%0 Journal Article %1 smithiii1993mrc %A Smith, III John P. %A diSessa, Andrea A. %A Roschelle, Jeremy %D 1993-1994 %I Lawrence Earlbaum %J Journal of the Learning Sciences %K KalDesignResearch analysis constructionism constructivism constructivist fractions knowledge learning mathematical misconceptions mythesis pieces pyshics transition %N 2 %P 115-163 %T Misconceptions Reconceived: A Constructivist Analysis of Knowledge in Transition %U http://www.informaworld.com/openurl?genre=article&issn=1050-8406&volume=3&issue=2&spage=115 %V 3 %X This article uses a critical evaluation of research on student misconceptions in science and mathematics to articulate a constructivist view of learning in which student conceptions play productive roles in the acquisition of expertise. We acknowledge and build on the empirical results of misconceptions research but question accompanying views of the character, origins, and growth of students' conceptions. Students have often been seen as holding flawed ideas, which are strongly held, interfere with learning, and which instruction must confront and replace. We argue that this view overemphasizes the discontinuity between students and expert scientists and mathematicians, making the acquisition of expertise difficult to conceptualize. It also conflicts with the basic premise of constructivism, that students build more advanced knowledge from prior understandings. Using case analyses we dispute some commonly cited dimensions of discontinuity and identify important continuities that have been previously ignored or underemphasized. We highlight elements of knowledge that serve both novices and experts, albeit in different contexts, and under different conditions. We provide an initial sketch a constructivist theory of learning that interprets students' prior conceptions as resources for cognitive growth within a "complex systems" view of knowledge. This theoretical perspective aims to characterize the interrelationships among diverse knowledge elements rather than identify particular flawed conceptions; it emphasizes knowledge refinement and reorganization, rather than replacement, as primary metaphors for learning; and it provides a framework for understanding misconceptions as both flawed and productive.

@article{smithiii1993mrc, abstract = {This article uses a critical evaluation of research on student misconceptions in science and mathematics to articulate a constructivist view of learning in which student conceptions play productive roles in the acquisition of expertise. We acknowledge and build on the empirical results of misconceptions research but question accompanying views of the character, origins, and growth of students' conceptions. Students have often been seen as holding flawed ideas, which are strongly held, interfere with learning, and which instruction must confront and replace. We argue that this view overemphasizes the discontinuity between students and expert scientists and mathematicians, making the acquisition of expertise difficult to conceptualize. It also conflicts with the basic premise of constructivism, that students build more advanced knowledge from prior understandings. Using case analyses we dispute some commonly cited dimensions of discontinuity and identify important continuities that have been previously ignored or underemphasized. We highlight elements of knowledge that serve both novices and experts, albeit in different contexts, and under different conditions. We provide an initial sketch a constructivist theory of learning that interprets students' prior conceptions as resources for cognitive growth within a "complex systems" view of knowledge. This theoretical perspective aims to characterize the interrelationships among diverse knowledge elements rather than identify particular flawed conceptions; it emphasizes knowledge refinement and reorganization, rather than replacement, as primary metaphors for learning; and it provides a framework for understanding misconceptions as both flawed and productive.}, added-at = {2009-10-18T14:33:25.000+0200}, author = {Smith, III John P. and diSessa, Andrea A. and Roschelle, Jeremy}, biburl = {https://www.bibsonomy.org/bibtex/2532aadba14dc0d143889e7b990bc97d1/yish}, interhash = {0599e92eb6072dff2c45bb2d40edc6fd}, intrahash = {532aadba14dc0d143889e7b990bc97d1}, journal = {Journal of the Learning Sciences}, keywords = {KalDesignResearch analysis constructionism constructivism constructivist fractions knowledge learning mathematical misconceptions mythesis pieces pyshics transition}, number = 2, pages = {115-163}, publisher = {Lawrence Earlbaum}, timestamp = {2009-10-18T14:33:26.000+0200}, title = {Misconceptions Reconceived: A Constructivist Analysis of Knowledge in Transition}, url = {http://www.informaworld.com/openurl?genre=article&issn=1050-8406&volume=3&issue=2&spage=115}, volume = 3, year = {1993-1994} }