ABSTRACT
This chapter provides data that show changes in seventh and eighth grade students' mental models of the greenhouse effect. It describes their collaborative work with teachers to enhance their teaching of the greenhouse effect. Based on this work, it proposes a conceptual framework for the greenhouse effect suitable for secondary school students. The chapter also provides a brief overview of the research on secondary students' conceptions of the greenhouse effect and related concepts. The change in students' mental models was influenced by teacher effectiveness in implementing the use of models and modeling in the classroom. In particular, the authors believe that students can develop a richer model about the physics of the greenhouse effect: the absorption, reflection, and radiation of the sun's energy and the differentiation between solar radiation and terrestrial radiation.
