Research Article
Concepts of Plants Held by Young Brazilian Children: An Exploratory Study

Amauri Betini Bartoszeck , Claudete Rosa Cosmo, Bernadete Rocha daSilva, Sue Dale Tunnicliffe

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Bartoszeck AB, Cosmo CR, daSilva BR, Tunnicliffe SD. Concepts of plants held by young brazilian children: an exploratory study. European J Ed Res. 2015;4(3):105-117. doi: 10.12973/eu-jer.4.3.105
Bartoszeck, A. B., Cosmo, C. R., daSilva, B. R., & Tunnicliffe, S. D. (2015). Concepts of plants held by young brazilian children: an exploratory study. European Journal of Educational Research, 4(3), 105-117. https://doi.org/10.12973/eu-jer.4.3.105
Bartoszeck Amauri Betini, Claudete Rosa Cosmo, Bernadete Rocha daSilva, and Sue Dale Tunnicliffe. "Concepts of Plants Held by Young Brazilian Children: An Exploratory Study," European Journal of Educational Research 4, no. 3 (2015): 105-117. https://doi.org/10.12973/eu-jer.4.3.105
Bartoszeck, AB Cosmo, CR daSilva, BR & Tunnicliffe, S 2015, 'Concepts of plants held by young brazilian children: an exploratory study', European Journal of Educational Research, vol. 4, no. 3, pp. 105-117. Bartoszeck, Amauri Betini et al. "Concepts of Plants Held by Young Brazilian Children: An Exploratory Study." European Journal of Educational Research, vol. 4, no. 3, 2015, pp. 105-117, https://doi.org/10.12973/eu-jer.4.3.105.

Abstract

Children from southern and northern Brazil have a basic knowledge of plants, which they observe during their everyday life. Children ages between 3 to 10 years old (kindergarten & primary school), but the majority of them in the age group of 4-5 (total 145) were asked to draw what they think is a plant (total sample=332). Afterwards, a equal number of boys and girls randomly chosen were interviewed individually (mix ability) to list plants they said they knew and where they had seen them. Then they were asked to give exemplars of the local plants which they had seen. These data from the exploratory study show that pupils are in touch with their environment and recognize plants that are part of it. The everyday experiences of these children in school and out of school, at home and in leisure activities with family and friends, contribute to their knowledge about plants and such knowledge is complemented in the preschool and primary school classes by appropriate teaching. Educational implications of these findings are discussed.

Keywords: Plant conception, preschool and primary school pupils, mental model, drawings


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