The book delineates the terms knowledge and understanding and identifies the forces that drive students to exert effort to achieve understanding. Examples and problems are provided to help the readers identify their thought processes as both a teacher and a student. Student case studies are used to illustrate students' learning experiences during a chemistry course and their interactions with the teacher. Readers are told to record their thought processes and insights as they progress through the exercises in the book. The author connects the problems in student learning to teaching and assessing scientific concepts, communication, and process skills.
Appendices contain concept analyses, Piagetian tasks and research, and reference lists.
Scientific reasoning Current understanding of intellectual development Research on misconceptions in chemistry Educational response to Piagetian research Summary Scientific reasoning Formal operations Issues concerning the teaching of reasoning Summary Teaching generalized intellectual skills General considerations Example 1. Proportional reasoning Disembedding logic from its context Example 2. An interview with Fae Example 3. ENC does NOT distribute this resource.