ABSTRACT
This chapter introduces the different terms that have been used to describe students’ ideas in science, and offers an account of the significant differences underpinning these various terms. Whilst the chapter is organised around terminology, in seeking to explain why researchers have used such a range of terms, the chapter will introduce key themes about the nature of learners’ ideas that will be developed in the second section of the book (‘Making Sense of Student Thinking’). It has long been argued that terminology in this area of science education is confused and unhelpful (Abimbola, 1988). Common terms are introduced here both because (a) teachers and others will come across many of these different terms in their reading, and because (b) despite the lack of consistent usage, the choice of these terms often reflects assumptions about the nature and origins of learners’ ideas that are relevant to teachers.
