Conceptual misconceptions regarding DNA and the genetic code in 8th-grade students' understanding of genetic information

The purpose of this study is to identify misconceptions among eighth-grade students regarding the "DNA and Genetic Code" unit through a word association test. The study group consisted of 186 students, 102 girls and 84 boys, attending a public middle school in Bitlis province during the 2024-2025 academic year. The convenience sampling method, one of the purposeful sampling types, was used in selecting the research group. The study group was selected randomly without any distinction between students and classes. The phenomenological design was used as the research design in the study. The word association test was used as the data collection tool. Inductive content analysis was used in the analysis of the data. The results of the research revealed that students had misconceptions about DNA and genetic code units, perceived the unit concepts abstractly, and that the vast majority of students confused basic concepts (e.g., genotype and phenotype, DNA and chromosome). Furthermore, it was determined that students struggled to construct scientific sentences and mostly constructed sentences at a superficial level of knowledge. This situation indicates that students do not have in-depth knowledge about the genetic code unit. The recommendations section of the study suggests that teachers should ensure that key concepts related to the unit are learned correctly when first introducing DNA and the genetic code unit, that peer education should be provided to students with misconceptions, that more space should be given to concepts related to DNA and the genetic code unit in the preparation of textbooks, and that teaching should be made more concrete through technological applications.