Analysis of the Chemical Representations in Secondary Lebanese Chemistry Textbooks

This study focused on the requirements that chemical representations should meet in textbooks in order to enhance conceptual understanding. Specifically, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the chemical representations that are present in 7 secondary Lebanese chemistry textbooks. To achieve the latter purpose, an instrument adapted from Gkitzia, Salta, and Tzougraki (Chemistry Education Research and Practice, 12, 5-14, 2011) was used. This instrument depends on 5 basic criteria: (a) type or level, (b) surface features, (c) relatedness to text, (d) existence and properties of a caption, and (e) degree of correspondence between representations comprising a multiple representation. The results of the study revealed that the chemical representations used in the selected textbooks are focused on the macro level with either implicit or ambiguous labels. Moreover, the selected textbooks use very few multiple, hybrid, or mixed representations. In addition, most chemical representations are accompanied by problematic or no captions. Recommendations for textbook writers and future research are discussed in light of these findings.