According to the national curriculum, students encounter the topic of electricity for the first time in Grade 4 of primary school within the subject Science and Technology. Although electricity is part of students' everyday lives, it remains a relatively abstract topic in school settings. Teachers should therefore employ a variety of teaching methods to ensure that students successfully acquire the key concepts related to this subject.
In this master's thesis, we investigated how different teaching methods used in the instruction of electricity in the Grade 4 affect the development of students' scientific vocabulary. The methods applied were the explanation method, video-based demonstration, and live demonstration. We compared students' progress based on the method through which they were taught. The lessons were carried out in three different Grade 4 classes.
Our findings showed that all the teaching methods contributed to an improvement in students' knowledge, and we cannot conclude that any one method is universally more effective than the others. Ideally, the teacher should be well-acquainted with the students and choose the most suitable method or a combination of methods, based on their needs and characteristics.
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