THE CONCEPT OF ANALOGIES FOR BIOLOGY LICENSEES

Abstract

Analogies are comparisons made between different domains. They are used in education to communicate new concepts; they allow transferring knowledge from one area to another. Generally, comparisons are made between a field observable and a non-observable, an abstract and a concrete, a stranger and an acquaintance. Many Biology and Science teachers use analogies to make their lessons more attractive and understandable. However, the use of analogies requires some care to undesirable concepts of analog pass on what you want to teach. For to collaborate with the quality of teaching biology, this research sought to find out the preconceptions that student teachers have about biology analogies and whether these concepts could be altered and its analogies  could be more structured after an educational intervention in the form of short course , which were worked out the basics of using analogies as a teaching resource Data were obtained by a written questionnaire administered before and after the intervention to a group of fourth years of undergraduate biology of a public institution of higher education. The results showed that most students could not correctly define and exemplify analogy and did not differentiate between analogy and metaphor. After the educational intervention, the student teachers seemed to have presented conceptual changes: conceptualized and illustrated analogy correctly; knew differentiate analogy of other terms and recognized the analogies as important teaching tools. This study intended to cooperate with the recognition of the use of analogies as an effective teaching methods and stimulating, thereby contributing to a science teaching more attractive and creative.