The Nature of Science

 

Tested Studies in Laboratory Teaching, 2010, Volume 31

Maness, J.

Abstract

College freshmen lack an understanding of the scientific process. Many textbooks contribute to this misunderstanding by presenting a formulaic scientific method that obscures the logical underpinnings of science and its creative, adaptive, and collaborative nature. After completing a survey of their understanding of the nature of science, students participate in activities requiring them to make observations, propose explanations, cite evidence to support their explanation and modify their explanation when presented with new or conflicting evidence. This lab stimulates student interaction with each other and the instructor as they learn the tentative nature of scientific explanations and the value of collaboration.

Keywords:  nature of science

University of Delaware (2009)