Thursday, June 7, 2012
Engaging Students in Science Research
Haynie, E. (2000) “Engaging Students in Science Research” The Science Teacher, 67(3), 8
Connecting the classroom to scientific research can help students develop conceptual understanding, yet this approach is generally not used in secondary education, perhaps because it is uncommon for teachers to have formal training in incorporating scientific research into the classroom. The National Science Education Standards (National Research Council, 1996) provides guidelines for teaching students scientific research. A teacher specializing in high school science education generally receives some training in methods but very little direct experience with the science research process.
To build their knowledge base and acquire an understanding of science research, teachers should be well acquainted with resources such as curricular materials, technology, community resources, professional colleagues with special expertise, and instructional resources.
Science research-based learning means observing and experimenting with the materials and processes of the natural world. Teaching research-based activities is demanding but worthwhile because the students involved have to take an active role in their own learning. Rather than the teacher telling the students what they must learn, the teacher sets up an environment in which students can actively acquire knowledge, mainly through experimenting. The teacher engages students in problem solving by asking probing questions, promoting inquiry, and guiding discussion.
Involving students in independent science research benefits them because such work builds their self confidence and helps them develop critical thinking skills. The discussion and exploration involved in scientific research enhances students' organizational skills. This work also stimulates and motivates students' natural curiosity in a context that makes science relevant to their lives. In addition, science research facilitates learning experiences that help restructure students' existing knowledge and build new knowledge and skills.
Many new curricular and instructional models are being developed and implemented as the United States moves toward educational reform in the science classroom. Scientific research-based learning is an innovative curricular and instructional strategy that provides the framework for implementing the science standards as students experience being apprentice scientists.
The ultimate goal of science education is to develop scientific attitudes, knowledge, skills, and processes. Experiences in which students engage in realistic science research provide the background for developing an understanding of the nature of scientific inquiry. Inquiry requires that students process scientific knowledge as they use scientific reasoning and critical thinking to develop their understanding of science. Students involved in science research ask questions, plan and conduct investigations, and use appropriate tools and techniques to gather data. These students think critically and logically about relationships between evidence and explanations.
It has been well demonstrated that students who conduct independent projects develop higher-level inquiry skills. For science education to be successful, one must bring science alive in the classroom for students. "When this happens, students awaken to a sense of joy, 'wonderment, and excitement about learning science. Being engaged in an independent research project allows the relevance of science to become apparent because students explore scientific developments that have shaped their -world.
Research-based science instruction is an effective teaching strategy and needs to be more widely used. Teaching scientific research methods to high school students enables them to learn through direct observation and experimentation just as professional scientists develop hypotheses and then test their ideas through repeated experiments and observations. Scientists cannot simply know that something is so; they must demonstrate it is so. The education of students in science must provide this kind of experience, not simply confirm the "right" answer but investigate the nature of their world and arrive at explanations they understand.
Edward C Haynie;Associate Professor;
Harris-Stowe State College; St. Louis, Missouri
e-mail: ehaynie@charter.net
REFERENCE
National Research Council. 1996. National Science Education Standards. Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press.
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