The impact of alternative conceptions on students' abilities to learn nonrenewable energy concepts pertaining to petroleum and coal

This study was conducted to determine the impact of alternative conceptions on students' abilities to learn nonrenewable energy concepts pertaining to petroleum and coal. The purpose of the study was to investigate students' alternative conceptions regarding the formation, location, and utilization of these fossil fuels and issues relating to their use. The participants were 16 sixth-grade students enrolled in a southeastern area of the United States.; The collection of data included students' responses from pre-post interview questions, review questions following classroom lectures, focus questions, and a paragraph-writing activity following supervised reading sessions.; The students' responses were audio-video taped, transcribed, and organized into a matrix for ease of comparison, interpretation, and analysis of the collected data. The analysis of data consisted of categorizations, descriptions, and interpretations of students' verbal and written responses.; The students' responses reflected their cognitive states or informal beliefs used to explain nonrenewable energy concepts pertaining to coal and petroleum. The persistence of these beliefs, suggested Wandersee, Mintzes, and Novak (1994), is indicative of the natural outcomes of students' personal experiences with events occurring in the real world.; The self-reported responses from this research study indicated that students may have formed nonrenewable energy alternative conceptions after watching television, listening to relatives, observing events in the environment, and developing unintended learning outcomes from information presented in the classroom.; The findings from this research study indicated that students' own interpretations of petroleum and coal concepts interacted with ideas presented during classroom instruction. Subsequently, students' interpretations of these fossil fuels resulted in a diverse set of unintended learning outcomes. Unless opportunities are provided to encourage modification of students' nonrenewable energy alternative conceptions, students are inclined to hold onto their viewpoints. Resistance to accept scientific perspectives may interfere with students' abilities to acquire new knowledge. Arzi (1986) cautioned that the existence of students' alternative conceptions could create barriers to learning in the classroom.; By determining students' fossil fuel alternative conceptions, science educators can enhance energy literacy teaching strategies. The processes of conceptual change teaching strategies can promote students' understandings of nonrenewable energy resources.