Chemistry focuses on the learning process to understand macroscopic phenomena with perspective of matter and to connect this to explanations with the microscopic perspective. The contents of chemistry which are studied in elementary school are present...
Chemistry focuses on the learning process to understand macroscopic phenomena with perspective of matter and to connect this to explanations with the microscopic perspective. The contents of chemistry which are studied in elementary school are presented to understand the properties and change of matter using the macroscopic perspective. And the understanding with microscopic perspective is presented to be achieved in middle and high school. Therefore, the contents of chemistry which are presented in elementary school are important, because it could be the foundation of elementary students’ understanding of the properties and change of matter. This study analyzed the characteristics of academic achievement of 6th grade students in the units ‘acid and base’ and ‘various gases’ in order to explore elementary school students' understanding of chemistry. For this purpose, this study analyzed the field trial results, which were conducted from representative sampling, for Customized Assessment of Educational Achievement. Specifically, the responses from the eight questions in the two units were categorized into response types and analyzed the correct responses rate and distribution of response types according to the percentage of achievement scores. According the results, it could be found that responses represented the characteristics in terms of students’ understanding about matter, such as acids, bases, and gases, and in terms of competencies related to performing experiments, such as controlling variables and constructing experimental apparatus. Based on the results, this study discussed some implications that should be considered in the teaching and learning of chemistry in elementary school.