Narrative explanations and modeling in biology teaching

Abstract

In this paper we study, using a qualitative method, how elementary students and their teacher construct explanations of the human vision through a variety of representations (drawings and a 3D model). The results shows that the representations became increasingly abstract, integrating ideas built beforehand and entities of the theoretical model of reference. The ideas represented are influenced by the intention of the teacher, the kind of semiotic resource, the social negotiation and the context of the activity. The ensemble of representations creates a narrative that allows students to explain theoretically and modeling the phenomena studied.