Creativity in today’s curriculum: Scientific Enquiry
In
this area, I will be focusing on primary level learning in Science. It
is important to ensure that the children’s learning is engaging and
creative as children tend to perform better both cognitively and
physically when it is.
What is Creative Enquiry?
Enquiry learning is a student-centred approach that encourages children to come up with their own questions to which they will find answers. This means that they are naturally using higher order thinking skills. Creative enquiry involves practical tasks which can enhance children’s practical thinking skills and problem solving skills when taking part in activities.
Enquiry learning is a student-centred approach that encourages children to come up with their own questions to which they will find answers. This means that they are naturally using higher order thinking skills. Creative enquiry involves practical tasks which can enhance children’s practical thinking skills and problem solving skills when taking part in activities.
Scientific Enquiry entails children taking part in scientific experiments to find out the answers of their aims. The
types of enquiry involve exploring, fair testing,
classifying/identifying, pattern seeking, investigating models and
making things. (Watson et al 1998, cited by Phillips 2014)
The teacher has to be an enabler, not only helping children during their activities, but planning the topic, organising the classroom, making materials available and establishing a climate in which children are free to discuss and explore their ideas. Through sensitive questioning, setting the children an example of how to use process skills, displaying positive attitudes towards science and giving children support when and where they need it, the teacher will be promoting effective learning in science.
(Ollerenshaw and Ritchie, 1993. p12)
Orellenshaw
and Ritchie have discussed the ideal roles that a teacher should have
when teaching a science lesson. They have also discussed the ideal roles
that a teacher should have when providing suitable activities for the
children to work in when doing practical working using their scientific
enquiry. Ollerenshaw and Ritchie (1993, p13) stated that:
The role of the teacher is a complex one and of paramount importance in helping children to develop their process skills and scientific concepts and encouraging and fostering positive attitudes to science. None of this happens by accident: the teacher has to provide the necessary opportunities for skills and understanding to develop.
They both have come up with four steps which are:
1) Orientation
In this step, children have to come up with an idea which will arouse their interest to find information on, this stage also provide children some time to think, time to consider and to organise their ideas. The starting point of coming up with an idea may be a visit, a story and other types of stimuli.
In this step, children have to come up with an idea which will arouse their interest to find information on, this stage also provide children some time to think, time to consider and to organise their ideas. The starting point of coming up with an idea may be a visit, a story and other types of stimuli.
2) Elicitation/Structuring
This step is the exploratory stage which helps the children become understandable about what they were thinking about and to develop their ideas. When clarifying their thinking, they will enable the teacher to assess the children’s ideas and help them plan the next step appropriate.
This step is the exploratory stage which helps the children become understandable about what they were thinking about and to develop their ideas. When clarifying their thinking, they will enable the teacher to assess the children’s ideas and help them plan the next step appropriate.
3) Intervention/Restructuring
In this step, the children commence to expand and substitute old ideas with new ones through investigation. The children are persuaded to carry out tests and contrast ideas in a more orderly method using their investigative process skills.
In this step, the children commence to expand and substitute old ideas with new ones through investigation. The children are persuaded to carry out tests and contrast ideas in a more orderly method using their investigative process skills.
4) Review
This step gives the opportunity for children and the teacher and/or the whole class to refer back to their previous ideas and support the children to see the purpose of what they did and what they have found out during their investigation.
This step gives the opportunity for children and the teacher and/or the whole class to refer back to their previous ideas and support the children to see the purpose of what they did and what they have found out during their investigation.
Here,
I have made a Scientific Enquiry cycle map to simplify both Ollerenshaw
and Ritchie’s methods and make it more visual as an idea of how it may
be presented to the class to ensure that the children understand what
their task is.
In our seminar, our lecturer has given us a group task to plan an ideal science experiment that can be used in a primary school. We worked collaboratively and thought about an appropriate and safe experiment that you can use in school. We came up with, as a group, the Mouldy Bread experiment.
In our seminar, our lecturer has given us a group task to plan an ideal science experiment that can be used in a primary school. We worked collaboratively and thought about an appropriate and safe experiment that you can use in school. We came up with, as a group, the Mouldy Bread experiment.
When creating this cycle, my
group members and I have discovered that this method of learning
activated our thinking as we were very eager to work out the next step,
unfortunately we did not carry out the experiment to solve the mystery
due to university and work commitments. We believed that this method may
engage children's learning as they will have to come up with an idea
and follow it through in practice as children love to do things manually
rather than sit in a formal learning environment.
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| Made on Microsoft Publisher |
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| Ideal Scientific Enquiry cycle my group and I created. |
References
Harlen, W. 2000. The Teaching of Science in Primary Schools. 3rd Ed. London: David Fulton Publishers.
Ollerenshaw, C & R, Ritchie. 1993. Primary Science: Making it work. London: David Fulton Publishers.
Available at: http://www.unesco.org/education/tlsf/mods/theme_d/mod23.html
[Accessed 22.07.2015].
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