Chemical concept maps in didactic games

Abstract

In the VII grade of primary school the concept of substance is studied from the standpoints of macro- and micro- worlds and symbolism used in chemistry. Such an approach requires the identification, differentiation and generalization of a large number of concepts. The paper describes the use of a didactic game aimed at the internalization of chemical concepts. The game consists of two parts. In the first part students identify the concepts from a list, group them according to the levels (macro-world, micro-world chemical symbolism), and then insert them into the corresponding maps. Recognition of a concept within a concept map frame and the relationships between the concepts, the selection of a concept that connects all concepts in a map, and the identification of the most important concept for chemistry as science by the students are the elements of the second part of the game. The second part enables students to systematize general and specific concepts studied within various chemistry teaching contents for the VII grade. Since the application of such a didactic game is feasible near the end of the academic year, it might serve as a credible indicator of the level of the development of the students' conceptual system relevant for further studies of chemistry.

U VII razredu osnovne škole pojam supstanca razmatra se sa nivoa makrosveta, mikrosveta i hemijske simbolike. Ovakav pristup pojmu supstanca zahteva identifikaciju, diferenciranje i generalizaciju velikog broja pojmova. U radu je prikazana primena vođene didaktičke igre u usvajanju pojmova, koja se sastoji iz dva dela. U prvom delu igre učenici identifikuju pojmove sa zajedničke liste pojmova, diferenciraju ih prema nivou (makrosvet, mikrosvet i hemijska simbolika) i potom ih upisuju u mape pojmova u okviru svakog nivoa. Sagledavanje pojmova u okviru svake mape pojmova, njihovih uzajamnih odnosa, izbor pojma koji povezuje pojmove iste mape, kao i sve tri mape pojmova i učeničko viđenje najvažnijeg pojma za hemijsku nauku su elementi drugog dela igre. Drugi deo igre omogućava sistematizaciju opštih i posebnih pojmova koji su izučavani u različitim nastavnim temama iz hemije u VII razredu. Budući da je realizacija ovakve didaktičke igre moguća na kraju školske godine, ona bi bila dobar pokazatelj izgrađenosti sistema pojmova kod učenika potrebnih za dalje izučavanje hemije.