FROM THE SPECTRUM TO THE ATOM: AN INQUIRY-BASED TEACHING-LEARNING SEQUENCE ON ATOMIC SPECTRA AND BOHR’S ATOMIC MODEL

In the past 15 years, modern physics has been included in most secondary school curricula. However, its conceptual complexity is often a hurdle for teachers as well as for students, and, most schools adopt narrative/historical approaches which, however, are not sufficient. This contribution describes a teaching-learning sequence (TLS) on atomic spectra and their role in the construction of the atomic model. The TLS was designed using an Inquiry-Based Learning (IBL) approach and within an action–research paradigm, and it was implemented in a fifth-year classroom (13th grade) of an Italian “Liceo Scientifico”. We evaluated the TLS from multiple perspectives using three different instruments: a pre/post-test to evaluate students’ gain in knowledge and skills, observation rubrics to evaluate students’ participation, and the analysis of students’ work (laboratory notebooks and post-lab worksheets) to gain insights into the process of knowledge building. Our results suggest that almost all of the students had a positive evolution in their understanding of the atomic model. The students who reported lower gains were the ones who participated less actively in the lab sessions and group work.