Kim Hartley Student Number- 20904573

EDUC5508
Integrated Studies from K-&: Science Focus

Assignment 1 Childrens Views of Science

Topic What Caused Day and Night.

Due 2nd April 2013 Word Count 7, 000

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CONTENTS PAGE

Introduction Topic Information Alternative Concepts Interview Process Summary of Results and Interpretation Literature Review Rationale Reflection Reference List Interview Process Interview Transcript Ches Drawing 1 Ches Drawing 2 Rudys Drawing 1 Rudys Drawing 2 Consent Forms

3 4 8 9 13 15 16 18 20 Appendix 1 Appendix 2 Appendix 3 Appendix 4 Appendix 5 Appendix 6 Appendix 7 & 8

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INTRODUCTION
This research project focuses on the topic of 'Day and Night'. There are two children who participated in this research project, Rudy who is aged six and in year 1, and Che who is aged eight and in year 4. The aim of this research project is to identify what prior knowledge the children have about the topic 'Day and Night' and to identify any misconceptions or accurate scientific concepts that the children may have. This information will be compared to current literature about childrens understandings and misconceptions in relation to the topic. A sequence of science lessons/activities aimed at addressing the presented alternative conceptions about this topic will also be provided. Obtaining a childs prior knowledge is important in teaching, especially when teaching science. Children distinctively construct their own ideas and beliefs about the natural world through sensory inputs including observations, peer interactions, their language experiences and exposure to the media (Chiras & Valanides, 2008). This natural construction of understanding varies between children as their life experiences will vary, their ability to make sense of these experiences and their ways of constructing meaning will also differ. When children go to school they bring with them this individualized understanding of how the natural world works, and this forms their prior knowledge. Prior knowledge is an important part of how we learn and also how we teach. Establishing prior knowledge allows teachers to provide suitable learning environments and context for their students (Wang, Wang, Tai & Chen, 2009). Jean Piaget theorized that individuals learn when they are able to develop their understandings by linking new experience with their prior experiences, this is called Constructivist theory (Campbell & Jobling, 2012). This theory has been reviewed to allow for the social aspect of learning. Vygotsky defined Piagets theory to be personal constructivism and compared to what he called social constructivism. Social constructivism looks deeper at the role of prior knowledge in the learning process. Vygotsky stipulated what he called the Zone of Proximal Development, the region between what a child is able to achieve alone and what he or she can achieve when interacting with adults who scaffold the learning (Campbell & Jobling, 2012). Establishing what content lies within a childs ZPD allows teachers to target lessons that will expand their experiential base, not only to introduce new experiences but also to build on childrens prior experience. In that way the new experience will be linked with the childs previous experience, creating a more complex or sophisticated understanding (Champbell & Jobling, 2012). Prior knowledge can be very useful for teachers or it can be problematic and prevent the child from learning new information. This is often the case with younger children but can continue into high school. Children develop early ideas about their world through their experiences, experiences which can be

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quite limited for young children. The child then constructs meaning from the experience they have had, often leading to an incomplete understanding, such as the clouds cover the Sun. The child then applies these experiences to different contexts to develop consistent ideas about how the world works, for example thinking that the moon is hiding behind the clouds. Until these perspectives are challenged the child will believe them to be true even in the new experiences they have. Once teachers are able to identify a students prior knowledge they can then evaluate that knowledge for any misconceptions. However, childrens belief in their prior knowledge can be very strong and they dont always change their existing perceptions. They may provide resistance to new scientific ideas because they are satisfied with their own conceptions and see little value in the new concept being taught to them. When a childs existing knowledge prevails the science concept is rejected or misinterpreted to fit the childs existing knowledge. In order to foster conceptual change and enhance conceptual understanding children need to experience cognitive conflict and dissatisfaction with their existing ideas (Chiras & Valanides, 2008). Teachers also need to provide a rich and varied number of experiences and promote a more appropriate understanding of the scientific concepts (Campbell & Jobling, 2012, p31). Understanding the prior knowledge their students bring into the classroom allows teachers to prepare their lessons and activities to help students possibly correct their perceptions or build on from them, creating meaningful learning (Russ & Sherin, 2013).

SCIENCE TOPIC AND BACKGROUND CONTENT

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Earth is a planet which is part of a larger Solar System. In the Solar System we are apart of there is also a medium sized star which we call the Sun. There are also seven other planets and numerous moons, comets, asteroids and dust particles. The Sun is the only star within our Solar System and is much closer to Earth than any other star. That is why the Sun seems much larger and brighter than other stars. Light from the Sun reaches the Earth in eight minutes compared to the four years from other the next closest stars to Earth (Australian Academy of Science, 2012). The stars we see in the sky at night are actually part of other galaxies and are very far away. Our Solar System is just a fraction of what constitutes the known universe. Our Solar System is part of the Milky Way Galaxy which contains tens of billions of stars, and an unknown number of orbiting planets. The universe comprises billions of galaxies. When we look at the sky we can see the other Solar Systems that make up the Milky Way Galaxy. They appear as a mass of stars spread in a cloud like formation in the night sky. The Sun and the whole Solar System are moving at great speed through the Milky Way Galaxy (Australian Academy of Science, 2012). The Sun is significantly bigger than anything else in our Solar System containing 99 percent of the total mass of the system. Everything in our Solar System is pulled towards the Sun because the Suns gravity is so big. This

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also causes the planets to rotate around the Sun (Australian Academy of Science, 2012). The path something takes while traveling around an object is called an orbit. Each planet follows its own orbit around the Sun. The Earths orbit takes slightly more than one year, 365.25 days. The extra quarter of a day is saved until a leap year when we also have the 29th of February. Having a leap year where we include an extra day allows for our yearly calendar to remain accurate. The Sun mostly consists of hydrogen gas which undergoes constant nuclear fusion within its core due to its mass and associated gravity. The energy created by this fusion is released as visible light and heat that bathes the Earth and

ESO Alma Telescopes and the Milky Way, www.space.com

keeps us from freezing in the dark (Wiley & Royce, 2000). The Sun is always heating and lighting the Earth, but only

Science Dimensions 1, p227

the side of the Earth facing the Sun. As well as moving continuously around the Sun the Earth also spins on its axis. The Earths axis is an imaginary line joining the North and South poles. The Earth completes one spin every 24 hours. It is because of the Earths spin that we experience day and night. You experience sunrise if your part of the world is spinning towards the Sun. Sunset is caused by your part of the world spinning away from the Sun (Richard, Mockton, Phillips & Roberts, 2006). The direction of the spin is from west to east. This is why people in the east coast of Australia start each day before those in the west. We dont feel the Earth spinning and so the Sun appears to rise in the east and set in the west (Richard et al., 2006).

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The rotation of the Earth makes the Sun appear to move across the sky. The Sun is in a fixed location on the sky and if the Earth is facing this location, then we can see it and we experience daytime. From our point of view fixed to a specific location on the Earth, as the Earth rotates it is the Sun that appears to move across the sky, not the Earth moving away from the Sun. The Earth's rotation causes every object in the sky to appear to trace out a path on the sky from East to West. So if you pick out a star in the sky, it will appear to make an arc across the sky. This happens slowly, so from minute to minute you don't notice the star's motion. However, over the course of a few hours you will be able to www.e-education.psu.edu tell that the stars have moved a substantial distance on the sky. The picture was created by leaving the camera shutter open for more than three hours. The paths the stars in the sky follow over a small fraction of the night become visible (Palma, 2011). The other planets in our Solar System also experience day and night as they too spin on their axes. There are differences in their day and night cycle compared to the cycle we experience on Earth. These differences are due to the tilt of the planets axis and their rate of orbit around the Sun. Some planets rotate faster than Earth and some rotate slower. Venus turns once on its axis every 243 Earth days and Mercury rotates every 176 Earth days. The larger
Science Dimensions 1, p226

planets spin much faster. Jupiter rotates once

every 10 hours, Saturn spins once every 11 hours, and Neptune completes a rotation in 16 hours (Lunar and Planarity Institute, 2012). The Earths rotation on its axis is measured in 24 hours. There are different time zones for different locations around the globe. These exist because different countries experience noon and midnight at

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different times. Although every day is 24 hours long, not everyone experiences twelve hours of daylight each day. Although twelve hours is the average length of daylight around the globe, this number can vary dramatically. Locations around the Earth's equator receive about 12 hours of sunlight each day. Places like the North Pole receive daylight constantly for months at a time in the summer and then months of darkness in the winter. These two annual times of light and dark are separated by a long sunrise and a long sunset. This differentiation in the lengths of day and night occur because Earth's axis is tilted 23.5 degrees (Wiley & Royce, 2000). Instead of being a straight vertical line, the Earths axis tilts giving different areas of the globe varied exposure to the sun. As Earth orbits our Sun, the axis points toward the same location in space. This means that during Earth's movement around our Sun each year, our polar regions spend long periods pointed toward our Sun in the summer and long periods pointed away from our Sun during the winter (Lunar and Planetary Institute, 2012). Other planets also experience these changes in day and night length because they too are tilted on their axes. The other planets vary in how extreme their axis is tilted compared to Earths. Some planets are very similar while others differ greatly. Jupiter is tilted only 3 degrees, so its change in day and night length as it moves around the Sun is less extreme than that of Earth. Uranus is on a 98 degree tilt has complete darkness and winter in the North Pole for 42 Earth years while the South Pole experiences summer and daylight for 42 years (Lunar and Planarity Institute, 2012).

ALTERNATIVE CONCEPTIONS
Children have many alternative views what caused the day and night phenomena. The main

misconceptions are that the Sun and Moon move around the Earth to cause day and night; the belief that there are two Earths, one on which we live and one up in the sky; and that there are two skies, one for night time which contains a Moon and stars, and another for daytime which has the Sun. While children may correctly understand that the Earths movements cause the changes, this is the limit of their scientific understanding. There are different stages of conceptual development that children move through as they are developing their depth of knowledge about scientific concepts, including the phenomena of day and night. The first stage is called nave, this is where students believe that Sun is moving across the sky and the Earth remains still. These views will be influenced by the childs everyday life as children at this stage understand the world only from their personal perspective (Schwarz, Schur, Pensso & Tayer, 2011).

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Children in this category often impose human characteristics on celestial bodies, such as the Moon goes to sleep or hides behind clouds (Kallery, 2011). The second stage, the Synthetic stage, is when children integrate their nave understandings with scientific knowledge (Schwarz et al., 2011). This stage can be separated into Lower and Upper Synthetic. Students at the Lower synthetic stage may understand that the Sun is stationary and that the Earth is moving but not know what causes this, whereas children at the Upper Synthetic stage will have a more sophisticated understanding but not yet at a complete scientific level. Children in this category may understand that the Earths rotation causes day and night but not understand why. By the Scientific stage children understand the accepted scientific explanations that are taught to them and are able to accurately describe the day and night phenomena (Chiras & Valanides, 2008). One of the main misconceptions occur when children explain day and night phenomena by movement of the Sun orbiting the stationary Earth. Many children derive the beliefs that day is caused by the appearance of the Sun and the Suns movement across the sky. This view is also used to describe the disappearance of the Moon and stars at night time (Chiras & Valanides, 2008). Children who hold this belief assume that the Moon is no longer visible because the Sun is so bright. Another perspective children have is that the Earth moves between the night time sky and the daytime sky (Kallery, 2011). In this mental model children place the Sun on one side of the Earth and the Moon on the other. Both of these celestial bodies are fixed and it is the Earth that spins around to switch between the Sun in the day sky to the Moon in the night sky. When asked what causes day and night these children will correctly say the Earths rotation, however their understanding is not correct scientifically. The final main

misconception is that there are two Earths, where by children believe that there are two Earths, a flat one which they live on and a second round Earth up in the sky (Vosniadu & Brewer, 1994). This model enables children to accept that the Earth is round and yet people live all around the Earths surface. This synthetic model of two Earths does not require changes the child to change any of their existing understanding of a flat Earth. Instead they simply add to their existing beliefs the information that there is another Earth which is spherical and which is up in the sky, like a planet (Chiras & Valanides, 2008, p.125).

INTERVIEW PROCESS
Selection Process Kim Hartley/20904573 P a g e 9 | 28

The children who participated in this research project were selected for two main reasons. The first reason is due to the ages of the children, one is eight and the other is six. This age gap means that the children are in different years at school and different stages of learning. By interviewing these children there was a higher probability that the research would uncover various stages of misconceptions. The children were also chosen because of their relationships they have with each other as they are brother and sister. They have a close relationship and feel comfortable with each other. This provides an existing support person who they can use during the interview process to provide them more confidence and power during the interview process. Having another child that they know will help to put the children at ease and encourage them to be more involved in the interview process. The children were also selected because they are my own. They are constantly exposed to the different elements that are involved in university study and how the process works. They know that there is a lot of reading involved, that reports and assignments are typed on the computer, they understand that there is a teacher who will read and mark the assignments that are handed in. They also know where they university is and have visited on several occasions. They are aware that the university is similar to the school they attend, only bigger and for adults. They find it fascinating and are keen to be involved in important parts of university life. This background knowledge means that these children will be able to understand more about what is involved in a project like this and the intentions for the data. Being the mother of these children has pros and cons. it means that consent was easily obtained, that access to the children was flexible and that the interests and needs of the children were well understood before the interview was planned. However, precautions were put in place to prevent the unequal power relationship between mother and child interfering with the interview process. This was done by allowing Cara Webling to conduct the interview and limiting my role as note taker. This created genuine data and interview experience.

Ethical Issues
The rights of children have been formally recognized by and are enforced in many different countries. The Convention on the Rights of The Child 1989 recognized that a child who has the capability to form their own view has the right to express their own views. The Nuremburg Code of Ethics states that the voluntary consent of a human participant in the research process is absolutely essential, this includes the consent of children who have often become victims of research when the benefits shifted from the child to the researcher (Harcourt & Sargeant, 2011). The care and protection of the child involved in any

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research project must be the researchers first priority. To ensure that this research project upheld the rights of the children involved constant reflection of interview techniques was needed. The ethical issues involved with this research project are the vulnerability of the child, confidentiality and protection of the childs identity, obtaining informed consent from the child and their guardian, respecting the rights of the child and the integrity of the childs views and opinions. These ethical issues arise in all research that includes children. The issue of the vulnerability of the children was also addressed as there can be an unequal power relationships between the children being interviewed and with the adult interviewer (Einarsdottir, 2007). During the planning for the interview it was important that the role of the interviewer was not portrayed as being more important than the role of the child. The unequal relationship that usually exists between child and adult were reconstructed to be more equal and provide the child with more control over their experience during the interview. This was achieved by making the children feel important, informing them about what the research was for and how it would be used, asking for their assent, conducting the interview in a neutral place where they had been before and building the childrens interests into the interview process. Confidentiality has been maintained by ensuring that the children who participated in this research project are not identifiable by using pseudonyms and excluding any identifying material from the completed project (Einarsdottir, 2007). The children knew before the interview took place that they would not be identified and were allowed to choose what pseudonym they wanted to be used instead of their real name. This also handed some of the power back to the children as they controlled part of the research details. Other ethical issues involved with confidentiality involve the possibility of passing on information to the relevant authorities if a child makes a disclosure about abuse or any other information that may indicate the welfare of the child is at risk (Einarsdottir, 2007). This was not the case with this particular research project and so did not need to be addressed, however, it important that all researchers are aware of the possibility and what action to undertake if this were the case. Informed consent means that participants enter the research project voluntarily, understanding the nature of the study and the danger and obligations that are involved. When children are asked to give informed consent, they must be given enough information in a language understandable to them to allow them to make an informed decision about participation. It is important that they comprehend the purpose of the research, what the research involves, what is going to happen and for how long. Also,

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they should understand what will be expected of them, the consequences and possible risks of taking part, what will happen to the data and how the results will be used. The children must also be able to understand that participation is voluntary and that they have the right to withdraw at any time (Harcourt & Sargeant, 2011). When research is conducted with school children who have not yet reached the age of consent it is important to inform and include the adults who are responsible for them, be it their parents, teachers or other relevant authorities. In the case of this project the parents were responsible (Einarsdottir, 2007). They were kept informed at all times.

Interview Process
The interview process was structured to be relaxed and informal. We conducted the interview outside on a lawn area. We set up the interview to be more like a conversation between the researcher and the children to help the children feel comfortable and relay their knowledge more naturally. Einarsdottir (2007) suggests that interviewing with children should primarily be focused on providing children with an opportunity to be heard, that they should be more about listening to what the children say than asking questions. Interviews and observations are the preferred methods used in research with children as their knowledge is often implicit, the child may not be aware of what knowledge they have and these methods allow them to communicate their knowledge more effectively. (Graue & Walsh, 1998). The interview began with the two children deciding what name they would like for a pseudonym. Once this was done they were handed some blank paper and a large selection of textas and pencils were spread on the grass in front of them. They were told that they could use whatever they wanted to draw what they thought caused day and night. The children drew two pictures each. The first picture they drew spontaneously, and the second picture they were asked to draw the earth, sun and moon on the same piece of paper. The questions asked started by having the children explain their basic understanding of the topic. As the interview progressed the questioning looked at certain details at greater length. The questions asked towards the end of the interview were directed at trying to understand if the children could apply their knowledge to other situations, allowing their true understandings to come out. Two Ipads were used to collect audio recordings of the interview. This was to ensure that the conversations and understandings were recorded accurately. The apps were turned on and then the Ipads were left amongst the scattered textas and pencils next to the children. This allowed the children to forget that they were being recorded and encouraged them to interact naturally with the researcher.

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Childrens drawings have widely been used for discovering young childrens views and experiences. Drawings are a useful research tool as they provide a way for children to communicate through nonverbal expression, and the children are active and creative while they draw. Most children are also familiar with the activity of drawing, they can change and add to the drawings as they choose, and drawings often take time so that a quick response is not demanded (Kose, 2008). Using the drawings allowed for the children to explain their ideas but also gave the children the opportunity to talk about what they understood about the topic. Having the interviewer listen to the children as they drew was just as important as the childrens narratives and interpretations of their drawings can allows better insight into their thinking than interpreting their drawings would have (Einarsdottir, 2007). The drawings were then interpreted in conjunction with the explanations given by the children. Before the interview began the children noticed the tropical garden area next to the lawn. They asked if they could play in amongst the trees. They were told that they could play hide in seek after they complete their interview. Once the interview was over the children played hide and seek with Cara Webling, which they loved. They left the interview feeling happy and wanting to know when they could see Cara again because they thought she was fantastic. This shows that they felt comfortable during the interview, they could relate equally to the interviewer and they enjoyed their time with the researcher.

SUMARY OF RESULTS AND INTERPRETATION

The results of the interview clearly show that the children held some correct and incorrect conceptions on this topic. The science conceptions that they did know were heavily fragmented and intertwined with non-scientific concepts, however this is quite common for children in the age group of 4-9 (Kallery, 2011). It was as if the children had a pile of information snippets and when asked a question they would select a snippet to recall. When asked the question again or in a slightly different way they would select a different snippet of information, and this may contradict what they first said. They were then made to compare the two snippets of information and decide which one was correct. Very little of the information they knew was a complete idea. It was clearly visible that they had picked up bits and pieces of information from different sources and used them to complete an all-encompassing idea, like a mosaic, only instead of all the pieces being glass, some were actually plastic. The children were able to explain that the sun was made of fireballs and that it was extremely hot. They went further with this idea to explain that because Mars was closer to the Sun it was hotter than

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Earth, and that Pluto was freezing because it was so far away from the Sun. The children also explained that the Earth was bigger than the Moon, but its not bigger than the Sun, the Sun is bigger than all the other planetsthe Sun is the biggest planet in the galaxy (Appendix 2). The basic concepts taught to children at this age group are evident here. The fact that Che says the sun is the biggest planet in the galaxy shows that the more complicated scientific understanding of our Sun being a Star, and Our Solar Systems placement within the Universe has yet to be taught and grasped. This however, is quite common for this age as it is only in year five that school students are taught about Earths place within the larger of planets (Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority). Both of the children understood that there is both night time and day time on earth at any one moment, because the Sun and Moon are on one side and when the Earth changes the night goes to the other side (Appendix 2). This knowledge comes from having family members who live in other countries and come from different time zones. The children did not hold any scientific concepts about why this was able to occur, they only knew that it did occur. There was no mention or indication that the children understood that it is the Earths shadow that causes night and day. Instead the prevailing concept was that there are two skies, one with a Sun, and the other with a Moon. Both children located the Sun and Moon opposite sides earth when they drew their pictures. Rudy held a mixture of actual scientific concepts and inaccurate concepts. Rudy knows that the Moon goes around the Earth, but he believes that this movement causes the day and night cycle. Rudy and Che agree that the Moon reflects the light from the Sun and this is what makes it glow at night. Rudy also understands that you can have night without the Moon where Che does not understand this. Che, who also believes that there are two skies, said that the Sun is in the daytimes sky and the Moon is in the nigh time sky and you are not able to have night time without the Moon. There is actually a moment in the interview when Rudy tries to explain to Che how you can have the Moon during the day. Che however, dismisses Rudys explanation because it conflicts with her existing understanding. Che does however change her existing understanding of day and night on other planets when given a new perspective from the researcher during the interview. The children were asked how long each day was. Neither child understood that there were 24 hours in a daily cycle. Che demonstrated some understanding and knew that the number 24 had something to do with it, but attributed this number to both day and night. This also shows that Che perceives night and day to be two distinctly different things, not part of the one cycle. Rudy was unable to estimate a

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realistic timeframe, however, he has not yet learned to tell the time and this may be blocking his ability to answer this question properly. The childrens lack of understanding was also confirmed when they are asked how fast the Earth spins. Their reply was that the Earth rotates very slowly, it spins very, very, very, skip 140 verys slowly (Appendix 2). This demonstrates no correlation in their thinking between the Earths spin to the day and night cycle. This was interesting considering that Che first answered that the Earth spinning caused day and night. In summary, Che is in the Synthetic stage of concept development and understand some scientific concepts and integrates these with her own understanding of how the world works. Che does understand that the Earth is part of a larger Solar system which contains the Sun. She also comprehends the notion of different time zones on Earth but does not know the concept behind this. Che understands that the Earth rotates but does not connect this movement to day and night. Che knows that the Earth is a sphere and that people live all over the surface of the Earth. At the same time, some of Ches understanding shows that she remains nave about some things Che believes that the Sun and Moon are on opposite sides of the Earth creating a day and night sky and that Earth rotates to change from day to night. Che does know that the Moon reflects the suns light but does not believe that you can have night without the Moon. Rudy would also be in the Synthetic stage of concept development. He does not know what causes day and night but assumes that the Moon orbiting the Earth is the cause. Rudy believes that the Sun and Moon both move around a stationary Earth to cause day and night also. Rudy understands that the Earth is part of a larger system of planets which includes the Sun. Rudy has an understanding of how the Moon reflects sunlight and that we can have the Moon in the sky during the day. He does not base night on the appearance of the Moon. Alongside these understandings Rudy believes that if the Earth did not move we would all freeze, demonstrating that some of his thinking is still in the nave stage.

LITERATURE REVIEW
Neither child who participate in the interview held the mental model of two Earths or the Earth rotating around the Sun. Their pictures both clearly show that the Earth is a stationary object with the Sun and Moon rotating around the Earth causing day and night. The children seemed to hold some of the common is conceptions that the literature mentioned and they also had an understanding of some complex science ideas. I also noticed that the children held a mixture of ideas that were represented in

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the literature. For example, some of their answers showed their developmental stages to be nave, and yet other things showed them to have synthetic, and possibly even scientific understanding. The children who were interviewed expressed the same understanding of the day and night phenomena as other children have in previous research. They believed that the Earth moves between the night time sky and the daytime sky (Kallery, 2011). This belief has been attributed to the influence culture and information within society about the movements of the Earth and Moon and adapted this information to create their own mental model of understanding to form a mental model which they understand (Vosnaidou & Brewer, 1994). In this mental model the children understand that the Earth moves and this movement causes the day and night phenomena, thus are beginning to touch on some of the scientific concepts. However, they still have the incorrect concept and assume that the Sun and Moon are fixed in space at opposite sides of the earth (Vosnaidou & Brewer, 1994). This can be seen in both the drawings by the children who were interviewed. This explanation of day and night is also reflected in current research which shows children moving between modes, especially the initial mode and the synthetic mode (Schwarz et al., 2011). This relates to the children interviewed who understand that the Earth rotates and yet they still perceive that it is the Suns movement that causes day and night. These mixed models are a product of childrens failed attempts to reconcile their initial models with the culturally accepted model (Vosnaidou & Brewer, 1994, p171). Previous research shows that few students are able to make accurate connections between the apparent motion of the sun and the Earths rotation (Plummer & Wasko, 2011). Most children understand that the Earth is a sphere. While most children know that the Earth rotates, less than half know that it takes 24 hours for the Earth to make a full rotation (Plummer, 2011). The knowledge most children have about the Earth and its movements does not enable them to accurately describe why we have day and night. It is common for students in lower to mid primary school to believe that the pattern of motion of an object is caused by the objects actual motion, and not the motion of another object.

RATIONALE
There are many different activities that could be used to address the alternative conceptions these children hold. This could be done using a series of science lessons that are based on Constructivist

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instruction. The use of Constructionist ideas in teaching astronomy concepts has proven to make significant improvements in the understanding of such concepts compared to standard text-book based instruction (Trumper, 2001). In the constructivist perspective learning is constructed by from experience children have had in their everyday lives, this prior knowledge is explored and then extended to form scientific understandings (Trumper, 2001). There are several considerations teachers need to be aware of when creating an effective sequence of lessons. The first is to uncover the childrens existing prior knowledge and use this as a starting point for teaching materials and lesson sequences. Children need to be made aware of what their views are and any uncertainties they may have. Then the students need to be confronted with the scientifically accepted views, and finally teachers need to provide experiences that will help change students views and conceptions, encouraging them to take on the scientifically approved concept (kallery, 630) Because conceptual change does not happen quickly and requires students to think and rethink about ideas in a multitude of situations, children would require several opportunities to manipulate the new information given to them to allow their concept to change gradually (Kallery, 2011). Children who have had the chance to use 3D concrete models are more likely to understand the movements of the Earth and effects of the Earths rotation on its axis (Kallery, 2011).

Recommended Sequence of Lessons

Lesson 1: The first activity should allow students to examine what knowledge they already have on the topic and any questions they may have. Brainstorming or concept mapping would be useful here, as well as a class discussion. Class discussions which make publically visible good thinking practices will help students to internalize these capabilities for themselves even if the students are not at this level of understanding yet (Sprod, 2011). Lesson 2: In this lesson students should be encouraged to experiment with different shadows and ways that they can alter the shapes of shadows. Different examples can be found in Planting the Seeds of Science by Howitt and Blake. The activities in this resource include children dressing up to alter their shadows, students taking photos of one anothers shadows, and finding the shadows of different objects. Students can also create flow charts to examine the moving shadows over a certain period. The Primary Connections program offers different ways in which this can be done, either by using a camera or simply drawing the shadows the children can see (Australian Academy of Science, 2012). This work

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could possibly lead onto the introduction of sundials and how the students could create their own sundial. Lesson 3: Examine the myths from different cultures about what/whom causes day and night (Aboriginal culture, Ancient Egyptian culture). Students could then compare the different perceptions and compare them with their own. Lesson 4: Having uncovered the students perceptions of this topic and perceptions of other societies, the children are now ready to be told of the accurate scientific explanation for day and night. Videos could be shown to the students that show the Earth from outer space as well as the Earth within the Solar System. Images of the Earth taken from space stations could also be shown. Lesson 5: To help children make sense of what they have learnt in the previous lessons, they should be given a chance to model the Earths rotation from day to night. This can be done by using balls and different light sources. Other models, such as the shoebox model which is described in Planting the Seeds of Science could be created by the children. Adequate time should be allowed for the children to play with the models they have made so they can test the new knowledge they have been given and their previous concepts. Cognitive Conflict should be occurring at this stage. Lesson 6: The last activity should provide an opportunity for students to explain what they understand and provide the teacher with the opportunity to uncover any remaining misconceptions. This can be done by having the children use their bodies to model the cycle of day and night while explaining what is happening. Alternatively children could draw the Sun and Earth and label their drawing.

REFLECTION
Report
By completing this report I have learnt a lot about how students learn concepts and how this is important for teachers to know. The importance of establishing prior knowledge is the main thing I will take away from this assignment and I believe that this will have a positive impact on my teaching in the future.

Respond

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The content of childrens prior knowledge is unpredictable as they pick up information from multiple sources and each child will transform this knowledge in their own individual way. Prior knowledge is quite powerful in determining how and what children will learn. If not correctly identified and addressed, this prior knowledge may prevent children from learning the correct scientific concepts they are taught. While I learnt about prior knowledge through research and lots of reading, it wasnt until I saw it in practice during the interview that I understood the importance of prior learning for teaching and learning.

Relate
As a teacher understanding the importance of prior knowledge is essential. It has implications for teacher from planning learning sequences to implementing lessons in the classroom. Teachers are unable to provide students with optimal learning environments without first establishing their prior knowledge and having students recognize this knowledge also (Wang, Wang, Tai & Chen, 2009). With this knowledge and with sufficient knowledge of different teaching and learning theories, such as Vygotskys Zone of Proximal Development, teachers can help students create more complex and sophisticated understandings (Champbell & Jobling, 2012). There are not many teachers who teach science through teacher focused activities or activities relying heavily on textbook readings. The importance of students being involved in hands on manipulation of resources to enhance their learning is very well known. In the past students have viewed science as a boring set of fats that must be learnt. However, todays teachers are aiming to show their students how science is integrated into everyday life and how they can take the knowledge form the science classroom and apply it to their everyday lives (Sprod, 2011).

Reconstruct
In the future I aim to recognize the knowledge that each student brings into the classroom and the individualization of this knowledge. The identification of prior knowledge will be the first part of each learning sequence and will determine the next steps in any teaching program I make. This is easily done and can be as simple as asking the students a few questions before introducing a new topic. However, for more complicated topics such as the one addressed in this report it may be necessary to spend a few lessons looking at students prior knowledge. I will also research the topic I am teaching students before I tech it to make sure that I am aware of any possible misconceptions students may have. This will allow me to direct my teaching towards dispelling these misconceptions directly. Finding out possible

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misconceptions before the lesson also gives me the chance to ask the right questions that will uncover possible misunderstandings before any new concepts are taught.

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REFERENCES
Assessment and Reporting Authority. (2013). Australian Curriculum: Science F-10. Version 4.1. Accessed on 13/03/2013, http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/Science/Curriculum/F-10#level=5. Australian Academy of Science. (2012). Primary Connections; Earths Place in Space. Year 5, Australia. Campbell, C. & Jobling, W. (2012) Science in Early Childhood. Cambridge University Press, Australia. Campbell. C. & Tytler, R. (2007). Views of Student Learning. The Art of Teaching Science. V. Dawson & G. Venville Eds. Allen and Unwin, NSW. Chiras. A and N. Valanides, Day/Night: Mental Models of Primary School Children, Science Education International, v.19, No.1, March 2008, pp.65-83 Einarsdttir, J. Research with Children: Methodological and Ethical Challenges. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 15: 2, 197 211. Graue, M.E. & Walsh, D.J. (1998) Studying Children in Context: Theories, Methods & Ethics. Harcourt, D & Sareant, J. (2011). The Challenges of Conducting Ethical Research with Children. Education Inquiry. Vol. 2, No. 3, pp.421436. Kallery, M. (2011). Astronomical Concepts and Events Awareness for Young Children, International Journal of Science Education, 33:3, 341-369. Kose, S. (2008), Diagnosing Student Misconceptions: Using Drawings as a Research Method. World Applied Science Journals. 3 (2): 283-293. Lunar Planetary Institute. (2012). Background on Day and Night (Educators). Universities Space and Research Program. Accessed on 13/03/2013. http://www.lpi.usra.edu/education/skytellers/day_night/about.shtml Palma, C. (2011). Day and Night. Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics. The Pennsylvania State University. Accessed on 13/03/2013, https://www.e-education.psu.edu/astro801/content/l1_p3.html. Plummer, J., Wasko, D & Slagle, C. (2011). Children Learning to Explain Daily Celestial Motion: Understanding Astronomy Across Moving Frames of Reference. International Journal of Science Education. 33:14, 1963-1992. Richard, G., Mockton. S., Phillips, G. & Roberts, P. (2006). Science dimensions 1: Essential Learning, Pearson Australia, Australia. Russ, R & Sherin, MG. (2013). Using Interviews to Explore Students Ideas in Science. National Science Teachers Association.

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Schwarz. B., Schur, Y., Pensso, H. & Tayer, N. (2011). Perspective taking and synchronous argumentation for learning the day/night cycle. Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning. 6:113138. Sprod, T. (2011). Discussions in Science. ACER Press. Victoria, Australia. Trumper, R. (2001). A Cross-age Study of Senior High School Students. Conceptions of Basic Astronomy Concepts, Research in Science & Technological Education, 19:1, 97-109. Vosnaidou, S. &Brewer, F. (1994). Mental Models of the Day/Night Cycle. Cognitive Science. University of Illinois. 18, 123-183. Wang, J., Wang, Y., Tai, H. & Chen, W. (2009). Investigating the Effectiveness of Inquiry Based Instruction on Students with Different Prior Knowledge and Reading Abilities. International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education. October. Wiley, D. & Royce. C. (2000). Earth and Space Science. Hawker Brownlow Education. Victoria.

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Interview Process
Set up and materials blank paper coloring pencils and crayons Ipad with recording app Boards to lean on Question sheet Note paper and pen

Interview Children meet with interviewer. Children decide what pseudonym they wish to use and create name tags. Interviewer provides the children with the opportunity to ask questions and provides a brief overview of what activities they will be doing. Children are given the drawing supplies and asked to draw what they know about day and night and why it happens. While children are drawing interviewer will ask questions and listen to childrens responses. Questions; Can you draw me what you know about night and day? What causes night and day? Does the Sun move, or the Earth? What about the Moon? What shape is the Earth? How big is it? Can you have night time without the Moon? Can you have day without the sun? Is there day and night on the Moon? Is there day and night on other planets? Does the Earth spin? How fast does the Earth Spin? Are days and nights always the same length of time? Can you have day and night at the same time? If you lived in Australia and it was night, what would it be on the other side of the Earth, in America? Can you explain your drawing to me? Can you label all the different parts of your drawing?

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Interview Transcript
K. Hartley & C. Webling, Interview with Che and Rudy; What Causes Day and Night, at the University of Western Australia, conducted on the 22nd March, 2013.

Interviewer Question
Chee, do you know what causes night and day? How does that cause night and day? The Earth spinning.

Child Response Che and Rudy

Because the Sun and Moon are on one side and when the Earth changes the night goes on the other side of the world. The Earth and I think the Sun and the Moon moves too. Causes light at night time. Its 3d circle. Wait, and when the moon, the Moon actually doesnt have its own light. The Sun reflects on the Moon so the Moons light is actually coming from the Sun.

Che, does the Sun move or is it the Earth Che, what about the Moon, what does the Moon do? Che, can you tell me what shape the Earth is?

Rudy, can I ask what you think causes night and day? Rudy, does the Sun move or does the Earth move? Well thankfully it does move, I dont want to freeze. And you said that the Moon goes around the Earth, what shape is the Earth? Lovely answer. How big do u think the Earth is?

Ummm, the Moon cause it goes around the Earth. The Earth moves, because if the Earth doesnt move then we all freeze. Cause we will be all still and wont be able to move. Circle.

Huge. Bigger than the Moon. But its not bigger than the Sun, the Sun is bigger than all the planets.

Is it, wow Im learning lots of things. So its bigger than the Moon but smaller than the Sun. Rudy, can you have night time without the Moon? The Sun is the biggest planet in the galaxy. Yeah, if the Sun doesnt reflect it, the Moon is still there but it doesnt reflect from the Sun. A person lying in bed. Cause its night time. Yeah. Not everybody, on the other side of the world its sunny when we are

Rudy, what are you drawing? Why? So night time is when you sleep? Does everybody sleep at night time?

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asleep. So it can be day and night at the same time? Thats interesting. Yeah. It can also be different times on the clock, it can be pm and am at the same time too. What are you drawing there Che? Do we have to have the Moon, Che, for it to be night? The Moon. Ehhh You dont have to because sometimes the Sun will reflect to the Moon so it doesnt do it. My granddad told me that. You cannot have night without the Moon. Yeah the Moon is there. Rudy be quiet. What do you mean by that Che? Like if u dont have the Moon you cant have night because it would only be day without the Moon. Cause the Sun is daytime and the Moon, if you dont have the Moon its night time cause the Moons night time. Well sometimes its night time when its not up. Che, can you have day without the Sun? Ah no. Because the Sun doesnt reflect from the Moon, only the Moon gets its light from the Sun, but the Sun doesnt get its light from the Moon. And because the Sun has fireballs in it. Oh the Sun has fireballs. And when you look at it is really a hot thing, like fire. It could easily burn you even if you had a hot suit on. And it really cool, and its really interesting. Do you know if youre really so close to the Sun, if youre in a space ship and you are close the Sun you can burn that easily, so like if youre like more than three meters away you can still die by the heat. Oh wow. Do you think Rudy there are day and night on the Moon? Yes because when the Sun goes down at space, when the Sun goes up at space actually, um its night time and when it goes down and the Moon comes up in space its daytime. How about you Che what do you think, is there day and night on the Moon? The astronauts or the aliens? Ummm, well no because astronauts that land on the Moon they have never seen aliens on it so they wouldnt be having day and night on the Moon. The aliens. Cause aliens they um the astronauts have never had sight of living things on the Moon, so they wouldnt have found night and day. Because if they did they wouldnt even know what it is. If the aliens were there they

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wouldnt even know what it is. Its an interesting thing isnt it? So she when you are on the Moon, is it dark, is it black, when people go to the Moon can they see? So thats why we havent found aliens? I like that word pitch black. Youre doing wonderful, your drawings are fantastic, Rudy you are a very good drawer, colouring in lovely. So Che, is it night, when we have night here in Perth, is it night everywhere? Its not, where is it not night? No, When its night in the half of the world we are on, the other half, the one on the other side, its not pitch black over there No one ever knows cause theres different things on every planet, cause its very, very, very cold on Pluto cause its very far away from the Sun. And Mars is the hottest, Mars is like tornados, a desert that is like hotter than the actual desert on Earth. So is there day and night on other planets? So having it dark light dark night like that, is that day night day night? Youre answering these questions really well, they arent easy are they? So Rudy, does the Earth spin? Yeah. Um its geos a little bit slow. Because somethings go slow. Like a turtle goes slow. Um the Earth moves very, very, slowly, like we dont even notice it. Its like when were on Earth, we dont even know the Earth is spinning, it spins very, very, very, skip 140 verys, slowly. Wow, thats extremely slow. So is it moving now or not? Its like the Earth isnt moving like now, its completely still. It is its always is. Because otherwise we would freeze. I think its quite good that we dont notice it otherwise I would feel quite sick, a bit queasy. Like being on a ride. No its just dark. Dark light dark light. I think so, I change my mind I do think there is day and night on the other planets. No, the only thing they can see is the white Moon that they are stepping on.

Cause its pitch black in the space sky. My favorite colour is black.

Oh thats right, I remember talking about the times? So Rudy, is there day and night on the other planets?

How fast does it spin? Why does it go slowly?

Its 24 hours.

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So another question, And how long is a day? And how longs a night? 24hrs. But sometimes in summer the Sun stays up longer in the afternoon. But when the Sun goes down, a quarter of its top showing, it still night time, but cause its summer the Sun is staying up late. But in winter its dark early. Because winters cold, when the Moon comes up its cold at night and when the Sun stays up more in summer because the Sun makes it hot.

Why do you think that is?

And where does the Moon come up from?

Um up from like, where probably standing like, we think we are sitting flat out be we are this side up, the Moon moves around the Earth. Er no. Yes, but they do it at the same time but at different places, so the Sun was on that side where we were and the Moon was on that side. And when it was night time that side the Moon will come around to there and the Sun around to there. Yes. I think youre learning.

And is the Sun in the same place as the Moon? Do they take turns?

So does the Sun move round in the day time? When its day time in Australia has the Sun moved around?

Im learning heaps absolutely heaps.Rudy, are all days the same length? How long are they?

Yes.

20 minutes. Ahhh 100 hours. Thats more than a day Rudy. Its in the 20s.

Theres no wrong answers here. I just want to know what you know and what you can tell me. So how long is a day? Thank you. Are nights the same length of time? Rudy, can we have the Sun and the Moon in the sky at the same time? Oh does it, how does it do that?

Umm 40 hours. Ummm yes, 40 hours. No. Well you could if the Moon goes in front of the Sun and makes a big sparkle. Um it say, its a nonfiction book and it and there was a picture on it that said, it had a picture on it with the Moon in front and the Sun at the back of it. It was bright.

Explain your drawing Rudy.

Um its fireballs going into the Sun, and then Earths in the middle and the Moon goes around the Earth.

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