"If history and science have taught us anything,
it is that passion and desire are not the same as truth. "
E.O. Wilson
"Students who are engaged are capable of far greater rigor" Freeley
~The process of inquiry is modeled on the scientists method of discovery.
It views science as a constructed set of theories and ideas based on the physical world,
rather than as a collection of irrefutable, disconnected facts.
It focuses on asking questions, considering alternative explanations, and weighing evidence.
It includes high expectations for students to acquire factual knowledge,
but it expects more from them than the mere storage and retrieval of information.~
Foundations, The Challenge and Promise of K-8 Science Education Reform (1997).
Written by EDC's Center for Science Education and Published by the National Science Foundation.
It is a popular delusion that the scientific enquirer is under an obligation not to go beyond generalisation of observed facts...but anyone who is practically acquainted with scientific work is aware that those who refuse to go beyond the facts, rarely get as far.
Thomas Henry Huxley (1825-95) English biologist.
A note about this course:
How does one think like a scientist? What specific habits of the mind lend themselves to framing the world in the critical and objective mode of a scientist? This year as a community of scientists and learners in 6th grade Life Science, we will hone our skills in careful observation, critical thinking, the testing of hypotheses through experimentation, data analyses and, in the critical analysis of our conclusions. We will become joyful skeptics as we explore life science. Working together as a team, we will experience science as a creative, 'hands on', 'minds on', ‘think-outside-the-box’ endeavor while we strive to understand the concepts and the nuances of the scientific process and as we discover the wonders of life.
Pamela Harmon - 6th Grade Life Science
Recommended Readings for Parents:
Falling for Science: Objects in Mind, Sherry Turkel
Last Child in the Woods, Richard Louv
The Web of Life, Fritof Capra
Consilience, E.O. Wilson
Mindset: The New Psychology of Sucess, Carol S. Deweck
Every science begins as philosophy and ends as art.
Will Durant, The Story of Philosophy, 1926
The universe is full of magical things patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper.
Eden Phillpotts, A Shadow Passes
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