An Analysis of Science Textbooks
for Grade 6: The Electric Circuit
Lesson
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University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
Publication date: 2013-12-14
EURASIA J. Math., Sci Tech. Ed 2013;9(1):59-72
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ABSTRACT
Textbooks are a major tool in the teaching and learning process. This paper presents the
results of an analysis of the Finnish and Thai 6th grade science textbooks: electric circuit
lesson. Textual and pictorial information from the textbooks were analyzed under four
main categories: 1) introduction of the concepts, 2) type of knowledge, 3) representations,
and 4) contexts. The analysis revealed that the Thai textbook emphasized procedural
knowledge, while conceptual knowledge was emphasized mostly in Finnish textbook.
Physics concepts are introduced typically through describing the relation between the new
and earlier introduced concepts. Both textbooks employed rather traditional contexts,
such as technical applications, technology in society, and the ideal context.