Teaching the concept of energy through experiments

Energija je eden zahtevnejših fizikalnih konceptov, ki se uporablja v različnih področjih naravoslovja. V osnovni in srednji šoli se s tem konceptom srečamo predvsem pri fiziki, kemiji in biologiji. Koncept energije je težko razumeti, saj je ne moremo neposredno izmeriti ali videti, vendar lahko izmerimo oziroma opazimo različne lastnosti teles, zaradi katerih jo lahko telesu pripišemo. Zaradi abstraktnosti pojma je potrebno pri pouku fizike prikazati različne prenose energij, kar lahko naredimo z izvajanjem eksperimentov. Glavni cilj raziskave je bil optimizirati eksperimente, ki ilustrirajo pretvorbo različnih oblik energije in omogočajo primerjanje spremembe energije s spremembo temperature. Te eksperimente sem zbral v zbirko eksperimentov. Zbirka eksperimentov omogoča učencem ali dijakom, da sami ugotavljajo od katerih lastnosti telesa je odvisna energija in na kakšne načine se lahko energija pretvarja. Izvedel sem kvalitativno evalvacijsko raziskavo kot multiplo študijo primera na priložnostnem namenskem vzorcu šestih dijakov poklicne srednje šole. Raziskava preverja ustreznost zbirke eksperimentov. Osredotoči se na razumljivost navodil eksperimentov, izvedbo eksperimentov, ter na prednosti in slabosti celotne zbirke. Ugotovil sem, da so navodila ustrezno napisana, vendar je priporočljivo, da je izvedba nekaterih eksperimentov prej demonstracijska za bolj tekoče samostojno delo učencev oz. dijakov. Pri izvajanju eksperimentov je bil opazen dvig motivacije pri učencih. Opazno se je izboljšalo tudi razumevanje energijskega koncepta. Zbirka eksperimentov je primerna za izvajanja v osnovnih in srednjih šolah, vendar je pred izvedbo potrebno preveriti njihovo predznanje in temu prilagoditi potek eksperimentiranja.Energy is one of the more complex physical concepts used in various fields of science. In primary and secondary school, we encounter this concept mainly in physics, but also in chemistry and biology. The concept of energy is difficult to understand because we cannot directly measure or see it, but we can measure or observe the various properties of objects that cause an object to have the energy. Due to the abstractness of the concept, it is necessary to demonstrate different energy transfers in physics lessons, which can be done by experiments. The main goal of the research was to optimize experiments that show the conversion of different energies and allow comparison of energy change with temperature change. I collected these experiments into a collection of experiments. The collection of experiments allows pupils or students to see for themselves which properties of the objects energy depends on and in what ways energy can be converted. I conducted a qualitative evaluation study as a multiple case study on a random purpose sample of six vocational high school students. The research verifies the adequacy of the collection of experiments. It focuses on the comprehensibility of the instructions of the experiments, the execution of the experiments, and the advantages and disadvantages of the entire collection. I found that the instructions are correctly written, but it is recommended that the implementation of some experiments should be demonstrated earlier for a more fluid independent work of students. When performing experiments, an increase in motivation was observed in the performers. The understanding of the energy concept has also improved markedly. The collection of experiments is suitable for implementation in primary and secondary schools, but before the implementation it is necessary to check their prior knowledge and adjust the course of experimentation accordingly