DEVELOPMENT OF METHODOLOGICAL LESSON DESIGNS FOR INORGANIC CHEMISTRY BASED ON HISTORICAL MATERIALS

Abstract

The article examines the theoretical and methodological foundations for developing inorganic chemistry lessons through the systematic integration of historical scientific materials. Particular attention is paid to transforming the history of chemical discoveries from supplementary biographical information into an active didactic resource that supports conceptual understanding, scientific reasoning, problem solving, and the formation of students’ ideas about the nature and development of scientific knowledge. A methodological model based on the sequence “historical problem – scientific contradiction – hypothesis – experiment – discovery – modern interpretation – educational reflection” is proposed. The model is illustrated through historical episodes associated with the development of the periodic law, the prediction of undiscovered elements, the discovery of noble gases, and the evolution of ideas about chemical periodicity. The article also presents a pedagogical experiment design for comparing conventional inorganic chemistry instruction with historically contextualized instruction. Criteria for evaluating cognitive achievement, conceptual understanding, scientific reasoning, learning motivation, and historical-scientific thinking are described. The proposed methodology demonstrates that historical material can function not merely as an illustrative component of a chemistry lesson but as a mechanism for organizing inquiry, reconstructing the logic of scientific discovery, identifying contradictions, and encouraging students to establish relationships between empirical evidence and theoretical generalization. The methodological approach may be applied in higher education institutions preparing future chemistry teachers as well as in general secondary chemistry education.