To appreciate variation between scientists: A perspective for seeing science's vitality

Abstract At the heart of theoretical and practical ideas about science education is an image of scientific work. This image draws attention to particular features of scientific work, which then guides scholarship and pedagogy in science education. In the field of science education, much discussion in this vein focuses on the question, “What is the nature of science?” Most images of science found in education, psychology, and philosophy emerge from conceptual and methodological perspectives that emphasize norms, conventions, and broad trends. Some groups are motivated to distinguish science from other activities while some groups work in the opposite direction and blur the lines between science and others ways of knowing. Underlying both perspectives is an implicit focus on general qualities common to groups or subgroups (e.g. believing that ideas are subject to change, explanations demand evidence, science is a complex social activities, etc.). I propose that the vital qualities of science are best illuminated by just the opposite process: by appreciating the uncommon , rather than common, features. By attending to individual variation, we are more likely to understand what makes science a creative, motivating, and deeply personal enterprise. In addition, appreciating these variations reveals judgment, creativity, adaptation—the hallmark of scientific work. Implications of this perspective for science education are discussed. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Sci Ed 86: 386–400, 2002; Published online in Wiley Interscience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/sce.10023