The role of representation in teaching and learning ideas about matter

The research described in this paper is designed around the notion that learning involves the recognition and development of students’ representational resources. This paper describes a classroom sequence in Ideas about Matter that focuses on representations and their negotiation, and reports on the effectiveness of this perspective in guiding teaching, and in providing further insight into student learning. Classroom sequences involving two experienced teachers (2008, Year 8 students) and an inexperienced teacher (2010, Year 7 students) were videotaped using a combined focus on the teacher and groups of students. Video analysis software was used to code the variety of representations used teachers and students, and sequences of representational negotiation. The paper reports on the effect of this approach on teacher pedagogy and on student learning of Ideas about Matter. The paper will present data from video of classroom activities, students’ work samples, student and teacher interviews and pre and post-unit testing, to explore what a representational focus might entail in teaching Ideas about Matter, and the role of representations in learning and reasoning and exploring scientific ideas.