Modeling in Chemistry: Evaluating the Educational Merit of Instructional Models

Andrew T. Stull

Although concrete and virtual models are commonly used by chemists and despite the perceived value of models as effective tools for science educators, there are no well controlled empirical studies that document the cognitive factors and instructional conditions under which these models contribute to meaningful learning in chemistry. The goals of this study are to investigate the conditions under which chemical models, including concrete, diagrammatic, and virtual models, may be effectively employed as educational tools. A protocol study documenting how students spontaneously use concrete models demonstrated large diversity in their use and preliminary results suggest that moving, holding, and reconfiguring the models during the course of a common diagrammatic translation task improves performance. To investigate the value of concrete and virtual models, three studies are proposed. Study 1 is designed to document and quantify the types of behaviors used by students and the relative effectiveness of these behaviors. Study 2 is an experiment designed to test the value of active manipulation of concrete models versus passive viewing of the models. Study 3 is an experiment designed to test the effectiveness of concrete models versus virtual models.

About Andrew T. Stull

Andrew T. Stull is a teacher and a student. He has participated in a wide variety of teaching and learning experiences that included a mobile museum docent, middle and high school teacher, and a community college instructor as he pursued a bachelor and master of science in biology. These experiences paved the way to participate on an NSF grant at California State University, Fullerton as a multimedia designer studying the integration of technology into their biology laboratory curriculum. This work transitioned into a position with the CSUF biology department where Stull designed instructional materials and managed the department’s computer laboratories. During this time he authored a series of booklets titled A Student’s Guide to the Internet for Prentice Hall Publishing and eventually joined their science publishing team as a media editor. At Prentice Hall Stull helped to set the book-technology integration strategy for the company and authored, directed, and produced numerous web-based and CD-ROM materials. He left publishing to purse an academic career in educational psychology. At UC Santa Barbara Stull worked with Richard E. Mayer and Mary Hegarty to investigate cognition and multimedia learning. His doctoral research encompasses higher-order cognition in the areas of diagrammatic reasoning, mental representation, and spatial thinking as it relates to multimedia learning. This research evaluates 1) how people interpret and use information stored in charts, graphs, diagrams, and animations, 2) how concrete objects are encoded and mentally manipulated, 3) how people represent the spatial features of complex two-dimensional diagrams and three-dimensional objects, 4) how cognition is involved in the physical manipulation of both tangible objects and on-screen, virtual representations, and 5) how these factors contribute to the design of instructional multimedia in the pursuit of meaningful learning. He is currently a post-doctoral scholar at UC Santa Barbara.