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In defense of modest goals when teaching about the nature of science
Author(s) -
Matthews Michael R.
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
journal of research in science teaching
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.067
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1098-2736
pISSN - 0022-4308
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1098-2736(199802)35:2<161::aid-tea6>3.0.co;2-q
Subject(s) - indoctrination , constructivism (international relations) , epistemology , science education , sociology , mathematics education , pedagogy , psychology , political science , philosophy , law , international relations , ideology , politics
This article mentions briefly the long tradition of proposals for including historical and epistemological elements in science programs; it draws attention to some contemporary educational issues that hinge upon interpretations of the nature of science, especially constructivist proposals; it mentions the range of philosophical debate on the merits of constructivism; it examines one goal commonly advanced for teaching about the nature of science and suggests that this can amount to indoctrination; and, finally, it proposes a modest goal for such teaching. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 35: 161–174, 1998.