University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Making connections: A qualitative study of science learning in five- and six-year-old children

Schroeder, Michael Wayne

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/22093

Description

Title
Making connections: A qualitative study of science learning in five- and six-year-old children
Author(s)
Schroeder, Michael Wayne
Issue Date
1996
Doctoral Committee Chair(s)
Clift, Renée T.
Department of Study
Curriculum and Instruction
Discipline
Education
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
  • Education, Early Childhood
  • Education, Educational Psychology
  • Education, Sciences
Language
eng
Abstract
"In a six-month qualitative study, science learning in a group of five- and six-year-old children was investigated in the context of ""minds-on"" science activities. The concept of ""intellectual alertness,"" originally articulated by Duckworth (1987), was further defined as a highly personal, multi-faceted set of qualities with both cognitive and affective dimensions. It is proposed that the intellectual alertness of each child consists of a number of different but identifiable elements, the ""sum total"" of which is unique to each child. In the course of the study, a number of alternative conceptions related to children's perceptions of living things were also identified and described. The findings of the study indicate that both the conceptions and reasoning of the children in the study are far more complex than might have been expected from previous studies. The study also points toward the potential usefulness of prolonged qualitative studies in the investigation of the reasoning and evolving conceptions of young children."
Type of Resource
text
Permalink
http://hdl.handle.net/2142/22093
Copyright and License Information
Copyright 1996 Schroeder, Michael Wayne

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