The Correlation Between High School Students' Visual-Spatial Ability and Their Ability to Solve Stoichiometry Problems

Abstract

For the past 40 years, researchers have explored the connection between visual-spatial ability and students' performance in chemistry. This study investigates whether such a relationship exists specifically in the context of stoichiometry problem-solving. A total of 70 high school students were assessed using the Purdue Visualization of Rotations Test (PVRT) and a stoichiometry test. The results show a significant positive correlation (r = 0.341, p < 0.01), with visual-spatial ability accounting for 11.6% of the variance in students’ performance on stoichiometry tasks. Qualitative data from student interviews revealed that those with higher visual-spatial skills tended to use mental visualization, observe molecular interactions, and check their answers more thoroughly. These findings suggest that improving students’ visual-spatial skills may enhance their ability to solve chemical problems involving multiple representations, particularly in stoichiometry.