Notes on Taking Science to Schools by NAS (2007)

Paraphrasing & Commenting

SCIENCE PROFICIENCY
Consists of 4 elements
1. Know science content
2. Do the evidence-explanation dance.
3. Know "the scientific method".
4. Participate: Do & debate science.

Note: 1 & 3 are knowledge. 2&4 are activities/processes.
Key issues.
A. How to incorporate 2&4 in online program? (esp 4)
B. Does the manditory testing test all 4? Or mostly just 1.
C. Should a (our) curriculum teach to the test (#1) or to Science Proficiency more boadly (#1-4)?

More detailed explanation of the 4 elements
1. Know science/Science content.
2. Do the evidence<->explanation thing.
--Compare evidence to explanation & vice versa.
--Generate explanations from evidence. Test explations using evidence. Say how explanations predict evidence.
3. Know "the scientific method(s). (How science is done and progresses. How it has progressed.)
4. Do & discuss science. (Do experiments and the evidence/explanation dance. Debate science.)

CONCLUSIONS
1. Kids come with implicit scientific knowledge (right or wrong).
2. ...and this varies with experience...
3. ...that is influence by race, gender & other social factors.
4. Kids learn by doing science.
5. Variety of approaches is needed.

Corollaries:
a. Must take into account what students know (meaningful? actionable?)
b. ...and be sensitive (meaningful? actionable?)
c. Kids are smarter (and better at abstracting) than we thought. (but how actionable?)

RECOMMENDATIONS
1. Treat children smarter.
2. Organize K-8 instruction & progression around a few "Big Ideas"
3. Stress the evidence-explanation dance. Include other forms of evidence generation besides experiments (e.g., observation, historical analysis)
4. Get students doing all 4 "Scientific Proficiencies": (1) knowing content (2) the evidence-explanation dance, (3) scientific method? and (4) doing, talking & debating (science).
5. (Authorities should give teachers the mandate to...) Get students investigating, talking and writing around the evidence-explanation dance.

MY SYNTHESIS OF THE CONCLUSIONS AND...
1. Build on the (implicit) science understanding that students come with.
2. Provide a variety of approaches to encourage and accomodate the variety among students (in the understanding/beliefs/attitudes they bring and individual learning styles/abilities/stages.)
...RECOMMENDATIONS
3. Treat children smarter.
4. Organize around "Big Ideas".
5. Get students doing and discussing the evidence-explanation dance.

MY REACTION TO THESE
a. Generally, 1&2 seem hardest and 3-5 seem easiest, most straightforward to implement.
b. 1-3 present the question of how? since they are rather vague and aspirational.
c. In a classroom, 2&3 present some challenges with all but #4: How to include/engage/encourage/not discourage students with "lower" scientific confidence, understanding or ability, with less interest and with different or "less scientific" learning and thinking styles?
d. An individual, online environment presents challenges with #5. How can a student do science and discuss/debate science on a computer, alone, at home?