The Effect of Cooperative Learning Methods and Individual Learning Method on PreService Science Teachers’ Sub-Micro Level Conceptual Understanding at Equilibrium Chemistry

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by dabgoudw

The study examines how cooperative and individual learning methods influence pre-service science teachers’ sub-micro conceptual understanding in equilibrium chemistry. Conducted with 52 pre-service teachers, it uses a pre-test/posttest non-equivalent quasi-experimental design and a module test with seven open-ended questions. Findings show no significant differences among groups’ equilibrium chemistry conceptual understandings, though some topic misconceptions decrease.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages32

Reading Time1 h 21 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Chemical equilibrium and student learning difficulties

Common misconceptions about chemical equilibrium

Study aims and learning methods

The Effect of Cooperative Learning Methods and Individual Learning Method on PreService Science Teachers’ Sub-Micro Level Conceptual Understanding at Equilibrium Chemistry Seda OKUMUŞ1 Atatürk University Zehra ÖZDİLEK2 Bursa Uludağ University Aysel ARSLAN3 Atatürk University Abstract The purpose of the study is to investigate the effect of cooperative and individual learning methods on the conceptual understanding at sub-micro level of pre-service science teachers (PST) in equilibrium chemistry. The study was conducted on 52 PSTs. A pre-test/posttest non-equivalent quasiexperimental design was used in this study. Data collection instruments used as pre-and posttest as a Module Test (MT) consisted of seven open-ended questions developed by the researchers. Although, participants were identified with a convenience sampling method, each group were randomly assigned. For this reason, three study groups were selected, and each implementation was randomly assigned. Groups was determined as Cooperative Student Teams-Achievement Divisions (STAD, E1) and Reading-Writing-Application (RWA, E2) methods, and Individual Learning (IL, E3) method. The data gathered with the MT were evaluated using content analysis. According to findings, there was not a significance difference among groups related to conceptual understandings at equilibrium chemistry. However, some misconceptions related to topic were decreased. Consequently, when three learning methods are used that it is more likely to misconceptions ofthe PSTs will be treated, while at the sametime micro level understanding will improve. Keywords: Cooperative learning, STAD, RWA, individual learning, equilibrium chemistry, conceptual understanding DOI: 10.29329/epasr.2020.270.19 1Seda Okumuş, Assis. Prof. Dr., Ataturk University, Kazım Karabekir Faculty of Education, Erzurum, Turkey, ORCID: 0000-0001-6271-8278 Correspondence: [seda.okumus@atauni.edu.tr](seda.okumus@atauni.edu.tr) 2 Zehra Özdilek, Assoc. Prof. Dr., Bursa Uludağ University, Faculty of Education, Bursa, Turkey, ORCID: 0000-0002-0441- 1048, Email: [zozdilek@uludag.edu.tr](zozdilek@uludag.edu.tr) 3 Aysel Arslan, PhD Student, Ataturk University, Institute of Educational Sciences, Erzurum, Turkey, ORCID: 0000-0002- 8775-1119, Email: [ayselarslan@cumhuriyet.edu.tr](ayselarslan@cumhuriyet.edu.tr) Introduction The study of the behavior of chemical equilibrium has been an essential part of the secondary and undergraduate education chemistry curriculum for many years (Cheung, Ma, & Yang, 2009; van Driel & Graber, 2002) . The subject of chemical equilibrium is considered as one of the issues that the students have difficulty in learning due to its complex structure as it includes various abstract concepts (Aydeniz & Doğan, 2016; Banerjee, 1995; Ceylan & Seçken, 2019; Özmen & Naseriazar, 2018) . The concept of chemical equilibrium involves the synthesis of most general chemistry concepts and principles (Bilgin, Uzuntiryaki & Geban, 2003) . The concept of chemical equilibrium is a basis for students to understand other chemical subjects such as acids and base behaviors, oxidation / reduction reactions and solubility (Bergquist & Heikkinen, 1990; Bilgin & Geban, 2006; Eilks, Gulacar, & Sandoval, 2018; Piquette & Heikkinen, 2005) . Some studies have shown that there are some difficulties about the problematic aspects of understanding the concepts of chemical equilibrium. There are misconceptions regarding the chemical equilibrium at the following points: (a) mass vs. concentration (b) characteristics of chemical equilibrium, (c) changing equilibrium conditions,(d) rate vs. extent, and (e) misconceptions about K. The misconceptions identified by previous research summarized according to these themes in Table 1. Table 1. Some Common Misconceptions about Chemical Equilibrium | Theme | Misconceptions | Studies | | --- | --- | --- | | Mass vs.
concentration | The concentrations of reactants and products

FAQs

What is the study’s main purpose?

To investigate the effect of cooperative learning methods and the individual learning method on pre-service science teachers’ sub-micro level conceptual understanding in equilibrium chemistry.

How was the study designed and how were data collected?

A pre-test/posttest non-equivalent quasi-experimental design was used with 52 pre-service teachers, and data came from a module test consisting of seven open-ended questions.

Did the different learning methods lead to different conceptual understanding results?

No significant differences were found among the groups regarding conceptual understanding in equilibrium chemistry, although misconceptions related to the topic decreased.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by dabgoudw