An Investigation into the Relationship between Students’ Conceptions of the Particulate Nature of Matter and their Understanding of Chemical Bonding

Abstract

A thorough understanding of chemical bonding requires familiarity with the particulate nature of matter. In this study, a two‐tier multiple‐choice diagnostic instrument consisting of ten items (five items involving each of the two concepts) was developed to assess students’ understanding of the particulate nature of matter and chemical bonding so as to identify possible associations between students’ understandings of the two concepts. The instrument was administered to 260 Grades 9 and 10 students (15–16 years old) from a secondary school in Singapore. Analysis of students’ responses revealed several alternative conceptions about the two concepts. In addition, analysis of six pairs of items suggested that students’ limited understanding of the particulate nature of matter influenced their understanding of chemical bonding. The findings provide useful information for challenging students’ alternative conceptions about the particulate nature of matter during classroom instruction in order to enable them to achieve better understanding of chemical bonding.

Notes

1. In the Singapore education system, students on entering secondary school are streamed into Special, Express, Normal Academic or Normal Technical courses based on their performance in the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE). Special and Express courses are four‐year courses that lead to the GCE ‘O’ level examination. Students in the special stream offer Mother Tongue at a higher level (e.g. Higher Chinese). Normal Academic and Normal Technical streams are four‐year courses leading to the GCE ‘N’ level examination. Students who perform well in the GCE ‘N’ level examination are offered a 5th year of study leading to a GCE ‘O’ level award.