  Today I'd like to talk about misconceptions.
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  Why do learners retain misconceptions?
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  When asked to explain ideas below the surface level,
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  learners often hold onto misconceptions stubbornly because
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  of cognitive biases, prior experiences,
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  and the way the brain processes new information.
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  Unfortunately,
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  because these ideas are so deeply ingrained in how they've
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  developed, how they made sense of these ideas,
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  it's not as easy to revise those conceptions,
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  it's just simply by telling students the correct
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  information.
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  We need to address the reasons why and how learners may
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  require these misconceptions.
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  I'd like to share over the next few minutes why
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  misconceptions are so hard to revise and what you can do to
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  identify them.
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  Thanks for joining.
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  The scholars,
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  particularly in the field of science teacher education,
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  have performed some of the most notable work in learning
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  how to break free from misconceptions.
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  One reason for this is that children are always trying to
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  make sense of the world and try to build a coherent model
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  of understanding and awareness.
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  Based on that,
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  several of the examples shared today draw from science
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  teaching,
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  that the concepts and solutions may address unlocking
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  misconceptions in every domain of learning.
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  Let's start with some reasons why misconceptions persist.
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  First of all, higher knowledge interference is one issue.
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  Students connect new information to what they already know,
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  but if their prior knowledge is flawed,
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  it can distort their understanding.
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  But the scholar late 2019 noted that learners rely on their
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  existing knowledge base to interpret new information,
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  process crucial for learning.
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  However,
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  if their prior knowledge contains misconceptions or gaps,
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  these inaccuracies shape how they interpret new
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  information,
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  potentially leading to further misunderstanding.
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  If their foundational understanding is incorrect,
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  the reasoning application knowledge will be flawed,
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  reinforcing misconceptions rather than correcting.
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  Cognitive biases also are an issue related to
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  misconceptions.
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  Confirmation bias makes students focus on information that
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  supports their existing beliefs while ignoring
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  contradictory evidence.
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  Research reveals that as individuals,
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  we tend to learn more effectively through outcomes that
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  confirm our prior beliefs or choices.
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  This means that if a learner has a preexisting belief or
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  hypothesis about a topic,
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  they're more likely to notice or remember information that
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  supports this belief, reinforcing their competence in it.
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  Related to this,
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  when presented with outcomes or information that
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  contradicts their beliefs,
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  students are less likely to adjust their views.
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  It has also been observed, as students mature,
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  particularly through adolescence to adulthood,
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  they display more certainty in the correctness of their
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  decision-making processes,
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  suggesting that their learning becomes more biased toward
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  confirming evidence.
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  This reflects a developmental trajectory where students
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  become increasingly selective about the information they
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  consider valuable.
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  For example,
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  a common experience with this is confirmation bias seen in
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  the context of political beliefs.
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  For instance,
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  an individual who strongly supports a particular political
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  party may tend to seek out and engage with news articles,
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  social media posts,
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  and discussions that confirm their positive views about the
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  party and its policy.
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  They may ignore or dismiss information that criticizes the
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  party or presents opposing viewpoints.
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  This bias can lead to a skewed perception of reality as
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  individuals may become entrenched in their beliefs,
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  reinforcing their existing opinions while neglecting
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  evidence that might challenge or contradict those views.
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  A clear example of how social media exacerbates
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  confirmation bias is the spread of political
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  misinformation.
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  Platforms like Facebook, Twitter,
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  and TikTok use algorithms that prioritize content based on
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  user engagement,
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  meaning that people are more likely to see posts that align
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  with their existing beliefs.
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  For instance,
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  if someone frequently interacts with posts that support a
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  particular political viewpoint,
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  the platform will continue to show them similar content
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  while filtering out opposing perspectives.
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  Over time,
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  this creates an echo chamber where users are exposed only
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  to information that reinforces their preexisting opinions,
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  making them less likely to question or critically evaluate
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  alternative viewpoints.
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  This effect was especially evident during the major events,
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  such as the 2016 U.S.
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  presidential election,
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  where misinformation campaigns thrived because users were
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  repeatedly exposed to misleading content that confirmed
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  their biases.
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  Another source of misconceptions is surface-level learning.
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  Rote memorization without deep conceptual understanding can
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  reinforce misconceptions.
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  For example,
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  a student may recite Newton's Third Law of Motion but
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  struggle to apply it correctly in real-world scenarios.
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  For those who may be wondering what this one was,
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  Newton's Third Law of motion states that for every action,
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  there is an equal and opposite reaction.
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  This means that forces always come in pairs.
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  Whenever one object exerts a force on a second object,
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  second object exerts an equal and opposite force back on
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  the first object.
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  The inability to write an example of what this might look
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  like in real life is a clear example of service-level
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  learning.
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  Even when the law is stated accurately,
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  it reveals a lack of actual understanding.
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  In addition,
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  everyday experiences tend to reinforce misconceptions.
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  Intuitive thinking based on daily observations conflict
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  with scientific principles.
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  As noted previously with comments related to confirmation
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  bias,
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  this persistence to retain ideas occurs partly because
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  students have a cognitive and emotional inclination to
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  confirm their existing beliefs rather than to disprove
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  them.
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  And partly because their current beliefs may be part of a
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  well integrated set of theories that are difficult to
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  deconstruct and alter.
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  As an example,
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  water disappearing from a puddle seems like it soaks into
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  the ground rather than evaporating into the air.
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  Because they can visually see water soak into the ground
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  and are likely have been aware of this for most of their
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  lifetime,
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  this is an observation that is not put to further examination
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  or scrutiny.
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  It may be necessary for a teacher to deliberately confront
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  this misconception by placing the water in a plate and
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  observe it over time as it evaporates.
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  The prevalence of misconceptions is a concern to all
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  educators,
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  but there are strategies we can use to address them.
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  So when we consider how to correct misconceptions,
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  first point is to address their misconceptions is crucial
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  when we plan and deliver instruction because misconceptions
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  can hinder the accurate delivery development of new
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  knowledge which leads to persistent errors of
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  understanding.
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  When a misconception remains unchallenged,
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  it can distort reasoning,
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  limit problem solving abilities and interfere with long
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  term learning.
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  Effective instruction should actively identify and correct
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  these misunderstandings through targeted questioning,
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  conceptual exploration and formative assessments.
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  By doing this,
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  educators create a strong foundation for deeper
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  comprehension,
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  critical thinking and the ability to apply knowledge
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  effectively in real world contexts.
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  There are four things that teachers can do to address
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  learner misconceptions as part of the teaching process.
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  The first one is to elicit and confront misconceptions.
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  Leighton 2019 suggested that assessments must not only test
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  knowledge,
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  but also examine how students regulate and deploy that
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  knowledge.
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  If students are using incorrect reasoning patterns,
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  these need to be identified through cognitive validation
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  techniques.
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  These techniques ensure that assessments truly measure the
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  intended cognitive skills and detect incorrect flawed prior
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  knowledge before it becomes ingrained.
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  Otherwise,
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  the misunderstandings may become reinforced rather than
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  corrected.
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  For example, using diagnostic assessments,
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  pretests or class discussions to uncover incorrect ideas
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  before instruction helps achieve this.
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  Further example,
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  ask students to explain why they think they have seasons
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  before teaching about the Earth's tilt.
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  Many children, and in fact, many adults,
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  believe that the cause of the seasons is caused by Earth's
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  distance of the sun,
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  believing that Earth is closer to the sun in the summer and
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  further away from the sun in the winter.
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  Rather,
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  it's the tilt of the earth's axis that is the cause of
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  different seasons.
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  In the evaporation example described previously,
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  observing water in a plate slowly disappear over a day can
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  directly confront the misconception related to water
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  soaking into the ground.
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  Another strategy for this is the use of a refutation text.
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  A refutation text is a reading that explicitly identifies
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  the misconception and explains why it's incorrect.
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  This type of document uses evidence and easy-to-understand
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  language to address and refute those conceptions.
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  When students use these types of materials to resolve their
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  misunderstanding,
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  they are more likely to apply the corrected knowledge to
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  new contexts in the future.
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  Second strategy is to use cognitive conflict as an
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  approach.
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  Cognitive conflict is a mental state that happens when
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  there is a mismatch between what we know or believe and new
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  experiences or ideas.
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  This mismatch occurs when conflicting thoughts or beliefs
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  compete for the same explanation.
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  Prior to formal science education,
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  learners often develop preconceptions based on their
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  everyday experiences,
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  many of which are scientifically inaccurate.
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  In the context of formal science learning,
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  these misconceptions are frequently challenged by new
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  concepts.
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  To address a misconception,
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  it's necessary to first create a sense of dissatisfaction
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  with it by triggering cognitive conflict.
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  A commonly held misconception is that heavy objects will
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  fall faster than lighter objects.
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  Unlocking this misunderstanding can be successfully
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  accomplished by presenting phenomena that directly
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  contradict the misconception,
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  which forces students to reevaluate their thinking.
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  This can be accomplished by showing a vacuum chamber
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  demonstration in which a feather and a rock fall at the
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  same rate.
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  The key takeaway from this demonstration is that gravity's
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  uniform effect, regardless of an object's mass,
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  causes objects to fall at the same rate.
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  In a vacuum where air resistance is eliminated,
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  both the feather and the rock experience the same
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  acceleration due to gravity.
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  This demonstrates that without air resistance,
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  all objects fall at the same rate,
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  highlighting a fundamental principle of gravity.
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  This experiment illustrates the difference between
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  gravitational force and the effects of air resistance in
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  real-world conditions.
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  Another strategy is to scaffold new information gradually.
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  Scaffolding involves breaking down complex ideas and helps
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  students construct accurate mental models step-by-step.
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  Scaffolding involves providing students with a temporary
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  support structure to help them achieve deeper understanding
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  and greater independence in learning.
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  As students become more competent and confident in their
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  abilities, these supports are gradually removed.
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  The goal of scaffolding is to bridge the gap between what
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  students can do on their own and what they can achieve with
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  guidance,
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  ultimately fostering their ability to perform tasks
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  independently.
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  For an example,
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  simulations can gradually introduce atomic theory to
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  students before tackling chemical reactions,
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  chemical bonding.
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  This would help by modeling abstract concepts like atomic
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  structures to visual models.
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  This may include simulations that model processes such as
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  ionic and covalent bonding in near real time,
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  showing how electrons are shared or transferred between
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  atoms.
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  This provides foundational information that will assist in
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  building an accurate concept about atoms before looking at
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  interactions between and among atoms.
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  Scaffolding can also provide incremental checkpoints,
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  which allows learners to integrate accurate information
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  continuously during the learning process.
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  It also allows the instructor to incrementally assess
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  student understanding during instruction.
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  Final suggestion for today is to make use of metacognition.
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  Teaching students to reflect on their learning,
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  question their assumptions,
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  and check for gaps in understanding is critical.
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  For example,
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  a teacher can instruct students to write down their
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  learning goal for a science lesson,
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  periodically pause to assess their comprehension,
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  and reflect a post-lesson on what study methods were
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  effective in understanding the material.
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  This is an example of using a metacognitive strategy.
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  Under this approach,
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  teachers should teach students how to plan, monitor,
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  and evaluate their understanding.
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  This means helping students set goals,
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  help students check their understanding as they learn,
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  and help them to think about how their learning strategies
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  worked.
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  This helps students notice and fix any misunderstandings in
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  their thinking.
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  Teachers can further support metacognition by modeling
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  their own processes.
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  Teachers can demonstrate their own thinking by talking
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  through the problems aloud.
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  This shows students how to tackle tasks,
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  spot potential errors, and adjust their strategies,
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  if they notice misconceptions,
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  which they often perceive as competing in incompatible ways
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  to express what they've learned.
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  Observing this process helps students become more aware of
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  their own thinking, not to fix mistakes.
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  Collectively,
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  these and other strategies engage students in actively
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  identifying and correcting their misconceptions,
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  promoting deeper understanding,
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  and improved self-regulation.
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  I'd like to thank you for listening.
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  I hope you become a regular follower of this podcast
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  channel, and remember, as a new teacher,
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  we are here to help you.