Interpreting students' and teachers' discourse in science classes: An underestimated problem?

Abstract

This article deals with the problem of the proper interpretation of discourse between students and teachers in classrooms. First, several interpretations of a concrete classroom protocol dealing with the paradigmatic case of static forces are discussed: an “ordinary” teacher's analysis, an analysis in terms of misconceptions, and an analysis in terms of alternative conceptions. Though they represent common ideas from the literature, it is argued that those analyses all in some way misinterpret the discourse. By drawing on Davidson's principle of charity and by distinguishing between belief and meaning, we present an analysis that in our opinion interprets the discourse correctly. Its consequences for teaching are discussed, as well as its foundation in Davidson's philosophy. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.