Characterization on explanations of teachers in service about the scientific notion of dissolution

Abstract

In this paper, we present and discuss the theoretical and methodological guidelines of an experimental experience with practicing science teachers from different educational establishments in Chile, which aimed to identify and characterize the explanations of the dissolution model based on the elaboration of personal narratives. This was done during a teacher professional development course in which reflection on the relevance of language in the interpretation of experimental phenomena was encouraged. The results reveal the coexistence of diverse typologies of scientific explanation at three levels: microscopic, macroscopic, and symbolic, which is expressed in the emergence of four explanatory profiles on the phenomenon of dissolution, which is partly due to the diversity of the teachers who participated in the study, restricted knowledge of the relevance of language for communicating scientific ideas and a strong emphasis on descriptive and microscopic processes about dissolutions.