Exploring the relationship between a structured, embodied analogy and students’ conceptual understanding in science

Abstract

This study presents an innovative educational analogy grounded in a structured, embodied, and associative framework designed to support students’ conceptual understanding in science education. Focusing on secondary school students in Morocco, the study explores the relationship between the use of this analogy and students’ understanding of electrical circuit concepts. Adopting a mixed-methods quasi-experimental design, the research combines quantitative analyses of pre- and post-intervention conceptual assessment scores with qualitative data from student and teacher questionnaires. The findings indicate statistically significant differences in post-test conceptual understanding scores between the analogy-exposed group and the comparison group, along with positive participant-reported perceptions among students and teachers. These findings suggest that structured, embodied, and associative analogies may offer pedagogically valuable support for understanding abstract scientific concepts within the context of this study. Furthermore, the study proposes a framework for analogical reasoning in science education that may inform instructional practices in similar educational contexts.