Misconceptions on electrical current concept and the effect of project-based learning approach supported by analogies for reducing them

The purpose of this study is to determine the science students' misconceptions onelectrical current concept through various assessing methods and compare the effects oftraditional approach (TA) and Project-based Learning Approach Supported withAnalogies (PBLSA) for reducing those misconceptions. The effect of PBLSA onachievement and reducing the misconceptions is determined by Electrical CurrentConcept Test (ECCT) and its effect on attitudes towards physics course is determinedby Physics Course Attitude Scale (PCAS).The sample of the study consists of 80 first grade students from two differentclass of Gazi University Gazi Faculty of Education Department of Science Education.The study which uses nonequivalent control group design was carried out according tothe curriculum of General Physics-II course offered in 2009-2010 spring semester. Theconcept of electrical currents was given according to PBLSA to the experiment groupand according to TA to control group. In order to obtain data, ?Concept MapTechnique? and ?Semi-Structured Interview Technique? was used to determine thestudents? misconceptions on electrical current concept. Furthermore, ECCT and PCASwere used as pre test and post test and ?Scientific Operation Ability Test? (SOAT) wasused as pre test.For analyzing the sub-problems of the study, descriptive analysis technique forqualitative dimension and independent groups t-test, dependent groups t-test and singlefactored covariance analysis (ANCOVA) for quantitative dimension were applied andthe results were evaluated. According to the conceptual map and semi-structuredinterview activity, numerous misconceptions about direct current, measuringviiinstruments and alternative current were revealed. Through gathering eachmisconception under a category, a total of 47 misconception sentences were definedwhere 22 of them are about direct current, 6 of them are about measuring instrumentsand 19 of them are about alternative current. 15 simple analogies which are preparedaccording to those misconceptions where 9 of these analogies are about direct current, 2of them are about measuring instruments and 4 of them are about alternative current.On the other hand, before the comparison of the scores taken from ECCTaccording to the different approaches, it is determined that there is no differencebetween the groups? prior knowledge about the electrical current concept. After theapplications, it is observed that the difference is in favor of experiment group. Theseresults indicate that, teaching the electrical current concept with PBLSA is morebeneficial and pragmatic compared to TA. Furthermore, the scores taken from ECCTbefore and after the applications show no meaningful difference according to gender. Itis also observed that there were no differences between the scores of the groups inmeans of PCAS before the applications. There was a difference after the applicationsand this difference was in favor of experiment group which denotes that the experimentgroups? attitudes were affected positively after the applications.Some misconceptions about the concepts of electrical current were determinedin both groups before the applications. After the applications, it is observed that most ofthese misconceptions were removed from the experiment group whereas thesemisconceptions remained same in the other group. As a result, if a qualified andsystematic education is aimed; students? misconceptions and their sources should bedetermined and appropriate supplies should be developed to overcome thesemisconceptions. Furthermore, these supplies should be thought proper to somestrategies and methods in order to remove the misconceptions of the students?.Keywords: Project-Based Learning Approach Supported by Analogies, ElectricalCurrent, Misconception, Reducing the Misconceptions, Achievement, Attitude.