Supporting the interpretation of formulas in physics education through mathematics lessons
Résumé
To use formulas in physics education, students have to be able to interpret formulas. This study focuses on how mathematics lessons might support the interpretation of formulas in physics lessons in upper secondary school. Based on literature, a model for interpreting formulas in science is proposed. In a short intervention, grade 11 students were taught to recognize the structure of formulas and to reason with formulas through graphing formulas by hand. In grade 12, four of these students were asked to think aloud while working on physics assignments involving formulas. Results showed that the students recognized the structure of formulas using function families and used similar reasoning as taught in mathematics lessons ten months before. Findings suggested how mathematics lessons might support the use of formulas not only in physics, but also in other natural sciences and in STEM contexts.
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