The effects of conceptual questions on the structure of scientific competence in 7th grade Physics

Abstract

This study starts from a very concrete didactic question: can the systematic use of Conceptual Questions, integrated into the Peer Instruction method, change not only the level of students’ performance, but the very structure of their scientific competence? The research was conducted in Grade 7, within the module Motion and Rest, on a sample of 51 students organized in two parallel classes, using a quasi-experimental design. The assessment targeted four components of scientific competence: conceptual understanding, knowledge of measurement units, application of formulas in problem solving, and graphical representation and interpretation. The results show that the intervention does not produce only isolated differences, but influences the overall construct of scientific competence. The multivariate analysis indicates a significant effect of the type of instruction on the set of components. The factor analysis confirms the existence of a common factor in both groups, but with different organizations, depending on the experimental sample. In didactic terms, the attested differences suggest a shift from a predominantly procedural competence to a more integrated and functionally conceptual one.