‘Now This is What Should have Happened…’: A Clash of Classroom Epistemologies?

Michael Allen

doi:10.12973/ejmste/75358

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Michael Allen ¹ ^*

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¹ Brunel University, Uxbridge, UK^* Corresponding Author

Abstract

Current school science curricula attempt to reflect contemporary constructivist- provisionalist related epistemologies as accepted by professional science. It is argued that conversely, the effect of science education is the creation of pupils holding naïve-realist epistemological beliefs, largely inductivist-positivist absolutists who chase an irrefutable ‘right answer’. This outcome has unwelcome consequences: Encouraging positivist mind-sets during school science practical work that trigger confirmation bias and other deviant evidential attitudes. Philosophical inconsistency creating epistemological confusion with a tendency towards positivism that continues into higher education, and perhaps beyond. This forms a significant barrier to science learning and impacts on the quality of scientists within the workforce. Solutions are offered but as things presently stand, significant change is deemed unlikely. Discussion of these issues is timely in the light of the recent introduction into English secondary schools of a teaching scheme that articulates a post-positivist view of the nature of science, in the form of a How Science Works strand.

Keywords

literacy
religion
science
sociocultural
superstition

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This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Article Type: Research Article

EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed, 2008, Volume 4, Issue 4, 319-326

https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75358

Publication date: 22 Dec 2008

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How to cite this article

APA

Allen, M. (2008). ‘Now This is What Should have Happened…’: A Clash of Classroom Epistemologies?. Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 4(4), 319-326. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75358

Vancouver

Allen M. ‘Now This is What Should have Happened…’: A Clash of Classroom Epistemologies?. EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed. 2008;4(4):319-26. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75358

AMA

Allen M. ‘Now This is What Should have Happened…’: A Clash of Classroom Epistemologies?. EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed. 2008;4(4), 319-326. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75358

Chicago

Allen, Michael. "‘Now This is What Should have Happened…’: A Clash of Classroom Epistemologies?". Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education 2008 4 no. 4 (2008): 319-326. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75358

Harvard

Allen, M. (2008). ‘Now This is What Should have Happened…’: A Clash of Classroom Epistemologies?. Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 4(4), pp. 319-326. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75358

MLA

Allen, Michael "‘Now This is What Should have Happened…’: A Clash of Classroom Epistemologies?". Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, vol. 4, no. 4, 2008, pp. 319-326. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75358