More than half the students interviewed in a nation-wide survey do not know the difference between respiration and photosynthesis. More than 30 per cent think evaporation occurs only from rivers and seas.

The startling revelations — which emerged from a study conducted by the Ahmedabad-based Educational Initiatives and Wipro among students of classes IV, VI and VIII in five metros — have prompted many city schools to revise their teaching techniques.

“We are trying to move away from mechanical teaching to interactive sessions to dispel the misconceptions from the students’ minds,” said Keya Sinha, the principal of Vivekananda Mission School.

The study revealed that be it science, math or English, students have a tendency to learn by rote and hence, fail to relate what they have learned to day-to-day events.

To know better why the misconceptions are cropping up and address them effectively, several city schools have adopted a “teacher sheet” which has been designed by Educational Initiatives.

The sheet lists the popular misconceptions in individual subjects and suggests ways to remove them. The target group comprises students from classes III to IX.

For instance, students often confuse between respiration and photosynthesis, thinking any gas exchange in plants is respiration. The sheet points out that the teacher should make it clear to the students that both processes can occur simultaneously. Besides, the process of respiration should be explained independently, not in the context of any specific organism.

“Because of the pressure to complete the syllabus on time, the concepts are not properly explained to the students, leading to various misconceptions. The sheet contains guidelines on proper ways to teach a subject,” pointed out Sinha.

“The teachers’ sheet points out certain areas where even a teacher’s understanding may not be perfect,” said Sudhir Ghodke, the director of Educational Initiatives.

“As teachers we are always looking at ways by which we can improve the quality of teaching. The sheet will help us make the learning process better,” said Amita Prasad, coordinator of Modern High School.

Among the schools that have adopted the sheet are Birla High (Girls Section), Modern High for Girls, Delhi Public School, Megacity, The Heritage School, Vivekananda Mission, La Martiniere For Boys and Frank Anthony Public School.