Learners’ Ontological Categories According to Their Mental Models of Plate Boundaries

Abstract

The present study investigates the learners’ mental models of plate boundaries and the ontological categories according to their mental models. 116 Korean high school students were asked to draw the 3 types of plate boundaries described in the theory of plate tectonics and to respond the written test with ontological questions. In order to reveal the mental models of students, the result of drawings and interviews was analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively. The findings revealed that the mental models of plate boundaries were classified as one of the following: 'naïve model', 'unstable model', 'causal model', and 'conceptual model'. The learners who were categorized as the naïve mental type showed the highest proportion in the Matter ontological category. On the other hand, the learners who were categorized as the causal mental type did not appear in the Matter category, they use more Event and Constraint Based Interaction categories.