The relationship between the difficulties and the perception that high school students have about the role of visual representations in the teaching of Chemistry

Abstract:

In this article, we seek to analyze the relationship between the difficulties of high school students in schools in Belo Horizonte (MG, Brazil) and their perceptions of the role of visual representations in Chemistry Teaching. Thus, the data were generated from the activities carried out by the students, guided by an international study about the topic. The results indicated difficulties in the understanding, construction and relationship of visual representations with the models, and the fact that students do not perceive these representations as necessary only for the illustration of Chemistry. This perception by students implies the use of these representations, as a product that transmits its content by itself, relating it to identified difficulties. We suggest - as an implication of this study - that these difficulties can be minimized if visual representations can be perceived as necessary to support hypotheses, produce justifications, substantiate arguments, elaborate on explanations and express conclusions.

Keywords:
Basic education; Chemistry teaching; High school; Visual representation; Teaching and learning processes