2026-10-08T14:49:59Z https://api.figshare.com/v2/oai

oai:figshare.com:article/33987126 2026-09-24T17:22:14Z category_45 category_734 category_931 category_106 portal_87 item_type_3 month_year_09_2026

Application of resource graphs to explore earth science students’ conceptual understanding of stratigraphy in higher education Abigail K. Barker (16005579) Sebastian Willman (16876262) Rie H. Malm (25104888) Mattias Arrhenius (25104891) Sociology Biological Sciences not elsewhere classified Information Systems not elsewhere classified Science Policy Spatial thinking geological time stratigraphy resource graphs conceptual understanding <p>Stratigraphy is a fundamental concept in Earth science, encompassing layers of rock that vary spatially and temporally. This study investigates the complexity of students’ conceptual understanding of field-based stratigraphy in a geoscience introductory course. With a questionnaire designed to explore students’ understanding of stratigraphy, we analyze the patterns and connections between concepts as students learn stratigraphy. Firstly, thematic analysis showed the students’ use of concepts. In a second analytical step, resource graphs were produced to analyze the responses from individuals and look for connections between ideas. Resource graphs show a wide range of patterns, from a few connected ideas to highly complex, interconnected patterns between themes. We found three levels of complexity within the responses; students showed little, moderate or high insight associated with increasing complexity in resource graphs. The aspects that pose the most challenges seem to relate to contacts, younging, rates and mental manipulation of data into 3D models. The analysis shows diversity in the complexity of students’ conceptual understanding, which provides challenges when teaching stratigraphy. Based on these results, we outline targeted instructional strategies that support progression from a fragmented to a more coherent understanding of stratigraphy in early undergraduate teaching.</p> 2026-09-24T17:22:14Z Dataset Dataset 10.6084/m9.figshare.33987126.v1 https://figshare.com/articles/dataset/Application_of_resource_graphs_to_explore_earth_science_students_conceptual_understanding_of_stratigraphy_in_higher_education/33987126 CC BY 4.0