Combustion and its effects: a study of the conceptions formed by students in a technical school, aiming at environmental education

Abstract

This paper is based on a research and a thesis on the conceptions of combustion and its effects, aiming at Environmental Education, formed by students who attend technical school at Centro Federal de Educação Tecnológica de Pelotas (CEFET-RS). It aimed at checking the profile of the conceptions regarding this theme; evaluating the contribution of technical teaching to the development of such conceptions; and establishing relations among the students’ conceptions and the characteristics found in the conceptions collected by the Movement of Alternative Conceptions (MAC). The research tool was a questionnaire with 15 statements, in a Likert scale, so that students had to specify their level of agreement to the statements, and space for comments. Data were treated quantitatively and qualitatively. Results indicated different profiles of conceptions among the categories related to the theme. There were meaningful differences, to  = 0,05, of the level of conceptions regarding some categories, among freshmen and seniors, and among students in professional areas, i. e., Industry and Chemistry. I concluded that the teaching in technical schools has helped the construction of conceptions regarding some issues; besides, some of the characteristics of alternative conceptions were also found.