More on scholarships

05/01/1997

More on scholarships

Since your editorial in June ("Scholarships aren`t enough," p. 14) about the lack of interest in science displayed by middle and high school students, I have become more involved in and informed about the issues that you raised. An excellent discussion of this topic was presented in the October 1992 issue of Scientific American ("Teaching real science," pp. 99-#108), and is thoroughly discussed in the book In Search of Understanding: The Case for Constructivist Classrooms, by J.G. Brooks and M.G. Brooks. Some of the numerous reasons why students are turned off to science:

 Students become bored or intimidated by lessons that consist mainly of words that are useful only for passing tests.

 Teachers find it easier to rely on textbooks for their lessons than to spend the considerable time and effort required to assemble materials and equipment for demonstrations or hands-on science activities.

 Teachers are not trained to teach or assess "hands-on," inquiry-based science.

 Textbooks tend to be boring (and often incorrect).

 Topics that are taught often seem irrelevant to students.

 Telling children and then testing them on what they have been told destroys their natural curiosity and desire to learn for themselves.

 Recent cognitive research suggests that students learn only when they are curious. Often, curiosity is neglected as a teaching tool.

So what can be done? I recently attended an excellent five-day Teacher-Scientist Alliance Institute workshop hosted annually by the American Physical Society, where the role of the scientist in the systemic reform of (predominantly) elementary science education was discussed. Scientists and engineers can actively support the systemic reform of science education by:

 Promoting the adoption in your district of hands-on, age-appropriate, inquiry-based science curriculum materials such as Full Option Science System (FOSS), Science and Technology for Children (STC), or Insights for elementary science education. These materials meet the national science standards developed by the National Academy of Sciences.

 Assisting in the initial and continual professional development of teachers to teach inquiry-based science.

 Helping to establish a science materials support center in your district. These centers provide a central repository for the materials needed to perform hands-on, inquiry-based science. They also distribute the materials and replenish the science kits after they are used.

Is there any proof that these actions will be effective? Yes. In Mesa, AZ, 96% of those entering middle school from a hands-on science program in elementary grades opted to continue their science studies. But only 4% of those in a textbook-only program chose to continue to study science.

Lawrence D. Woolf

General Atomics

San Diego, CA