Leerlingen over Tsjernobyl

Tijdschrift voor Didactiek van de Beta-wetenschappen, uitgegeven door het Freudenthal Instituut, Universiteit Utrecht in de periode 1983-2014

Klaassen, C. W. J. M. Eijkelhof, H. M. C. Lijnse, P. L. Scholte, R. L. J. Tijdschrift voor Didactiek van de Beta-wetenschappen 1988 – 6(3), 199-219 Download pdf

In this article we present the results of a pupils’ questionnaire on the Chernobyl-accident. In this questionnaire, completed by 312 fourth form pupils of Dutch HAVO- and VWO-schools, we asked to describe what happened in Chernobyl, why the accident could have consequences in The Netherlands, why some safety-measures were taken and what the meaning of some radiation-terms is. We conclude that, apart from some context-dependent preferences for one term or another, the pupils have an undifferentiated radioactive matter/radiation/radioactivity concept. We also conclude that given the safety-measures pupils generally are able to construct for themselves a satisfactory interpretation of these measures. As for education, we suggest that a more pronounced distinction between open and closed sources of radiation might help pupils to reconsider their existing views on (applications of) radiation.