It has only recently occurred to me the direction science is going in terms of how it's taught in classrooms. I can remember back as a kid that sitting down to read whether in a classroom environment or at my own recreation time; it was painful. From that young age, also, though grade school and into life after schooling, if something was taught to me or if I had to portray my knowledge, I needed to use my hands, I needed objects, draw something, anything tangible helped me ten fold. My message in this isn't that kids and students need to have a classroom lesson where they go roll around in the dirt, however, the way science is taught, is the exact way it shouldn't be…
The regurgitation of facts after reading them out of a book or after they've been spoken and drilled into the students mind is a way of learning that only a selective few can handle. Granted there are lessons that should be taught like that and it's appropriate. Physiologically it's impossible for students to sit in one spot and pay full-attention to an instructor for 60 + minutes. Aside from paying attention, too, they'll need to pass tests and written exams. Science is a practical subject, only practical examinations and labs are the answer to see if the student(s) have fulfilled the requirements.
Science isn't all sunshine and rainbows (metaphorically and literally), it's the study of everything going on around us, and if this generation and ones therefore after are going to be the future scientists and leaders of the world, we should probably start teaching them the right way.
The regurgitation of facts after reading them out of a book or after they've been spoken and drilled into the students mind is a way of learning that only a selective few can handle. Granted there are lessons that should be taught like that and it's appropriate. Physiologically it's impossible for students to sit in one spot and pay full-attention to an instructor for 60 + minutes. Aside from paying attention, too, they'll need to pass tests and written exams. Science is a practical subject, only practical examinations and labs are the answer to see if the student(s) have fulfilled the requirements.
Science isn't all sunshine and rainbows (metaphorically and literally), it's the study of everything going on around us, and if this generation and ones therefore after are going to be the future scientists and leaders of the world, we should probably start teaching them the right way.
