gcse science: ideas about science and science explanations
TRANSCRIPT
GCSE Science: Ideas about Science and
Science Explanations
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Science explanations
‘Breadth of study’
Ideas about Science
‘How science works’
Equal assessment weighting
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ScienceExplanations
Modules Ideas about Science
etc.
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Implications
GCSE Science: equal assessment weighting of Science Explanations and Ideas about Science
Links between modules:
– within and across subject areas
– identifying links
– possibility of over-teaching
– implications for rotation teaching
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IaS3 Developing explanations
P1 Earth in the Universe B3 Life on Earth
Ideas about Science page 91
Activities
AP1.5 to AP1.7, plus
AP1.17, AP1.23, AP1.36
GCSE Science book pages 66, 68-69, 80-81
Ideas about Science page 203
Activities
AB3.1, AB3.13, AB3.14,
and AB3.26 to AB 3.28
GCSE Science book pages 184-187
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Exemplars of the links between Science Explanations and Ideas about Science
P2 Radiation and life
B1 You and your genes
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P2 Radiation and life
Ideas about Science
– Distinction between correlation and cause (IaS2) is introduced in Module C1 Air quality, e.g Activity AC1.20 When do hay fever symptoms appear? (the hay fever / ice cream activity).
– The big Idea about Science in Module P2 is ‘risks and benefits’, in the context of the electromagnetic spectrum.
– See for example Activity AP2.15 ‘A safe place to live?’
Science Explanations
– Module P2 introduces the electromagnetic spectrum in terms of photons.
– The electromagnetic spectrum is taken up again in module P6 ‘The wave model of radiation’.
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B1 You and your genes
Ideas about Science
– This module is the first introduction to ethical decision-making
– Big idea is outlining basic framework which can be used to discuss ethical decision-making throughout the course
– Decision-making throughout the course covers personal, socio-scientific and government policy examples.
Science Explanations– Inheritance is treated in terms of genes in B1 ‘You and your
genes’ and DNA in the Additional Science module B5 ‘Growth & development’
B1 You and your genesSE: variation, fertilization,gene (dominant/recessive),gender, asexual reproduction,cloning (stem cells)
P2 Radiation and lifeIaS6: Making decisions (personal society)
B5 Growth and developmentSE: cell cycle, mitosis/meiosisprotein synthesis, stem cells,meristems, gene switchingplant growth
C3 Food mattersIaS6: Making decisions (personal, cost/benefit analysis, government regulation)
C2 Material choicesIaS6: Making decisions (cost/benefit analysis)
B1 You and your genesIaS6: Making decisions (personal, frameworks)
B3 Life on EarthSE: natural selection, mutation,evolution
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Teaching and assessing Ideas about Science
Put the information cards in order of persuasiveness.
Be able to explain reasons for your order.
Suggest other information you might like to have to increase your confidence in ranking a card.
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Teaching the nature of science
If developing a scientifically literate populace, ... is to be an aim of science education, then teaching about the nature of science is not an indulgence but an essential act, fundamental to a contemporary science education.
[Osborne, J. (2002). In R. Boohan & S. Amos (eds). Aspects of Teaching Secondary Science. p. 237.]
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A view of scientific literacy?
Knowledgeof
Science Explanations
Knowledgeof
Ideas about Science
Skills: critical thinking,development of argument …
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Teaching and assessment
Assessment of critical thinking, argument …
Case study - conclusions
Aspect of performance
2 4 6 8
a comparing opposing evidence and views
Information is unselectively reported without taking any clear view about any course of action.
Claims for a particular idea, development or course of action are reported without critical comment.
Claims and arguments for and against are reported, but with little attempt to compare or evaluate them.
Details of opposing views are evaluated and critically compared.
b conclusions and recom-mendations
A conclusion is stated without reference to supporting evidence.
A conclusion is based on evidence for one view only.
Some limits or objections to the conclusion are acknowledged.
Alternative conclusions are considered, showing awareness that different interpretations of evidence may be possible.
Internal Assessment GuidanceBlackpool Secondary Science 2006-2007
for OCR C21 Science A produced by Blackpool Secondary Science
Case study – 20% [24 marks]
Data analysis – 13.3% [16 marks]
Damian Ainscough, Secondary Science Consultant
[please send any ideas for addition/improvement to [email protected] ]
With thanks to Blackpool Science teachers and in particular
Katie Rawcliffe – Bispham High School – an Arts College
Mark Sergeant – St Mary’s Catholic College
Doreen Chadwick – Montgomery High School – a Language College
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A definition for Ideas about Science?
The kinds of knowledge science produces.
The methods used to get this knowledge and check its validity.
The social processes of science that provide ‘quality assurance’ of its outcomes.
How science influences society and vice versa.
creativity & imagination
decision making
validity
correlation
scientific community
risk
evidence
variables
model
factor
outcome
reliabilityethics
argument
cause
observationexplanation
experimentation
data
Terminology
REAL WORLD
THEORY
Observation/ Experimentation
A view of how science works?
REAL WORLD
DATA PREDICTION
EXPLANATION
Observation/ Experimentation
Reasoning/ Calculation
Agree/Disagree
Confidence in explanation increases/decreases
A view of how science works?
Adapted from Giere, R (1991). Understanding Scientific Reasoning (3rd ed.).Fort Worth, TX: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
Negative / Positive evidence evidence
REAL WORLD
DATA PREDICTION
EXPLANATION
Observation/ Experimentation
Reasoning/ Calculation
Agree/Disagree
Confidence in explanation increases/decreases
creativity & imagination
decision making
validity
correlation
scientific community
risk Negative / Positive evidence evidence
evidence
variables
model
factoroutcome
reliability
ethics
argumentcause