Reinventing Natural Selection

Abstract

Although many research studies report students’ Lamarckian misconceptions, only a few studies present learning and teaching strategies that focus on the successful development of the concept of natural selection. The learning and teaching strategy for upper secondary students (aged 15–16) presented in this study conducted in The Netherlands is based on the idea of guided reinvention, rather than on the conceptual change strategy. In guided reinvention, students reinvent the concept of natural selection by answering a sequence of questions based on the logical nature of Darwin’s theory. The results show that few Lamarckian explanations for evolution were recorded in the study and that the majority of the students developed a Darwinian or neo‐Darwinian conception. The status of Lamarckian misconceptions is challenged.