The Earth’s shape concept develops as consecutive cognitive problems (e.g., the location of people and trees on the spherical Earth) are gradually resolved. Establishing the order of problem solving may be important for the organisation of teaching situations. This study attempted to determine the sequence of problems to be resolved based on tasks included in the EARTH2 test. The study covered a group of 444 children between 5 and 10 years of age. It captured the order in which children solve cognitive problems on the way to constructing a science-like concept. The test results were compared with previous studies. The importance of cultural influences connected to significant differences (24%) in test results was emphasised. Attention was drawn to the problem of the consistency of the mental model approach highlighted in the literature. The analysis of the individual sets of answers provided a high level of consistency of indications referring to the same model (36%), emphasising the importance of the concept of mental models.

Children begin to fully understand evaporation at the age of 11 years, but they already have some idea of this phenomenon in preschool age. The paper presents the results of a research exploring the understanding of evaporation by 6- and 9-year-old children. The research used the method of a narrative based on incorrect information in order to verify whether and how well children would discover the errors in that narrative and how they could explain the process of evaporation. The incorrect narrative method is inspired by the science fiction film genre, which uses false assumptions to prove something that is not true. According to the research, half of the children knew that evaporation accompanies the process of cloud formation, but only half of the children who knew that (one-fourth of the respondents) could detect an error in the narrative. The reason for that is believed to be children’s lack of critical thinking and limited structured knowledge of evaporation in the water cycle in nature.

Edukacja techniczna małych dzieci jest archaiczna (Furmanek, 2007, s. 44–54) i wymaga diagnozy dla wypracowania nowych działań. 91% nauczycieli obserwuje duże zainteresowanie dzieci zajęciami technicznymi, jednak brakuje im pomysłów na proste doświadczenia, które rozwijałyby myślenie dzieci. Artykuł przedstawia wyniki ankiety przeprowadzonej wśród 2475 nauczycieli na temat trudności i motywów podejmowania się prowadzenia zajęć z techniki wśród dzieci.

SummaryThis work deals with separation of vegetation from 3D data acquired by Terrestrial Laser Scanning for detecting more complex geological structures. Separation of vegetation is not an easy task. In many cases, the outcrop is not clear and the vegetation outgrows the outcrop. Therefore the separation of vegetation from 3D data is a task which requires adjustment of algorithms from image processing and remote sensing. By using cluster analysis and analysis of spectral behaviour we can detect vegetation from the rest of the scene and erase these points from the scene for detection of geological structures

The shape of the Earth is a fundamental concept that students need to learn in astronomy education. This paper reports the findings of a study that confirms the effectiveness of an intervention involving the construction of a model of the Earth prior to the introduction of the globe as a codified artefact. The educational intervention had been preceded by the EARTH2 test, which was used to check how well students participating in the study mastered the concept of the Earth’s shape. The study included forty-seven primary school students (grades I and II). Effectiveness was measured by comparing the answers chosen by Polish children in a test as mental models. The study confirmed (A) that the intervention was effective: 49% of progressive changes, 30% of regressive changes, and 21% of changes within the same mental model were observed; (B) that there was an increase in the children’s interest in space, revealed by an increased number of questions going far beyond the school astronomy curriculum; and (C) that students’ concerns about the dangers of space were revealed. Key findings include the following: (a) Educational effectiveness regarding the concept of the shape of the Earth is achieved in activities that involve building a spherical Earth model before introducing a globe as a ready-made model. (b) The topics addressed in astronomy classes must be far broader than what the current curricula provide. They should take into account current issues reported by the media and deal with astronomical discoveries and space technology. (c) When organising activities, children’s concerns about the dangers of space should be borne in mind.

The research described in this article concerns the understanding of the additive colour process by children aged seven to eight years (N = 24) and the effectiveness of learning about this phenomenon while using a computer-based multimedia educational programme (MEP). First the children’s knowledge of the phenomenon was tested, then an intervention was organised for the experimental group during which they used the MEP, after which the children’s knowledge was tested again. Based on an analysis of the children’s conversations and their drawings, the way of understanding the phenomenon of additive colour was established. Three children’s conceptions of the understanding of the effect of the additive colour phenomenon are described (e.g., confusion with pigment mixing (RGB = CMY) and the claim that the effect of combining two additive colour creates a third colour (R + G = B)). Children’s behaviour during the use of the educational computer programme was also described and evaluated in terms of how close they were to the teaching strategy developed by the programme’s authors. The partial effectiveness of the MPE for the use of conclusions in a paper-and-pencil test was also investigated.