Misconception in Physical Science at the Middle School Grades

The presentation will focus on the physical science content and pedagogy workshops addressing student's misconceptions at the middle school level. These workshops were conducted at Springfield College during summer 2010 for in-service teachers from Springfield, MA Public Schools. The follow up activities took place during the academic year 2010/2011. A partnership among Springfield MA Public Schools, Springfield College, and the City of Springfield Science Museum was developed to implement an innovative program to prepare highly-qualified educators. Concepts of force, motion, energy, and energy transformation were explored in a physics laboratory setting and student's misconceptions were addressed.