Représentations des Elevés de 11-12 Ans Pour la Formation des Ombres et Changement Conceptuel

This research project investigates the role that teaching intervention plays in the destabilization of representations of primary school pupils for the concept of the formation of shades. The resistance that this system of representations shows in the attempt to destabilize it has been studied with two groups of children, 11-12 years old. One of the groups (the experimental) participated in a teaching process which aimed to lead pupils to the reconstruction of representations; the second (the control group) followed traditional teaching methods. In all experimental situations that were studied the progress between pre-test and post-test was significant for the subjects of the experimental group both at the level of explanation of the phenomena of formation of shades, and at the level of the stability of cognitive acquisitions.