Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
15th International Congress on Social, Humanities, Administrative, and Educational Sciences, Ankara, Türkiye, 13 - 15 Şubat 2025, ss.140-156, (Tam Metin Bildiri)
Teaching matter cycles (water, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and phosphorus) to middle and high school students is highly significant in terms of environmental awareness and scientific literacy. The teaching of matter cycles not only provides students with theoretical knowledge but also fosters environmental awareness, a sense of sustainability, and problem-solving skills, contributing to their development as global citizens. Addressing these topics through age-appropriate, visual, and experimental methods will enhance the effectiveness of learning. The understanding of matter cycles holds a significant place in science education. The topic of matter cycles is included within the scopes of science, biology, and chemistry. This study aims to examine the teaching of matter cycles at middle school, high school, and university levels within the theoretical framework of didactic transposition theory. In textbooks, variations in the presentation of cycles can be observed across primary, secondary, and tertiary education levels. From this perspective, the study investigates how water, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and phosphorus cycles are transformed from scientific knowledge into teachable knowledge and integrated into textbooks. This research employs a qualitative research design based on document analysis. The data collection tools include the 8th-grade science textbook for middle school and the 10th-grade biology textbook for high school. Additionally, a university-level biology textbook was used as a source of scientific knowledge. The teachable knowledge in the textbooks was analyzed under two main categories: scientific content and visual elements. The findings indicate that the visuals representing the water cycle successfully demonstrate the simplification, elaboration, and deepening stages across educational levels, as framed by didactic transposition theory. While the middle school and high school textbooks shared common subtopics, differences in additional subtopics were also noted. The 8th-grade science textbook included the cycles of water, nitrogen, carbon, and oxygen, whereas the 10th-grade biology textbook did not include the oxygen cycle. Furthermore, as a source of scientific knowledge, the university-level biology textbook was found also to include the phosphorus cycle. The visuals in the textbooks were found to be attention-grabbing and supported by texts that enhance the reading experience, making them more engaging for students.
Keywords: Matter Cycles, Theory of Didactic Transposition, Textbook Analysis, Science Education