Facilitating conceptual change using analogies and explanatory models

Learning in the sciences is increasingly viewed as a process of conceptual change rather than simply conceptual growth. Recent research indicates that the use of ‘bridging’ analogies can be effective in facilitating conceptual change. These bridging analogies are conceptually intermediate between situations drawing out valid ‘anchoring’ intuitions (e.g., that springs can exert forces when compressed) and target problems drawing out naive conceptions (e.g., that a table cannot exert an upward force on a book resting on the table). For example, a sequence of bridging analogies from a hand pressing on a spring, to a book resting on a flexible table, to a book resting on a solid table can help the student make sense of the upward force from the table. In this study, 40 high school students who indicated the table would not exert an upward force interacted with a written, bridging explanation. Students responded in writing to questions embedded throughout the explanation. Analyses of these written responses su...