Enhancing better understanding of basic Genetics among grade nine studentsofDechencholing Higher Secondary School through Scientific Argumentation

Abstract

In order for the students to think like scientists, they should learn to argue scientifically. The
objective of this classroom action research was to use scientific argumentation as an intervention to
clarify the misconceptions in the domain of basic Genetics and also to investigate the progression
of their class 9 students’ scientific argumentative skills by the end of five cycles of action research:
planning, acting, observing, and reflecting which was observed for six weeks. The research
participants were grade 9 students (n=31) of a secondary school in Bhutan where the researcher is
currently teaching. The tools used were the pre- and post- questionnaires, lesson plans, semistructured observations, pre- and post- semi-structured interviews, reflective journals, and student
learning tasks. Content analysis and method triangulation were used to derive the result of the
intervention. Although there were few challenges in carrying out the research, nevertheless the
results were promising that scientific argumentation not only helped students to clarify their
misconceptions but helped them to understand difficult concepts in Genetics. Scientific
argumentation could also be used for improving students’ confidence and also help them explore
more on various topics of their interest in any other subjects. This research helped the researcher
to become a better facilitator and learnt many new developments in Genetics as students presented
their claim with evidence and justifications.