Work

“Why do dogs pant?”: Characteristics of parental explanations about science predict children's knowledge

Year: 2021

Type: article

Abstract: Using a new method for examining parental explanations in a laboratory setting, the prompted explanation task, this study examines how characteristics of parental explanations about biology relate to children's knowledge. Parents (N = 148; Mage = 38; 84% female, 16% male; 67% having completed college) of children ages 7–10 (Mage = 8.92; 47% female, 53% male; 58% White, 9.5% Black, 9.5% Asian) provided answers to eight how and why questions about biology. Parents used a number of different approaches to address the questions, including providing more mechanistic responses to how questions and more teleological responses to why questions. The characteristics of parental explanations—most notably, how frequently parents provided correct responses—predicted children's performance on measures of verbal intelligence and biological knowledge. Additional exploratory analyses and implications for children's learning are discussed.

Source: Child Development

DOI: 10.1111/cdev.13681

Authors: Candice M Mills, Judith H Danovitch, Victoria N Mugambi, Kaitlin R Sands, Candice Pattisapu Fox

Institutions: The University of Texas at Dallas, University of Louisville

Language: English

Topic: Science Education and Pedagogy

Subfield: Education

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,300

Funder: Directorate for Education and Human Resources