PUPILS’ MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT MAMMALS

A misconception about animals has been reported in various research reports on the pupils of all age groups. However, deeper study on the children's concepts about mammals has never been conducted. This study suggests the ideas about mammals put forward by the children aged from 10 to 15. A questionnaire with 35 multiple choice and open - ended questions were administered to 468 children from 6 elementary schools in Slovakia. The children's ideas were examined in five dimensions (animal classification and phylogeny; food; foraging strategies; parental care; senses, morphology and anatomy). Serious misconceptions about mammals across all age groups were found out. Our data provides direct implications for teaching biology.