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Asia-Pacific Forum on Science Learning and Teaching, Volume 18, Issue 2, Article 13 (Dec., 2017) |
This study aimed at determining ninth grade students’ thoughts about disease concept by using the drawing and writing technique. All students’ explanations and drawings about disease concept were categorized under eight themes: Disease names, disease causes, disease consequences, disease prevention, mental health, figures about disease, objects defining disease, and others.
Four themes were common: Disease names, disease causes, disease consequences and disease prevention. The themes of mental health and others were only used in explanations about disease concept, though the students used the themes of figures about disease and objects defining disease only in their drawings. Although the students described mostly the concepts of microbe, fatigue, body, bad/harm, and health related to disease concept, the students drew mostly the figures of face, human beings, sickbed, and redness related to disease concept. Common concepts in the students’ explanations and drawings about disease concept were the concepts of chicken pox, malnutrition, cigarette, alcohol, dirty environment, doctor, sports, hospital, and medicine.
Furthermore, the students explained disease concept as the concepts of disease, microbe, body, bad/harm and health for disease concept, even though they drew figured such as sullen face, sickbed and redness. The students mainly mentioned about physical dimension of disease concept in their explanations related to definition of disease concept rather than psychological dimension of disease concept by indicating bad, harm and unhappiness concepts.
Present study results were confirmed by some of the research results in literature (Backett and Davidson, 1992; Boruchovitch and Mednick, 2002; Natapoff, 1978; Onyango-Ouma et al., 2004). For example, mostly these concepts were found out in the drawings about disease concept: Dead fish, snake, bicycle, dirty environment, contaminated food, dishes, pain, feeling bad, fatigue, headache, sore throat, upset, angry (Onyango-Ouma et al., 2004); infirmity, pollution, terrible, sick, being sad (Natapoff, 1978); bacteria, virus, cigarette, alcohol, car, air pollution, dirty water, chicken pox (Piko and Bak, 2006).
Although technological advancements contribute to solving a lot of problems related to health, old and new health problems and some kinds of disease are still fought against. Therefore, it is very important to determine students’ perception level of disease concept in that it will help Health Education given to individuals turn into behavior. Moreover, the fact that individuals become more conscious about the topics such as kinds of disease, disease symptoms, disease prevention will enable them to live a more healthy life.
In today’s world in which modern approaches replace traditional education approach, a stıdent-centered approach is used (Özden, 2009). Students’ knowledge structures are evaluated with alternative techniques along with traditional methods (9-12th Grades Biology Curriculum). The fact that drawing-writing technique can be used for different age-group levels is one of its advantages (Backett-Milburn and McKie, 1999). Therefore, an education system which aims at raising individuals that express themselves freely and think critically and reflectively must benefit more from alternative techniques such as drawing-writing technique that help analyze students’ thoughts in depth.
The results of the study related to the students’ explanations and drawings about disease can be taken into consideration for 9th grade Health Education Course by teachers and curriculum developers. Then, it could be help to design to well-organized methodology or teaching designs for Biology Course and Health Education Course.
Copyright (C) 2017 EdUHK APFSLT. Volume 18, Issue 2, Article 13 (Dec., 2017). All Rights Reserved.