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v H H 2 F 4 0 R T # ( . 0 1 0 a V \ 0 4 Z t . t Understanding of Carbon Cycling: Interviews with US and Chinese Students
Hui Jin, Li Zhan, and Charles W. Anderson
Michigan State University
CONTENT
TOC \o "1-3" Abstract PAGEREF _Toc101246325 \h 3
Introduction PAGEREF _Toc101246326 \h 4
Literature review and research background PAGEREF _Toc101246327 \h 5
Literature Review PAGEREF _Toc101246328 \h 5
Research Background PAGEREF _Toc101246329 \h 7
Carbon Cycling LP Framework PAGEREF _Toc101246330 \h 8
Upper Anchor Loop Diagram PAGEREF _Toc101246331 \h 9
research method PAGEREF _Toc101246332 \h 10
Research Participants and Data Sources PAGEREF _Toc101246333 \h 10
Interview Protocol PAGEREF _Toc101246334 \h 10
Data Analysis PAGEREF _Toc101246335 \h 11
Findings PAGEREF _Toc101246336 \h 15
Naming and Explaining PAGEREF _Toc101246337 \h 15
Levels of the Carbon Cycling LP PAGEREF _Toc101246338 \h 16
Naming Performances PAGEREF _Toc101246339 \h 16
Explaining Performances PAGEREF _Toc101246340 \h 20
Alignment of Naming Performances and Explaining Performances PAGEREF _Toc101246341 \h 26
contribution and limitation PAGEREF _Toc101246342 \h 29
reference PAGEREF _Toc101246343 \h 30
Appendix. Interview Protocol PAGEREF _Toc101246344 \h 32
Abstract
In this research, we develop a four-level carbon cycling learning progression to describe how American and Chinese students understand carbon cycling as it relates to global warming. We designed interview protocols, which ask students to explain a set of key macroscopic environmental events of global warming. Thirty-three American students and twenty-three Chinese students attended the research. We found that students explanations could be analyzed in terms of two aspects of performancesnaming and explaining and that American students and Chinese students show similar patterns in each aspect. The data analysis showed two findings. First, American and Chinese students explaining performances were very similar, with a majority of each group at level 2 relying primarily on hidden mechanism reasoning. Second, the naming performances were aligned differently for American and Chinese students. Students in both groups showed more Level 3 and 4 naming performances than explaining performances, but the difference was much larger for Chinese students. This indicates that although Chinese students learned to repeat more scientific facts and definitions, they still relied on force-dynamic reasoning to explain the events.
Introduction
As United States and China become the top two carbon emitters in the world, it is important to investigate how students from these two countries understand the issue of global warming. Global warming, as a large-scale issue, is the collective effect of a variety of macroscopic events such as plant growth, car running, and so on. Underlying these macroscopic events are three key carbon cycling processesphotosynthesis that generates organic carbon and harnesses energy, digestion & biosynthesis that transform organic carbon-containing materials and pass on chemical energy, cellular respiration and combustion that oxidize organic carbon and degrades energy through heat dissipation. All these processes are constrained by three fundamental matter and energy principles matter conservation, energy conservation, and energy degradation. This scientific understanding is very important for ordinary people to connect global warminga large-scale issuewith their daily activities of energy consumption.
This research focuses on students understanding of carbon cycling as it relates to the large-scale issue of global warming. In particular, we investigate students understanding of carbon cycling through analyzing their explanations of six focal environmental events: plant growth, animal/people growth, (animal/people) body movement, tree decaying, flame burning, and car running. These events cover the major events that contribute to increasing or decreasing global warming. They are explained by the three key carbon cycling processes that are constrained by fundamental matter and energy principles.
Our research questions are:
1. How do American and Chinese students account for the focal macroscopic events about global warming? What are the possible trajectories for them to reach the goal scientific reasoning?
2. As American students and Chinese students are from different educational contexts, do they experience different learning trajectories? How are their learning trajectories similar or different?
Literature review and research background
In this research, we adopt the approach of learning progression (LP) to answer the research questions. A learning progression is a sequence of successively more sophisticated ways of reasoning about a set of topics as students expand their experience in and out of school over time ADDIN EN.CITE Smith200622217Smith, Carol L.Wiser, MarianneAnderson, Charles W.Krajcik, JosephImplications of research on children's learning for standards and assessment: a proposed learning progression for matter and the atomic-molecular theoryMeasurement: Interdisciplinary Research & PerspectiveMeasurement: Interdisciplinary Research & Perspective1-9841 & 22006(Smith, Wiser, Anderson, & Krajcik, 2006). We conducted an interview study to elicit students accounts, based on which we developed a carbon cycling LP that describes the learning trajectories of American and Chinese students.
Literature Review
This research focuses on six focal environmental events. In both countries, people have rich experience with these events. Literature in linguistics and developmental psychology suggests that people rely on specific ways of reasoning to explain the everyday events they experience. These specific ways of reasoning are constantly constructed through two interactionsinteraction with the material world and social interactions.
People construct specific ways of reasoning based on their direct interactions with the material world; the tacit casual reasoning about the nature of the material world constantly guide peoples explanations ADDIN EN.CITE ADDIN EN.CITE.DATA (Chi, 2005; diSessa, 1987; Grotzer & Bell, 1999; Pozo & Crespo, 2005). Students tend to construct intuitive reasoning based on their observations and perceptions. In the case of explaining environmental events, the observable patterns at the macroscopic scale are not isomorphic with the atomic-molecular mechanisms. For example, although energy can only be perceived when heat, light, movement are involved and cannot be perceived when it is stored in the form of chemical energy, chemical energy is an important energy form involved in the scientific explanations of the events. Although we do not notice gaseous materials, they are important reactants or products in chemical processes. This inconsistency between macroscopic patterns and atomic-molecular mechanisms makes explaining events very challenging.
Social interactions such as communication with other people or media also influence reasoning. Through social interactions, students learn everyday theories (i.e., storylines, images, schemas, metaphors, and models) about the world by using discourses ADDIN EN.CITE Gee19994444446Gee, James PaulAn introduction to discourse analysis : theory and methodviii, 176 p.Discourse analysis.1999London ; New YorkRoutledge0415211867
0415211859 (pbk.)MSU MAIN LIBRARY P302 .G4 1999 DUE 10-24-06(Gee, 1999). Discourses always reflect and are embedded in certain social cultural contexts. Students participate in multiple discourses, including our primary discoursethe ways of thinking and talking that we acquire outside of schooland secondary discourses that students encounter in science classrooms.
There are three useful ideas about discourses. First, in the previous studies of the matter LP and energy LP, we found that American students tend to use a force-dynamic discourse to make accounts. The notion of force-dynamic discourse is borrowed from psychologists work on cognition and linguistics. The idea is that language is a window showing how human minds work. The ways people use language reflect peoples causal reasoning in general; English as a language incorporates force-dynamic causation ADDIN EN.CITE Pinker20075656566Pinker, StevenThe stuff of thought2007New YorkPenguin GroupTalmy20005555556Talmy, LeonardToward a cognitive semanticsLanguage, speech, and communication.2Cognitive grammar.Semantics Psychological aspects.Concepts.2000Cambridge, Mass.MIT Press0262201208 (hc alk. paper)
0262201224
0262201216 (v. 2)MSU MAIN LIBRARY P165 .T35 2000 v.1 Checked in
MSU MAIN LIBRARY P165 .T35 2000 v.2 DUE 10-11-08(Pinker, 2007; Talmy, 2000). The force-dynamic causation describes the force interactions between two macroscopic entities the actor (Agonist in Talmys and Pinkers books) and its enablers. The actor has intrinsic tendency and natural ability towards certain actions, but it may need specific enablers to make the changes happen. For example, a tree is an actor and it has the internal goal and capacity to grow, but it also needs help from its enablers including air, water, soil, and sunlight. Research on younger childrens understanding of biological events and living things confirms this force-dynamics reasoning. There is ample evidence that at the preschool age, young children have constructed a clear notion that living things such as plants and animals have certain self-serving purposes, while artifacts do not; living things always conduct characteristic behaviors to fulfill their goals to maintain a better life and to grow ADDIN EN.CITE ADDIN EN.CITE.DATA (Keil, 1995; Alan M. Leslie, 1994; Alan M. Leslie, 1995).
Second, in both English and Chinese, energy has the same colloquial useenergy is a type of power that can make things happen; it is used up and always need to be replenished. Some examples are: I feel very tired. I ran out of my energy. A good sleep gives me energy. This eight-year-old boy has a lot of energy. He never sits still.
Third, the scientific reasoning reflects a secondary discoursea discourse of constraint. In general scientific reasoning relies on models constrained by principles. In this study, we are especially interested in models that use matter and energy principles to constrain chemical processes. Although various versions of discourse scientists use to state the first and second laws of thermodynamics (energy conservation and energy degradation) and matter conservation usually do not explicitly mention the notion of constraint, this notion is implied in the discourses. As Feynman (1989) points out that the concept of energy was developed because it is a useful quantity that scientists can use to constrain processes and changes. This idea is clearly expressed in Feynmans lecture of physics ADDIN EN.CITE Feynman19893535356Feynman, Richard PhillipsLeighton, Robert B.Sands, Matthew L.The Feynman lectures on physicsv.Physics.1989Redwood City, Calif.Addison-Wesley0201510049 (v. 2)**MSU BIOMED PHYS SCI RES** QC23 .F47 1989 v.1 CHECK SHELF
**MSU BIOMED PHYS SCI RES** QC23 .F47 1989 v.2 CHECK SHELF
**MSU BIOMED PHYS SCI RES** QC23 .F47 1989 v.3 CHECK SHELF
MSU OVERSIZE COLL., BASEMENT QC23 .F47 1989 v.1 c.2 DUE 08-28-06
MSU OVERSIZE COLL., BASEMENT QC23 .F47 1989 v.2 c.2 LOST: TRY ILL +1 HOLD
MSU OVERSIZE COLL., BASEMENT QC23 .F47 1989 v.3 c.2 LOST: TRY ILL +1 HOLD(Feynman, Leighton, & Sands, 1989)(Feynman et al., 1989):
There is a fact, or if you wish a law, governing all natural phenomena that are known to date. There is no known exception to this law-it is exact so far as is known. The law is called the conservation of energy. It says that there is a certain quantity, which we call energy that does not change in the manifold changes which nature undergoes. That is a most abstract idea, because it is a mathematical principle; it says that there is a numerical quantity, which does not change when something happens. It is not a description of a mechanism, or anything concrete; it is just a strange fact that we can calculate some number and when we finish watching nature go through her tricks and calculate the number again, it is the same.
Energy is a quantity that is always conserved whatever changes may happen. In this sense, the concept of energy is a useful tool because it can constrain processes. This is the basic idea expressed by the first law of thermodynamics. The second law of thermodynamics is also about constraint in any processes or events, the amount of useful energy is always decreasing because there is always part of energy transforming into heat. Similarly, the principle of matter conservation is also about constraint, because it highlights that matter cannot be created or destroyed. In summary, the scientific reasoning implies a discourse of constraintusing fundamental matter and energy principles to constrain processes.
Research Background
This research is conducted within the scope of Environmental Literacy Research Project. Our work of comparing American students understanding and Chinese students understanding of carbon cycling is informed by the findings and ideas from previous studies in the research project. In particular, the previous studies provide the foundation for us to develop the carbon cycling LP framework.
In this research we also intend to bridge a gap in the previous studies. The previous studies developed learning progressions based mainly on written assessment data. In written assessments, students usually do not provide detailed explanations. We found that when the questions explicitly asked students to provide accounts about molecules and energy forms, students from lower levels tended to give I dont know type responses. In other words, such written questions are not effective to elicit lower levels explanations. When assessment questions are framed in terms of everyday language (e.g., what does the tree need to grow?), both lower-level and higher-level students tended to give general everyday explanations, which makes it impossible to elicit higher-level students accounts. In this research, we conducted interviews to solve the problem. We designed an interview protocol that elicits students accounts through a sequence of questions. The interview begins with several general questions that both lower-level students and higher-level students are able to answer. More specific higher-level questions will be asked if the students answers to the general questions indicate some understanding of matter or energy.
Our goals in this interview study are:
To develop an interview protocol that effectively reveals secondary students accounts about focal environmental events.
To develop a carbon cycling LP with two learning trajectories to represent how American students and Chinese students progress from their typical informal understanding towards scientific model-based understanding.
In the Environmental Literacy Research Project, we have developed two learning progressions during the past work: a matter LP ADDIN EN.CITE MohanIn Press10101017Mohan, LindseyChen, JingAnderson, C. W.Developing a multi-year learning progression for carbon cycling in socio-ecological systemsJournal of Research in Science TeachingJournal of Research in Science TeachingIn Press(Mohan, Chen, & Anderson, in press) and an energy LP ADDIN EN.CITE Jin200814141447Jin, HuiAnderson, Charles W.A Longitudinal Learning Progression for Energy in Socio-ecological Systems2008 National Association for Research in Science Teaching2008Baltimore, Maryland(Jin & Anderson, 2008). Both learning progressions were developed mainly based on written assessment data. They have four qualitatively different developmental levels, each of which describes patterns of American students understanding of the matter or energy aspect of carbon cycling. In this research, we first developed the hypothetical levels of the carbon cycling LP that integrated both matter LP and energy LP. The levels of the LP only reflect American students understanding of carbon cycling. However, as the starting point, we also use the same levels to code Chinese students understanding of carbon cycling. We discuss below how we have used the interview data to suggest an alternate learning trajectory for Chinese students.
Carbon Cycling LP Framework
The carbon cycling LP describes students understanding of the six focal events: plant growth, animal/people growth, (animal/people) body movement, tree decaying, flame burning, and car running. It has three parts: upper anchor, intermediate levels, and lower anchor. The upper anchor is the scientific understanding of carbon cycling as it relates to global warming. It was developed based on relevant disciplinary big ideas in science and the resent advancement of environmental science. It is the goal for both Chinese students and American students. The lower anchor is defined by younger students informal understanding constructed mostly through their interactions with the material world and the society out of school. Intermediate levels describe students understanding as their intuitive ideas encounter school science learning. In the previous studies of the project, we developed a matter LP and an energy LP. In this study, we used the matter LP and energy LP that was developed in the previous studies of the project as the hypothetical carbon cycling LP. It is about American students understanding of carbon cycling, but, as a starting point, we also use it to code Chinese students responses.
In the hypothetical carbon cycling LP, the lower anchor (Level 1) is force-dynamic reasoning. Data in our previous studies indicate that younger students tend to rely on this force-dynamic reasoning to account for environmental events. They tend to explain events in terms of actors and enablers. The actorthe tree, people, car, and so onalways have the internal intention and capability to make certain events happen. For example, the tree can grow; people can grow and run, cars can run; candles and wood can burn. These actors also need enablers to make the changes happen. For example, the tree needs water, sunlight, and air to grow; people need air, foods, and enough sleep to run; cars need people and gasoline to run.
Level 2 reasoning indicates the emergence of the notions of matter and energy. It is recognized at level 2 that actors need supply of matter or energy and that some enablers are materials and/or energy and can change into other materials, or energy or being used up to power the changes.
Level 3 reasoning is closer to the scientific understanding of matter and energy. It recognizes that changes of molecules and energy forms cause the macroscopic changes, but it usually cannot account for the chemical changes correctly. It also shows the emergence of the discourse of constraintstudents accounts demonstrate the commitment to the conservation laws (i.e., matter conservation and energy conservation). However, level 3 responses usually cannot trace energy and matter separately or trace energy with degradation.
Level 4 reasoning is the scientific reasoning that explains the macroscopic events in terms of chemical changes constrained by the three matter and energy principlesmatter conservation, energy conservation, and energy degradation.
Upper Anchor Loop Diagram
The upper anchor is the goal for high school graduates. It is described in the Loop Diagram (Figure 1). It represents a model-based understanding of carbon cycling. The upper anchor was developed in our previous studies in the project. It was developed based on ideas of the Long-Term Ecological Research ADDIN EN.CITE LTER200720202027Long Term Ecological Research Network Research Initiatives Subcommittee LTERIntegrative science for society and environment: A strategic research plan2007(LTER, 2007). The core idea is tracing matter and energy across multiple scales. At macroscopic scale, a variety of events are related to global warming. The Loop Diagram highlights understanding these events from two aspects. On the one hand, all of the macroscopic events are governed by three carbon cycling processes, which are constrained by fundamental principles of matter and energy (i.e., matter conservation, energy conservation, and energy degradation). This idea is elaborated as below:
Photosynthesis generates organic carbon and harnesses energy from sunlight. Relevant events are plant growing, inhaling air, absorbing water from soil, and using sunlight.
Digestion & biosynthesis transform organic carbon and pass on chemical potential energy. Relevant events are animal eating food and animal growth.
Cellular respiration and combustion oxide organic carbon to release energy for consumption. Relevant events are weight loss, and people doing exercises, car running, and burning candle.
On the other hand, the macroscopic events collectively cause global warming through carbon cycling processes. Photosynthesis is the only process that removes atmospheric carbon. Human energy consumption activities largely rely on cellular respiration and combustion, which emit carbon into the atmosphere.
Figure 1. Loop Diagram
research method
We conducted an interview study to investigate students accounts about the six focal events: Plant Growth, Animal/People Growth, (Animal/People) Body Movement, Tree Decaying, Flame Burning, and Car Running. We adopt an iterative process that contains four stages:
1. Develop/revise/refine the learning progression;
2. Develop/revise/refine interview protocol;
3. Conduct interview and collect data
4. Use the learning progression to analyze interview data.
Findings from stage 4data analysisare used to inform the process of revising and refining interview questions and learning progression. All interviews were videotaped. The first and second authors understand both English and Chinese. They coded Chinese interviews directly from the videotapes and did not translate them into English.
Research Participants and Data Sources
In China, we interviewed 23 students from two secondary schools located in the southeastern China. In one middle school, 4 seventh graders, 5 eighth graders, and 4 ninth graders attended the research. In one high school, 3 tenth graders, 4 eleventh graders, and 3 twelfth graders attended the research. In US, we also interviewed 31 secondary students. Middle school students are 7 seventh graders and 7 sixth graders from two public schools located in California. High school student participants are from two public schools in Michigan. They are 6 ninth graders from a rural school and eleven 10th graders from the math and science center. Students from the math and science center were college-bound students who went to the center to take AP biology courses. They have higher-than-average performance in US. During the process of data analysis, we found that the secondary students provided very few level 1 responses. In order to develop level 1 of the learning progression, we also interviewed 2 elementary students (4th graders) from one American suburban school in Michigan.
The samplings of students in both countries are not representative. The numbers of students from different grade levels are not the same. The intention of this research is to understand students understanding of carbon cycling in both countries and how their understandings develop. We do not intend to compare the achievement levels of students in US and China.
Interview Protocol
The interview focuses on six focal events: Plant Growth, Animal/People Growth, (Animal/People) Body Movement, Tree Decaying, Flame Burning, and Car Running. The interview protocol asks students to explain why and how each event happens. We first ask all students a set of general questions, which are about how and why the macroscopic changes happen. If the students responses to general questions show some understanding of matter and energy, we will ask a set of higher-level questions. These higher-level questions investigate whether and how students understand the chemical processes and use principles to constrain processes. The interview protocol was constantly revised during the research. Below is an example of questions we asked in the final interview about the event of tree growth.
Tree GrowingA small tree was planted in a meadowAfter 20 years it has grown into a big tree, weighing 500 lb more than when it was planted.
Questions for students from all levels
What does the tree need in order to grow?
How does each of the things you mentioned help the tree to grow? What happens to it inside the tree? Does the tree use it for energy? How does that work?
The tree gets heavier as it grows. How does that happen?
Does the growing tree change the air? How does that happen?
Questions for students who have some understanding of matter and energy
If the increased weight comes from outside the tree, where does it come from? How do these things change into the trees body structure?
Does tree growth require energy? What are the energy sources for the tree?
Do you think the energy of sunlight will change its form when it goes into the trees body? How? Where does the tree store energy? In cells? In molecules?
Data Analysis
The hypothetical carbon cycling LP described in Diagram 1 provides information for us to understand students characteristic understanding about environmental events. Based on that, we examined the interview data and identified patterns of students understanding. A major finding in the process of data analysis led to a significant change of the LP framework. We found that students explanations can be categorized into two aspects of performancenaming and explaining. Some students were able to name the relevant scientific knowledge such as processes, concepts, and principles, while they could not successfully apply the knowledge to construct qualitative explanations of the events. The data from American students and Chinese students show similar levels in the performances of naming and explaining. Hence, we developed a coding system that distinguishes two aspects of performancesnaming and explaining, each of which involves both matter and energy understanding.
After we identified performance patterns, we ordered these patterns into sequences. The patterns of the naming performances were ordered by their relevance to the scientific knowledge about the key chemical reactions and matter/energy principles. The patterns of explaining performances are ordered by their qualitatively different ways of reasoning. We used a set of exemplar worksheets to describe these two sequences of performance patterns (naming and explaining), with each exemplar worksheet describe either the naming performances of the explaining performances about one focal event. Altogether, there are 12 exemplar worksheets. Table 1 and table 2 are the exemplar worksheets for the event of tree growth. Table 1 is about the naming performance and table 2 is about the explaining performance. Both tables contains description of characteristic performances at each level and examples selected from interview data.
Table 1. Exemplar worksheets for Tree Growth (Naming Performances)
LevelNaming4Describe all reactants and products in photosynthesis.
Describe light energy transforming into chemical energy.
Example: Glucose is produced form photosynthesis. It uses CO2, H2O and sunlight. The corn plants will become heavier. Sunlight energy goes to the plants. It is used to make glucose.3Describe molecules (e.g., glucose, ATP) involved in the process of photosynthesis.
Describe light energy but not chemical energy.
Example: Photosynthesis, carbon dioxide becomes oxygen. Plants use oxygen to make glucose.
Plants take CO2 in and they make CO2 into glucose
Example: Energy came from photosynthesis. Sunlight provides energy for the plant to grow.2Describe hidden process of plants making food.
Example: Plants need carbon dioxide and sunlight to grow. Sunlight and water are necessary for this event.1Describe life cycle of the tree, body parts of the tree, or the behaviors of the tree.
Example: Im pretty sure with the leaves, the leaves attract the sunlight and its like food to them, so thats how they grow. And I think its the same with the tree.
Table 2,. Exemplar worksheets for Tree Growth (Explaining Performances)
Level Explaining 4Explain macroscopic events in terms of chemical processes constrained by matter and energy principles
Indicate a scientific discourse of tracing matter and energy in photosynthesis.
Example: The sunlight is energy. The energy is used and transformed. The CO2 and water are used to make glucose molecule. Use glucoses to grow. They use energy in the glucose like ATP to grow. The light energy goes into the bonds of glucose molecules.
Example: The light energy transforms into chemical energy stored in glucose.3Explain plant growth in terms of matter-energy conversion in photosynthesis.
Explain plant growth in terms of photosynthesis and mention part not all reactants and products of photosynthesis.
Example: Plants grow, get bigger, and create their own food via photosynthesis taking in the light to create sugars to keep plants growing.2Explain growth as that materials absorbed from soil change into body structure.
Describe the gas exchange (oxygen carbon dioxide)
Indicate a discourse of power: light powers the process of tree making food/energy.
Example: Water, sunlight and air Water, sunlight and air mix together in the plants and use them to grow and then they disappear.
Example: Sunlight makes photosynthesis to happen.1Recognize that the tree grows bigger over time;
Recognize that the tree requires certain conditions to survive without describing any hidden processes.
Use force-dynamic discourse: Tree has the internal capacity and intention to grow, but need enablers to fulfill its goals.
Example: Water, nutrition, and carbon dioxide; they are from the air; I dont know how they are formed
Example: The water helps it grow bigger and the sunlight, it needs light just like us to grow, and the soil, thats where it is originally to live.
The exemplar worksheets then were used to code all students interview transcripts. Altogether, there are 56 transcripts including 33 American transcripts and 23 Chinese transcripts. Data from American students and Chinese students were coded separately. In the coding process, we first divided each students transcripts into several units of analysis. Each unit of analysis contains the questions and students responses about one focal event. For each unit of analysis, we used the exemplar sheets as the rubrics to decide the level of the naming performance and the level of the explaining performance. When problems or disagreement emerged, the exemplar worksheets were revised accordingly. The same students level of naming performance may be different from his or her level of explaining performance. Also, we focus on students accounts for each event and do not make arguments on the coherence of students understanding across events.
After we finished coding all the transcripts, we generated tables to represent the alignment of naming performances and explaining performances for American and Chinese students. The tables indicate that although American students and Chinese students demonstrate similar patterns in naming and explaining performances, the patterns in the two aspects are aligned differently. This finding led to the development of the two learning trajectories for American students and Chinese students in the carbon cycling LP.
Findings
Our data indicate that students explanations can be analyzed from two aspects of performancenaming and explaining. The final carbon cycling LP contains two learning trajectories that share the same goal of scientific performance in naming relevant scientific processes, concepts, and principles and in using these scientific processes, concepts, and principles to make accounts (level 4), but have different lower and intermediate levels. At each of the lower and intermediate levels, the patterns of naming and the patterns of explaining are aligned differently for American students and Chinese students.
Naming and Explaining
The interview data indicate that students from both countries show similar patterns of understanding and their understanding can be analyzed by two aspects of performancenaming and explaining. Naming refers to the performance of naming relevant knowledge including scientific facts, principles, and concepts learned from the science classrooms or other resources. Our data indicate that students from different grade levels tend to state different knowledge about environmental events. Students from lower grade levels tend to state knowledge about perceptions and macroscopic changes such as parts of organisms and machines, life cycles, and so on. Students from higher grade levels often state science knowledge about chemical changes and matter/energy. For example, they may mention matter conservation; specific molecules involved in the change, or name the chemical reactions. Our data also indicate that many Chinese high school students are able to identify relevant science knowledge such as the naming the relevant chemical reactions, familiar molecules, and energy forms, but they cannot successfully apply the knowledge to explain the events.
Explaining refers to the performance of applying knowledge or intuitive ideas to explain events. Scientists apply scientific processes, concepts, and processes to explain macroscopic events. Laypeople also seek explanations to account for their daily observations, but their accounts often rely on intuitive ideas. A core difference between scientific explanations and laypeoples everyday explanations is that they rely on different ways of reasoning. As elaborated in literature review, scientific explanations of environmental events imply a scientific reasoning that accounts for macroscopic events in terms of atomic-molecular processes and principles and a scientific discourse of constraint. However, students everyday explanations of the events indicate their intuitive ways of reasoning. Our data indicate several patterns of intuitive ways of reasoning. Students tend to explain macroscopic events in terms of macroscopic causes, hidden mechanisms, or change of molecules or energy forms. Their accounts also imply that students rely on different types of discourse including force-dynamic discourse, a discourse of power, or a discourse of unsuccessful constraint, to account for events.
Levels of the Carbon Cycling LP
In this section, we describe the detailed levels of the carbon cycling LP. Our finding is that, although American students and Chinese students are from different social and cultural contexts, their explanations of the six focal events indicate similar patterns of performances. Since the data collected from secondary students did not provide any level 1 type accounts, we also interviewed two elementary students. The level 1 of the learning progression was developed based on the interview data from the two American elementary students. Thus, it only represents American students understanding.
In this part of the paper, we use episodes from interview data to describe the patterns of students naming and explaining performances at each level of the LP. Similar patterns are identified from data from both countries. These patterns were ordered in sequences. The patterns of the naming performances were ordered by their relevance to the scientific knowledge about the key chemical reactions and matter/energy principles. The patterns of explaining performances are ordered by their qualitatively different ways of reasoning. In the episodes, I refers to the investigator. The student is labeled by a capital letter (A or C) and a number. A refers to American student. C refers to Chinese student. The number is used to distinguish different students.
Naming Performances
Level 1. Knowledge of Observations and Perceptions
Episode 1
I: What does the tree need in order to grow?
A1: Sun, water, soil, and thats it. I think.
I: You said that a tree needs sunlight, water, do you think that these things help the tree to grow in the same way, in other words are they alike or different?
A1: The water helps it grow bigger and the sunlight, it needs light just like us to grow, and the soil, thats where it is originally to live.
I: What happens to the sunlight inside of the tree?
A1: (silent)
I: How about water? What happens to the water inside the tree?"
A1: It sucks into the roots and then it [water] goes up, so it can make the leaves and the branches grow.
I: What happens to the soil inside a tree?
A1: I dont think a tree has soil in it, I think its just to put it there and thats where they live.
I: How does the tree use sunlight for energy?
A1: Im pretty sure with the leaves, the leaves attract the sunlight and its like food to them, so thats how they grow. And I think its the same with the tree.
Level 1 naming performance includes stating knowledge about body parts, machine parts, needs of plants and animals, and life cycle. In episode 1, the American student (A1) tells stories about needs of plants. He identifies a set of needs of plants including sun, water, and soil. He describes these needs in terms of relevant macroscopic observation rather than any unobservable mechanisms, or matter, or energy. Even when energy is mentioned in the question, the student does not respond how light is related to energy. Instead, he continued to describe the macroscopic observation that leaves attract the sunlight. In this sense, the student is not able to name any higher level knowledge.
Level 2. Science narratives about hidden processes, familiar substances, or familiar evidence of energy.
These patterns appear in both American and Chinese interview data. Below we use interview episodes from both American students and Chinese students to explain these patterns.
Episode 2
I: How do foods and water help the animals body to grow?
C1: Their cells absorb these nutrient materials and grow.
I: How does that happen?
C1: They all need certain temperature. In our country, if the temperature is above 40 centigrade, people will not feel good.
I: You said that people need oxygen. How do peoples bodies use oxygen?
C1: People have lungs. Their biological activities require oxygen. Oxygen helps activities. Without oxygen, they feel tired and cannot do things. Oxygen goes to lungs and then bloods to facilitate the movement of blood.
Episode 3
I: What do plants need in order to grow?
C2: Sunlight helps photosynthesis.
I: Does it need energy?
C2: They [Plants] dont need energy. They only need sunlight for photosynthesis.
Episode 4
I: What do corn plants need in order to grow?
A2: Water, sunlight and air Water, sunlight and air mix together in the plants and use them to grow and then they disappear.
I: Does this process change air?
A2: They take in carbon dioxide and produce 'air' that help people to breathe.
Level 2 naming performance is describing relevant hidden processes, naming familiar processes (e.g., plants making foods, burning gasoline, etc.), familiar substances (e.g., carbon dioxide and oxygen), cells, or familiar organs (e.g., lungs, intestine, etc.), and associating energy with obvious energy evidence (e.g., light, heat, and movement). However, more specific knowledge about molecules (e.g., some organic molecules) and stored energy (e.g., chemical energy) does not appear at this level. For example, in the above episodes, C1 is able to describe oxygen movement inside the body including oxygen moving to the lung and then going to blood. C1 also uses the knowledge of cell to answer the questions. C2 mentions photosynthesis. A2 uses a familiar science narrativethe hidden process of plant making food.
Level 3. Naming specific molecules, energy forms, or chemical changes
Episode 5
I: What will cause the dead tree to decay?
C4: Microbes and oxygen.
I: How does this change happen?
C4: I dont know.
Episode 6
I: Your dad drove you to Yangzhou after you finished the final. When you arrived there, your dad found that most gasoline is gone. Where does the gasoline go?
C5: The gasoline change into kinetic energy to move the car.
Episode 7:
I: Are there any materials changing when corn plants are growing?
A4: Glucose, starch are changing, ATP is energy in cells, is changing.
I: How do the corn plants change air?
A4: Plants take CO2 in and they make CO2 into glucose.
Episode 8:
I: Can you identify any of the substances or materials that are changing during this event? What are they?
A5: The fat or lipids are broken down because energy is breaking down these. The fat is break down into energy.
Level 3 responses mention specific molecules and energy forms, chemical changes, or conservation laws. For example, C4 mentions microbes and oxygen in the process of decomposition, although he also said that he did not know how this could happen. C5 mentions the specific energy formkinetic energy. A4 and A5 mentions specific molecules such as glucose, starch, ATP, and lipids. The molecules, energy forms, and chemical processes are necessary to explain the how and why the macroscopic focal events happen.
Level 4. Correctly naming molecules of all reactants and products, all relevant energy forms, and chemical processes
Episode 9
I: What change is happening when the flame is burning?
C6: Chemical reactions.
I: What kind of chemical reaction?
C6: Burning produces carbon dioxide and water.
I: What change will happen to the wax?
C6: Physical change. The wax melts. Some wax is burned. Its chemical change.
I: What does it need to burn?
C6: Oxygen, wood, and reaching the temperature of combustion.
I: When the wax and wood are burned, where do them go?
C6: Air, becomes carbon dioxide and water.
Episode 10
I: When candle is burning, heat is released. Where does the heat come from?
C7: The candle has chemical energy. When it is burning, the chemical energy transforms into heat and light energy.
Episode 11
I: What changes when this event [corn plants growing] happens?
A6: The dark reactions will create glucose. The corn uses energy to perform cellular tasks. Carbon dioxide is required and water also. Glucose and oxygen are produced.
I: What changes when the tree decays?
A6: Carbon in the tree is been broken down into smaller and smaller molecules. It needs oxygen for cellular respiration. The tree energy goes into the organisms that decaying the tree. It then goes into the air. The products of cellular respiration go to the air.
I: What happens to the gasoline when the car is climbing the hill?
A6: Gasoline will still be matter. It is burned for energy in the engine. The gasoline becomes exhaust, carbon dioxide and water. Energy powers the motor.
Level 4 naming performance is that the responses mention molecules of reactants and products of chemical changes and correctly describe the three matter and energy principles. In the episodes above, C6 correctly describes the reactants and products of combustion; C7 correctly describes energy transformation; A6 correctly describe the reactants and products in both cellular respiration and combustion.
Although data from both countries show common patterns at level 4, Chinese students science narratives contain more detailed scientific knowledge. Chinese students show more tendencies to describe specific conditions for chemical changes or specific materials involved in chemical changes. One example comes from level 4 science narratives about photosynthesis. A common level 4 science narrative stated by Chinese students is: With the help from sunlight, plants use carbon dioxide, water, and inorganic nutrients to make organic substances and oxygen. A typical level 4 science narrative about photosynthesis from American students is: Glucose is produced form photosynthesis. It [photosynthesis] uses carbon dioxide, water, and sunlight. The Chinese science narrative involves inorganic nutrients, but the American narrative does not involve that. A possible reason of this difference is that American schools teach core reactants and products of bio-chemical processes, while Chinese schools intend to teach as much details about these complex processes as possible. In this case, although inorganic nutrients are required in photosynthesis, they are not the major contributor of the increased plant body structure. So, inorganic nutrients are usually not mentioned when American teachers are teaching photosynthesis. However, in Chinese middle and high school textbooks, inorganic nutrients are mentioned with carbon dioxide and water as the reactants of photosynthesis in the overall process of plant growth.
Explaining Performances
Level 1. Macroscopic changes explained by force-dynamic causation
Episode 1
I: What does the tree need in order to grow?
A1: Sun, water, soil, and thats it. I think.
I: You said that a tree needs sunlight, water, do you think that these things help the tree to grow in the same way, in other words are they alike or different?
A1: The water helps it grow bigger and the sunlight, it needs light just like us to grow, and the soil, thats where it is originally to live.
I: What happens to the sunlight inside of the tree?
A1: (silent)
I: How about water? What happens to the water inside the tree?"
A1: It sucks into the roots and then it [water] goes up, so it can make the leaves and the branches grow.
I: What happens to the soil inside a tree?
A1: I dont think a tree has soil in it, I think its just to put it there and thats where they live.
I: How does the tree use sunlight for energy?
A1: Im pretty sure with the leaves, the leaves attract the sunlight and its like food to them, so thats how they grow. And I think its the same with the tree.
Level 1 responses explain macroscopic events in terms of macroscopic causes and indicate a force-dynamics discourse. In episode 1, student A1 relies on observations and perceptions to explain the event of plant growth. He does not recognize that the macroscopic event of growth is cause by any hidden mechanisms. For example, when being asked what happens to sunlight inside the tree, he was not able to provide any explanations. When being asked how water changes inside the tree, he states that the physical movement of water inside the tree causes plant growth. There is no description on any hidden mechanisms about how materials/energy from environment becomes the body structure or energy of the tree. This students accounts also imply a force-dynamic discourse: the event of plant growth is explained in terms of actor and its enablers: the tree is the actor that always has the capacity and intention to grow, but it needs enablers including water, soil, and sunlight to fulfill its goal of growth; the interactions between the actor and its enablers are like physical push-and-pull. This discourse is obvious in the following response: The water helps it grow bigger and the sunlight, it needs light just like us to grow, and the soil, thats where it is originally to live.
Level 2. Hidden mechanism and Power
Episode 2
I: How do foods and water help the animals body to grow?
C1: Their cells absorb these nutrient materials and grow.
I: How does that happen?
C1: They all need certain temperature. In our country, if the temperature is above 40 centigrade, people will not feel good.
I: You said that people need oxygen. How do peoples bodies use oxygen?
C1: People have lungs. Their biological activities require oxygen. Oxygen helps activities. Without oxygen, they feel tired and cannot do things. Oxygen goes to lungs and then bloods to facilitate the movement of blood.
Episode 3
I: What do plants need in order to grow?
C2: Sunlight helps photosynthesis.
I: Does it need energy?
C2: They [Plants] dont need energy. They only need sunlight for photosynthesis.
Episode 4
I: How does the food you eat help you to move your little finger?
C3: Foods change into energy to move your finger.
I: Where does the energy of running come from?
C3: Energy of running comes from foods and water.
Episode 5
I: What do corn plants need in order to grow?
A2: Water, sunlight and air Water, sunlight and air mix together in the plants and use them to grow and then they disappear.
I: Does this process change air?
A2: They take in carbon dioxide and produce 'air' that help people to breathe.
Episode 6
I: What is the energy source (for the car to climbing the hill)?
A3: Energy source is gasoline and it is used up and (becomes) exhaust.
Level 2 responses explain macroscopic events in terms of hidden processes involving materials/energy and indicate a discourse of power. First, level 2 responses use unobservable hidden processes and mechanisms to explain the macroscopic events. Some typical hidden processes and mechanisms are: energy or some specific materials such as oxygen and gasoline power unobservable changes; ingredients are mixed together to make foods/fuels; Material or energy is used up or becomes waste to make changes happen. For example, C2 explains the macroscopic event of plant growth in terms of a hidden processphotosynthesis with help from sunlight. When being asked about energy, the response of C2 indicates that she does not recognize that sunlight provides energy for photosynthesis. C3 describes a hidden process that food is converted into energy to make the body move. A2 describes two hidden processes. He explains plant growth in terms of the process that plants mix ingredients including water, air, and sunlight together. He also describes the process of gas exchange: plants take in carbon dioxide and produce oxygen/air for people to use. A3 describes a hidden process that gasoline/energy is partly used up and partly changes into exhaust.
Second, level 2 responses indicate that energy is conflated with ability or power. They tend to treat energy and some specific materials such as water, oxygen, gasoline, and nutrients as power. These things can be used up or become waste after they are used. This is related to the colloquial use of energy. Unlike the scientific understanding of energy, the colloquial use of energy in both English and Chinese indicates a notion of power: energy or certain materials such as foods, fuels, water, nutrients, oxygen, etc. can power body movement, growth, and machine movement; they can make things happen, but will be used up or become waste; so they always need to be replenished. For example, C3 describes a hidden process that requires certain power to happenfoods change into energy to power the body movement. A3 explains the event of car running as being caused by gasoline/energy is used up to power the car running.
Level 3. Processes with unsuccessful constraints
Episode 7
I: What will cause the dead tree to decay?
C4: Microbes and oxygen.
I: How does this change happen?
C4: I dont know.
Episode 8
I: Your dad drove you to Yangzhou after you finished the final. When you arrived there, your dad found that most gasoline is gone. Where does the gasoline go?
C5: The gasoline change into kinetic energy to move the car.
Episode 9:
I: Are there any materials changing when corn plants are growing?
A4: Glucose, starch are changing, ATP is energy in cells, is changing.
I: How do the corn plants change air?
A4: Plants take CO2 in and they make CO2 into glucose.
Episode 10:
I: Can you identify any of the substances or materials that are changing during this event? What are they?
A5: The fat or lipids are broken down because energy is breaking down these. The fat is break down into energy.
Level 3 responses explain macroscopic events in terms of changes of molecules and energy forms and indicate a discourse of unsuccessful constraints. First, level 3 responses show a general recognition that macroscopic changes are cause by changes of molecules and energy forms, but the notion of chemical reaction is lacking. These responses do not describe chemical changes as atom-rearrangement. Neither do they distinguish between the change of molecules and change of energy forms. For example, A4 states that plants change air by taking carbon dioxide in and making carbon dioxide into glucose. This account indicates that A4 recognizes chemical change as a change involving molecules, but she does not treat chemical change as atom re-arrangement.
Second, level 3 responses also indicate a general commitment to conservation laws, but they cannot constraint the processes successfully. Usually, they cannot trace matter and energy separately or trace energy with degradation. For example, C5 and A5 both rely on matter-energy conversion to make accounts. Instead of conserve matter and energy separately, they conserve the total amount of matter and energy. C5 recognizes that the gasoline must go somewhere. However, by stating that gasoline change into kinetic energy to move the car, he uses matter-energy conversion to constrain the process. A5 relies on matter-energy conversion by stating that fat or lipids breaks down into energy.
Level 4. Scientific model-based understanding
Level 4 responses explain macroscopic events in terms of chemical reactions constrained by the three principles of matter and energy and indicate a discourse of scientific constraints. The Loop Diagram introduced before elaborates level 4 understanding. There are also level 4 responses from both American and Chinese students. In particular, the American students who reached level 4 understanding were students from the math and science center. They had finished the curriculum developed by the Environmental Literacy Research Project before they attended the interviews. The curriculum focuses on matter transformation in biological processes.
Episode 11
I: What change is happening when the flame is burning?
C6: Chemical reactions.
I: What kind of chemical reaction?
C6: Burning produces carbon dioxide and water.
I: What change will happen to the wax?
C6: Physical change. The wax melts. Some wax is burned. Its chemical change.
I: What does it need to burn?
C6: Oxygen, wood, and reaching the temperature of combustion.
I: When the wax and wood are burned, where do them go?
C6: Air, becomes carbon dioxide and water.
Episode 12
I: When candle is burning, heat is released. Where does the heat come from?
C7: The candle has chemical energy. When it is burning, the chemical energy transforms into heat and light energy.
Episode 13
I: What changes when this event [corn plants growing] happens?
A6: The dark reactions will create glucose. The corn uses energy to perform cellular tasks. Carbon dioxide is required and water also. Glucose and oxygen are produced.
I: What changes when the tree decays?
A6: Carbon in the tree is been broken down into smaller and smaller molecules. It needs oxygen for cellular respiration. The tree energy goes into the organisms that decaying the tree. It then goes into the air. The products of cellular respiration go to the air.
I: What happens to the gasoline when the car is climbing the hill?
A6: Gasoline will still be matter. It is burned for energy in the engine. The gasoline becomes exhaust, carbon dioxide and water. Energy powers the motor.
Level 4 responses explain macroscopic events in terms of chemical reactions (carbon cycling processes) that are constrained by matter and energy principles. For example, when being asked where the wood and wax go in burning, C6 responds that they become carbon dioxide and water. He successfully links the atomic-molecular chemical reaction with the macroscopic observation of mass decrease. A6 correctly describes matter transformation in cellular respiration and combustion and successfully connects them with the macroscopic change of mass decrease. C7 successfully link the energy transformation with the macroscopic perception that heat is released.
Level 4 responses also indicate a discourse of successful constraint. In particular, matter and energy are conserved separately instead of being conserved together; energy conservation is correctly associated with degradation. For example, C6 and A6 successfully constrain matterconserving matter separately from energy. C7 successfully constrain energyconserving energy separately from matter and with heat dissipation.
The final version of LP is represented in Figure 2 below:
Figure 2. Final Version of the Carbon Cycling LP
Alignment of Naming Performances and Explaining Performances
The LP is described by the 12 exemplar worksheets, each of which describes characteristic naming or explaining performances for one event. The exemplar worksheets were developed and refined in the process of data analysis. After we developed the final version of the exemplar worksheets, we used them as the rubric to score responses from both American and Chinese students. The same students may demonstrate different levels of performances in naming and explaining or in different events. This work generates two figures about alignment of naming performances and explaining performances for American students and Chinese students.
These two figures show two patterns. First, American and Chinese students explaining performances were very similar, with a majority of each group at level 2 relying primarily on hidden mechanism reasoning. This reasoning is implied and embedded in peoples everyday experience with the material world and discourses. This indicates that the school science learning in both countries does not effectively help students to develop the ability of applying scientific knowledge (processes, concepts, and principles) to qualitatively explain environmental events. Hence, most secondary students still tend to rely on everyday reasoning to understand these events.
Second, naming performances were aligned differently for American and Chinese students. Students in both groups showed more Level 3 and 4 naming performances than explaining performances, but the difference was much larger for Chinese students. This indicates that although Chinese students learned to repeat more scientific facts and definitions, they still relied on level 2 hidden mechanisms reasoning to explain the events. This pattern is also confirmed by the qualitative data analysis in the first step. For example, many Chinese students were able to correctly describe the formula of photosynthesis, but they also claimed that the increased mass of the tree came from materials the tree absorbed from the soil. Obviously, they could not link the formula of photosynthesis with the event of tree growth. The different alignments of naming and explaining performances show the two different learning trajectories for American students and Chinese students.
contribution and limitation
A major contribution of this research is the learning progression, which represents students understanding of carbon cycling in terms two aspects of performancenaming and explaining. The learning progression provides information on students characteristic understanding of carbon cycling and their common ways of reasoning.
It also provides implications and suggestions for teaching. One important implication is that conventional teaching in both US and China tends to emphasize knowledge transmission but ignores students ability of applying knowledge and developing scientific reasoning. As the result, although students are able to identify relevant knowledge required to explain the events, they still rely on their intuitive everyday reasoning to make accounts. In particular, current teaching in science classrooms represents scientific knowledge through sets of school science narratives. The school science narratives not only neglect students ways of knowing but also represent scientific knowledge in fragmented and compartmentalized ways. They usually make students even more confused. Even students are able to state the school science narratives they probably cannot use them to construct qualitative explanations. For example, in current K-12 biology curricula, a set of handful school science narratives are taught to make energy concept easier and useful to explain biological events. Some examples are: energy flows in food chain; plants use light energy to make food; only about 10% energy is passed on to the next tropic level of the energy pyramid. These narratives are usually taught without addressing their connection to the two fundamental principles of energy. As the result, students seldom apply the energy principles to account for biological events ADDIN EN.CITE ADDIN EN.CITE.DATA (Barak, Gorodetsky, & Chipman, 1997; Carlsson, 2002a, 2002b; Leach, Driver, Scott, & Wood-Robinson, 1996; Lin & Hu, 2003). Hence, we call for researchers and educators to develop more meaningful pedagogical approaches to effectively facilitate students progress in explaining performances.
A major limitation of this research is that it lacks data for the development of the lower anchor. In particular, only two American students are involved in this research and there are no Chinese elementary students involved. In our next step of research, we will interview more elementary students in both countries to gain data to develop the lower anchor of the carbon cycling LP.
reference
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Appendix. Interview Protocol
Tree GrowthA small oak tree was planted in a meadowAfter 20 years it has grown into a big tree, weighing 250 kg more than when it was planted.General questions for all students:
What does the tree need in order to grow? (Ask the student: anything else? And try to help s/he to list all the enablers such as water, sunlight, materials from the soil, and air)
Do you think that the tree need water to grow? How does the tree use water to grow? What will happen to the water, when it is inside the tree?
Do you think that the tree need air to grow? How does the tree use air to grow? What will happen to the air, when it is inside the tree?
Do you think that the tree need sunlight to grow? How does the tree use sunlight to grow? What will happen to the sunlight, when it is inside the tree?
Do you think that the tree need soil to grow? How dose the tree use soil to grow? What will happen to the soil, when it is inside the tree?
Follow-up Questions for higher level students:
Matter:
Do you think the mass of the tree can naturally increase? Or, do you think that the increased mass must be changed from other things?
If the increased mass is changed from other things, what are those things? How do these things change into the trees body structure?
What is happening inside a trees tissues and cells as the tree grows?
Do you think that the tree is made of cells? Are the cells made of molecules? Why?
Energy:
What are the energy sources for the tree? How do you know that the things you mentioned contain energy?
Where do the tree store energy in its body? Do you think that the tree stores energy in the cells? Where is the energy in the cells?
A Baby Girl GrowingThe baby weighed 22 lb when she was 5 months old.The baby has grown into a big girl, weighing 50 lb.
General Questions:
What does the baby need in order to grow? (Ask the student: anything else? And try to help s/he to list all the enablers such as food, water, air, sunlight, and exercising)
Do you think that the baby girl need water to grow? How does the baby girl use water to grow? What will happen to water, when it inside the girls body.
Do you think that the baby girl need air to grow? How does the baby girl use air to grow? What will happen to the air, when it is inside the girls body?
Do you think that the baby girl need food to grow? How does the baby girl use food to grow? What will happen to food when it is inside the girls body?
Follow-up Questions for higher-level students:
Matter:
Do you think the mass of the girls body can naturally increase? If the increased mass is changed from other things, what are those things? How do those things change into the girls body structure?
What kinds of materials are foods? How are they different from other materials that are not foods?
What is happening inside the girls tissues and cells as she grows?
Do you think that the girls body is made of cells? Why? Are the cells made of molecules? Why?
Energy:
What are the energy sources for people? How do you know that these things contain energy?
Where does the girls body store energy? Do you think that the girls body store energy in the cells? Where is the energy in the cells?
A Girl Running
General:
The girl lost a lot of weight by running a lot. How does this happen?
Why does the girl need to breathe? Do you think breathing helps her to run? If yes, how does that happen?
Do you think moving and breathing are related events? Why?
What does the girl need in order to run? (Ask the student: anything else? And try to help s/he to list all the enablers such as food, energy, air, and so on.)
Do you think the food/air the girl ate helps running? If yes, how does the girls body use food to run?
Do you think that the girl needs energy to run? Where does the energy of running come from? If students say energy comes from some sources, ask: How do you know that the things you mentioned contain energy?
Follow-up Questions for higher-level students:
Matter:
The child lost weight by running a lot. Where does the lost materials go? Do they still exist somewhere? If yes, what are those materials now? In what form?
People breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide. How can this change happen? Why do people need oxygen? Where does the oxygen go when it is breathed into the peoples body?
Why do people breathe out carbon dioxide? Where does the carbon dioxide come from?
Energy:
Where does the energy of running come from? Is chemical changes involved? Give as many energy sources and what happens to them as you can.
When the child stops running, where does the energy of running go? Will it still exist somewhere? If yes, what form of energy is it?
Do you think breathing is somehow related to energy? Do you think breathing helps to provide the energy for running? How?
Tree Decaying
A tree falls in the forest. After many years, the tree will appear as a long, soft lump barely distinguishable from the surrounding forest floor.
General questions for all students:
Can you tell me a story about how this happens?
Why do the dead bodies of plants and animals decay?
What cause the changes in the wood?
How does each of the things you mention cause that change?
The tree lost a lot of materials over a long time. Where do you think the lost materials has gone?
Follow-up Questions for higher-level students:
Matter:
What happens to the matter of the wood? Where does the matter that is no longer in the lump has gone? In what form (solid, gas, liquid)?
Do you think chemical changes are happening to wood of the tree? If yes, what are those chemical changes? Could you use molecules to explain your answers?
Energy:
Do you think that the tree contains energy when it was living? If your answer is yes, please explain when the tree dies, what will happen to its energy. How?
Do you think that energy will still exist? If yes, where is it? In what form?
Car Running
Toms family went to Chicago on vacation. When they came back, Toms dad found that their car consumed 50 gallons of gasoline for the trip.
General:
A car can move and a person can also move. How is a car different from a person?
What does the car need in order to run?
Why do people use gasoline instead of water to run their cars?
How does gasoline helps the car to run?
Toms car consumed 50 gallons of gasoline in their trip. Where do you think the gasoline has gone?
Follow-up Questions for higher-level students:
Matter:
What happens to the matter of the gasoline? Where did the 50 gallons of gasoline go? In what form (solid, liquid, or gas)?
Do you think chemical changes are happening to wood of the tree? If yes, what are those chemical changes? Could you use molecules to explain your answers?
Energy:
When the car is moving, it has energy. Where does the energy of motion come from?
When the gasoline tank becomes empty and the car stops, where does the energy of the gasoline go? Do you think that energy still exists somewhere? In what form?
Burning Match
Burning Candle
General Questions for all students:
What does the flame need in order to keep burning?
Do you think the air can help the flame to keep burning? If yes, how does the air help the flame to keep burning?
Do you think the wood/candle can help the flame to keep burning? If yes, how does the wood help the flame to keep burning?
Why can wood burn, but sand and stones cannot burn?
When the wood is burning, it loses weight and becomes smaller. Where does the lost materials go?
Follow-up Questions for higher-level students:
Matter:
What happens to the matter of the wood? Where does it go?
Do you think chemical changes are happening to wood, when it is burning? If yes, what are those chemical changes? Could you use molecules to explain your answers?
Energy:
Heat is released from burning. Where does the heat come from?
This research is supported in part by grants from the National Science Foundation: Developing a Research-based Learning Progression for the Role of Carbon in Environmental Systems (REC 0529636) and Learning Progression on Carbon-Transforming Processes in Socio-Ecological Systems (NSF 0815993). Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.
In China, grade 7, 8, and 9 belong to middle school and grade 10, 11, and 12 belong to high school.
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Level 1 Explaining Performances: Macroscopic changes explained by force-dynamics causation
Explain macroscopic events in terms of macroscopic causes; rely on force-dynamics discourse
Level 1 Naming Performances: Observable and Perceptive Characteristics
State science facts about body/machine parts, organism needs, or life story
Level 2 Explaining Performances: Macroscopic changes explained by hidden mechanisms involving Power
Explain macroscopic events in terms of hidden processes powered by materials/energy and abilities or powers of actors
Level 2 Naming Performances: Hidden processes, familiar substances and obvious energy evidences
State hidden processes such as plants making foods, familiar substances such as sugar, oxygen, and carbon dioxide, and obvious energy evidences
Level 3 Explaining Performances: Processes with unsuccessful constraints
Explain macroscopic events in terms of processes involving molecules and energy forms; indicate awareness of conservation laws without using them successfully
Level 3 Naming Performances: Familiar molecules, energy forms, or chemical changes
State specific molecules, energy forms, or chemical changes
Level 4 Explaining Performances: Scientific model-based understanding
Explain macroscopic events in terms of chemical reactions constrained by the three principles of matter and energy and indicate a discourse of scientific constraints
Level 4 Naming Performances: All relevant Molecules, energy forms, & Chemical processes
State molecules of all reactants and products, all relevant energy forms, and chemical processes
INTERMEDIATE LEVELS
UPPER ANCHOR
LOWER ANCHOR
Human Socio-economic Systems
Atmosphere (Physical Systems)
Composition of air; Atmospheric CO2
Biosphere (Biological Systems)
Biosphere (Biological Systems)
Supply Loop: Foods and fuels provide organic carbon & chemical potential energy for humans
Feedback Loop: Human energy consumption emits inorganic carbon (CO2) & heat into atmosphere/environment
Harnessing energy & organic matter generation in photosynthesis
Energy dissipating & organic matter oxidation in cellular respiration
Environmental Systems
CO2 emission
Foods & Fossil Fuels
Energy passing on & organic matter transformation in digestion & biosynthesis
Energy dissipating & organic matter oxidation in combustion & cellular respiration
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EMBED MSGraph.Chart.8 \s
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