Session: General Posters:

Representations play a central role in scientific meaning-making. Despite this, learning with representations is not trivial. In order to successfully interpret concepts encoded in representations, the students need to correctly interpret the graphical features of representations and associate these interpretations with their already existing conceptual knowledge. Schönborn and Anderson proposed an empirical model that suggests that learning with representations is affected by three interconnected factors: knowledge of concepts associated with a given representation (conceptual), the nature of the given representation (mode), and cognitive skills that a student must utilize to make-sense of a representation (reasoning). In this study we used Schönborn and Anderson’s model to characterize how students link their interpretations of representations to their conceptual knowledge and how they go about reasoning with the representation to acquire meaning. Twelve students who just completed the Organic Chemistry I course were interviewed in a pilot study using a semi-structured, think-aloud interview protocol. The interviews were analyzed for patterns in students’ thinking using constant comparative analysis. Preliminary findings will be presented.

Fridah Rotich

Graduate student, University of North Carolina at Greensboro

Appearances