The Precursor Models in Natural Science Learning and Teaching.

The current study deals with the theoretical framework within which the concept of the precursor model in learning and teaching science emerges. By traversing two complementary paths, from observation of the natural world to mental representations and from scientific theories to school scientific models, the concept of the precursor model through the identification of its key features is scrutiny presented. In addition, drawing from two distinct research studies of precursor models on the concept of force in secondary education and the concept of friction in preschool education, important questions about the nature and character of precursor models are analyzed and discussed.