The effectiveness of practical work

By John Parkinson2009-05-01T00:00:00

Students doing practical work with a teacher

Source: Istockphoto

Research reveals little evidence of lasting effects of practical tasks on students' understanding of concepts

Ian Abrahams of Bishop Grosseteste University College and Robin Millar of the University of York have investigated the effectiveness of practical work as a teaching and learning strategy.¹

They observed 25 science lessons taught in eight secondary schools in England and interviewed the teachers and students afterwards. In all the lessons the teachers focused on the substantive science content of the practical task and ignored any points to do with scientific enquiry such as collection and interpretation of data.

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