Construção de conceitos de física moderna e sobre a natureza da ciência com o suporte da hipermídia

Abstract

The results of a research that involves production and evaluation of a hypermedia about concept development of Modern Physics and the nature of Science are presented. The didactic proposal was based in Ausubel's Learning Theory, on orientations for the implementation of educational hypermedia systems and also took into account results of research in Science Teaching, such as, Science-Technology-Society, reflections on the pedagogical importance of the History and Philosophy of Science and considerations about Modern Physics insertion in high school. The hypermedia was evaluated by a group of Physics Teaching researchers and in training (for Physics Teaching) undergraduate students. After some of the suggestions made in this study were introduced in the system, it was tested with a group of third-year students of a public high school. The information obtained shows that the use of the computer was a motivating factor for the students. The diversity of elements of the software helped them to maintain interest in the content and also contributed to the visualization and interpretation of phenomena, thus, facilitating their reasoning. The hypermedia, structured in accordance with ausubelian principles, contributed to their perception of concepts relationships and helped them to develop subsumers to support their subsequent learning. The results show that this type of instruction facilitates the evolution of the conceptions most of the student held before, related to: the concept of mass-energy equivalence and its implications; the relationships between Science, Technology and Society and their environmental and political implications; the role of Ethics in the development and application of scientific knowledge and the evolution of Science. Copyright by the Sociedade Brasileira de Física.