To what extent is dialogic teaching effective in identifying and addressing year 8 students’ alternative conceptions about electricity and magnetism?
William C Malone
(PGCE Secondary: Physics, 2023-2024)
email: wm358@cantab.ac.uk
Abstract
A significant challenge in teaching science is helping students move from their prior understanding of the world to a more scientific worldview. This case study investigates whether dialogic teaching, an approach that focuses on verbal exchange in the classroom (Alexander, 2020), is effective in identifying and addressing elements of students’ prior understanding – alternative conceptions - that conflict with scientific knowledge. Using data gathered from surveys and observations of a year 8 class I found that, for most students, dialogic teaching was effective in supporting the processes of identifying and addressing their alternative conceptions. I also found that some aspects of dialogic teaching were less visible and thus were harder to implement and observe. These findings suggest that dialogic teaching is a powerful tool for both diagnosing alternative conceptions and helping students move beyond them so long as it is implemented with care.
© William C Malone, 2025
The full paper is available for download as a pdf file: 180-204_Malone