This work presents results of a research on the effectiveness of the integration of theory, computer simulation with the software Modellus and experimental activities in topics of mechanics. The study was conducted with four groups of high school students. One was the control group and the others carried out experimental activities, or computational modeling, or both. Tests were applied before and after interventions. The results indicate that for some types of problems, the experimental activities are more effective in promoting better student performance. In other types of problems the computer simulation proved to be more efficient. However, in general, the combination of experiments and computer simulation were more effective in promoting learning. The set of results indicate that the combination between experimental activities and computational simulation through the use of the Modellus software can promote, in most of the cases, a conceptual evolution and awake the curiosity and motivation of the pupils.
physics instruction; computational modelling; computational simulation; experimentation; integration; models; Modellus
