Journal of Educational Sciences
Vol. 9 No. 5 (2025): Journal of Educational Sciences

A Content Analysis of Chemical Representations in Voltaic Cells Concept on General Chemistry Textbooks

Sakina, Nifela (Unknown)
Wiji, Wiji (Unknown)
Widhiyanti, Tuszie (Unknown)



Article Info

Publish Date
05 Sep 2025

Abstract

Representations in chemistry are essential for supporting students' understanding of abstract concepts such as redox reactions and voltaic cells. However, many students experience difficulties due to the lack of integration among macroscopic, submicroscopic, and symbolic levels of representation in textbooks. This study aimed to evaluate the quality and integration of visual representations related to voltaic cells in general chemistry textbooks widely used in Indonesian undergraduate programs. A descriptive qualitative content analysis approach was employed using an evaluation rubric developed by Gkitzia, which includes five criteria: type of representation, interpretation of surface features, relatedness to text, existence and clarity of captions, and the degree of correlation between components in multiple representations. Data were collected from five textbooks selected through purposive sampling and analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively. The results showed that while most textbooks present macroscopic and symbolic representations adequately, submicroscopic levels are often lacking or fragmented. Common issues identified include insufficient labeling, missing or problematic captions, and weak text-image integration. Only a few textbooks provide well-developed hybrid representations. The study concludes that visual representations in textbooks still need significant improvement to support conceptual understanding. These findings provide insights for chemistry educators and textbook developers to design more pedagogically effective materials.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

JES

Publisher

Subject

Religion Humanities Education Library & Information Science Other

Description

JES publishes original articles on the latest issues and trends occurring regionally and internationally in the educational sciences with the aim to advance our knowledge both in term of theory and practice. Moreover, this journal also covers the issues concerned with the following special sections: ...