Factors that influence students' and teachers' understandings of surface are to volume in science contexts

This study explored the relationships among proportional reasoning skills and visual-spatial abilities with the understanding of the scale concept of surface area to volume. The National Science Education Standards stress teaching unifying concepts and processes that promote connections between and among traditional scientific disciplines (NSES, 1996). Proportional reasoning ability and visual-spatial skills all contribute to learning science but the relationships among these factors with how someone understands surface area to volume has not been fully explored. Correlation and multiple linear regression analyses determined that there is a relationship between one’s ability to understand surface area to volume relationships and proportional reasoning, cognitive developmental level, and visual spatial ability. Regression results indicated that all participants’ proportional reasoning and visual- spatial scores could be a possible predictor for one’s ability to understand surface area to volume relationships. Discussion of the results is followed by implications for teaching scale concepts such as surface area to volume in the science classroom.

Factors that influence students' and teachers' understandings of surface are to volume in science contexts Presentation