Download - Scientific Thinking in Schools
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Hershal Pand a.
Scientific Thinking in Schools(Educator, Riverside School, Ahmedabad, India, 2010-2011)
Feel free to contact for any queries: [email protected].
Photos in this presentation are a property of Riverside School. May notbe reproduced or used without prior consent.
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Understanding Goal, Purpose, Whois it for, Skills & Attitudes
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Understanding Goal
Students will try to understand that the only way to make sense
of the seemin l random universe is to be mindful of theScientific Process.
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Scientific Temperament consists ofObserving, constructing aTheory, Testing a theory and Re-constructing till all possible testsValidate the theory.
The purpose of running the Scientific Thinking program in a
Purpose
children. To make them into independent observers andindividuals constantly learning through questioning.
Although it connects immediately with the three sciences,
Scientific Thinking is not for a student of science but for anythinker! i.e. for everyone.
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Who is it for? All the children from Pre-K to Grade12 benefit from this program
when appropriately designed.
The program can be modifiedto suit the complexity ofunderstanding, availability of
resources and disci line ofinterest or specific needs ofthe particular group ofchildren.
Scientific Thinking programcan as well be for theTeachers & Admin/SupportStaff.
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Skills & Attitudes Developed through
Scientific Thinking Skills
Observe Record Hypothesize Imagine Illustrate
Attitudes Rationality Teamwork Patience Open-mindedness Wonderment
Describe Analyze Questioning Reasoning Making Connections
Respect for others opinions
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Framework, Implementation, TeacherPreparedness, Resources & FAQs
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Framework
Demonstration Observation RecordingHypothesis
(Individual)
Group DiscussionClass Discussion
Validating throughReasoning orExperiments.
EstablishingTheory
(Teacher led)
Learn the
Complete Theory
Making
Connections
Reflection on
mindfulness of theprocess
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Implementation - Demonstration Depending on the age group of the children, one needs to select an appropriate
demonstration. The demonstration should
Be as engaging, fascinating aspossible
Contain effects that provide asensorial experience.(visual,sound, smell, touch) for a group
rom an appropr a e s ance. Challenge the childsknowledge and understanding
Simple enough for the child tocomprehend at the end of theexercise
Have many facets and levelsof understanding so thatchildren falling across thespectrum of cognitive skills have atake-away by the end of exercise
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Implementation - Worksheet At the beginning, the students should be handed the worksheet
with marked out spaces as follows:
Why do you think this phenomenon occurred? Give your reasoning. [HYPOTHESIS]
What did you see? Illustrate and Explain. [OBSERVATION]
Which step in the scientific process was I less mindful of? How did that affect my thinking? [REFLECTION]
Explain and Illustrate why it is the way it is [MY TAKEAWAY]
Are you aware of such a phenomenon occurring elsewhere? [MAKING CONNECTIONS]
What was your collective understanding after discussing in your group? [REFINING AND JUSTIFYING]
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Implementation Student Prompts
The students will
Carefully observe the experiment while it is beingdemonstrated by the teacher.
Fill in the worksheet as given in the previous slide.
rst come up w t t e r co ect ve un erstan ng n sma ergroups made by the teacher. And then as a class.
Remind them to be mindful of the scientific process whileresponding to the phenomenon.
Each group of students should present their hypothesisalong with valid reasoning.
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Implementation Teacher Tips The size of the group should be kept around 20-25 children.
During the demonstration the teacher should not give hints but atthe same time should draw the students attention to thechanges happening during the experiment.
During class discussion, the teacher should list down all thehypotheses on the board and lead the discussion to establishedtheory and guide students to reason out the incorrect ones.
The teacher should not give any inputs of his/hers but only
guide by asking relevant questions. See the list of the questions inthe Appendix B.
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Teacher Preparedness The teacher should believe that this program does enrich the
scientific thinking skills of the students.
It is very important that the teacher runs through a newexperiment once for himself/herself and have a colleague gothrough the process.
chemical processes that are occurring during the experiment.
The teacher should also be well informed about the out-of-domain connections (may be in nature or technology) wherethe same principle of science is responsible for an action.
The experiment/demonstration is well designed and wellprepared for.
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Time & Duration
Scientific Thinking session should be held twice a monthideally.
One complete session from Demonstration-to-Reflection
should not exceed
1 hour for children upto the age of 14 yrs
1.5 hours for children upto the age of 18 yrs
The deciding factor should be the time for whichchildren remain engaged.
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Resources
Internet is a good resource to find interesting experimentsto demonstrate.
List of Experiments carried out at Riverside in the year2010-11 (see appendix).
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FAQsQ. Should the experiment be from the syllabus?
A. It is preferable if the experiment be something from outside thesyllabus. But still comprehensible by the students.
Q. Can the experiment be inter-disciplinary?
A. Yes, it is even better .
Q. Does it need to be related to either of the sciences Bio/Phy/Chem ?
A. One as well could have a demonstration for any other disciplinelike Math or any event naturally occurring in the surrounding.
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Case Study
The Soda Can Experiment
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MethodMaterials:
Couple of Soda Cans, Insulating tape, Scissors, Gas Stove / Heating Plate, Water
Preparation:
Take a tin can of any Cola and bore a small hole with the help of a pointed object like a
geometric compass. Empty all the soda and fill around 2 tb spoon of water in the can.
Keep electrical insulation tape handy.
Experiment:
Heat the can (with the hole open) on a Gas Stove(preferable) or a hot plate for around 2-3
min. *
When little steam starts coming out of the hole, take the can off the heat and seal the hole
with the insulation tape.
Let the can cool down slowly. After five minutes, immerse the can in a small vessel with tap
water.
*Please ensure that the children are at an appropriate distance from the hot plate or bunsen
burner.
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Method
Heating the Can
Letting it Cool
Final Outcome
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Guided Inquiry
This particular experiment is quite sensorial hence no
specific guidance to the students is required.
As the can cools down, it contracts and the tin makes loud
crackling sounds.
,contraction is very loud and clear.
Grade 6 students looking at Can contract when
placed in water.
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Performance of Understanding
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Performance of Understanding
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Performance of Understanding
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Performance of Understanding
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Investments & Reflection
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Investments
Physical
Observation skills, Illustration skills.
Social
Respecting others point of view
Cognitive
Knowledge/Reasoning
Emotional
Acceptance of ones failure upon verification
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Reflection
Knowing the principles that drive the particular phenomenaBUT not allowing the background academic knowledge to
compromise the scientific temperament.
One could look at how to include the above idea into the
Scientific Thinkin Pro . Some ideas are: Ask the students to give a fresh / revolutionary /fictitious
theory
Use magic/sci-fi movie clips/circus as demonstrations.
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Out of Clutter, Find Simplicity, From Discord, Find
Harmony, In The Middle Of Difficulty Lies Opportunity.-Albert Einstein
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Appendix A: List of Experiments
Refractive Index Expt by David
Resonating Pendulums
Ice Block
Soda Can Expt
Shadows?
Egg in Water
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Appendix B: List of Questions to Guide
Inquiry
What do you see here? Can you illustrate it in your worksheet?
Why do you think it is happening?
What all factors affect the outcome of the experiment?
. .room/dark or more bright place/ lot of vibrations on thetable? Would it change the events outcome?
What if the materials used were different? Like salt instead ofsugar or salt crystal instead of salt powder [incase the
demonstration is based on dissolving capacity] Where else do we see this happening?