Read an Excerpt
Science Is Golden
A Problem-Solving Approach to Doing Science with Children
By Ann Finkelstein Michigan State University Press Copyright © 2001 Ann Finkelstein
All right reserved. ISBN: 978-0-87013-566-8
Chapter One
The Brains-On Approach to Science
What I hear I forget. What I see I remember. What I do I understand. -Chinese proverb
Science is not just for nerds.
Science is often perceived as a boring subject, although I cannot understand why. Science is the study of life and death, the oceans and the earth, the flora and the fauna. Science investigates the smallest particles of matter and the breadth of the universe. Science explains why Michael Jordan can jump so high, and just how difficult it is to hit a knuckle ball. Scientific research has developed technologies to allow astronauts to survive in outer space. Science holds the answers to why our children may look like us, or why they may not. The study of science has yielded the cure or prevention for horrible diseases. Science can help us determine ways to keep this planet a safe and beautiful place for many generations to come. What is boring about that?
Science is an extremely creative subject, and yet the creative aspects of science are often overlooked. Many people apply the word "creative" to art, music, dance, poetry, and fiction, rather than to science. Finding the solution to any problem, whether it is how to paint a landscape or how to map the path of a comet requires creative thought. Creative problem solving requires two steps. First, the solution to the problem must be imagined. The landscape must be envisioned by the artist, or to Science the elliptical orbit of the comet must be hypothesized by the astronomer. The second creative process is imagining unique ways to solve the problem. The artist finds a new and different way to portray the scene, while the astronomer uses the comet's previous locations to predict how it moves through space. Scientific thought is organized by formal problem-solving techniques. Logical thinking no more limits the creative aspects of science than the methods for applying paint to canvas limit the creativity of artists. Without creative thought, there would be few scientific advances.
Science is on the brink of countless amazing and wonderful discoveries, and the media has sensationalized some recent breakthroughs. The famous sheep, Dolly, was "cloned" by fusing a mammary cell to an unfertilized, DNA-free egg. Dolly's existence caused public outcry and discussions of the moral implications of this new technology. While several kinds of animals have been cloned successfully, human cloning remains technically difficult, impractical, and less efficient than traditional methods. Popular fiction often portrays scientists as the bad guys planning nefarious plots with evil purposes. Let me try to reassure you here. Scientific research is very carefully regulated. The use of chemicals, radioisotopes, animals, recombinant DNA technology, and human tissues is closely monitored. Laboratories that fail to comply with these regulations are not allowed to continue operating. We tend to fear things we do not understand, but science is not incomprehensible, and it need not be feared. Showing children how to plan experiments and analyze data will prepare them to understand and scrutinize future scientific developments. Establishing a positive attitude about science allows children to examine technological advances logically without anxiety coloring their thoughts.
Science is a difficult subject. Professional scientists investigate some of the most interesting, challenging, and important problems that the world has ever known. Science, however, can be done at many levels. Children can learn to appreciate the beauty of analytical thought, the perfection of nature, and the thrill of investigation without being intimidated by complicated details. There is plenty of time for them to learn about the Higg's boson, should they so desire. Now is the time to communicate that science is fun, understandable, useful, and interesting. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to do experiments. All you need is an open mind and the desire to solve problems. Nearly all of the references I have used in the preparation of this book can be found in the children's section of the public library. Research will undoubtedly be required, but it isn't necessary to wade through a graduate-level physics book to help design an experiment to answer "How does a kite fly?"
While several complex scientific concepts are involved in flying a kite, the main reason is simple. The wind pushes it up. The pressure of the wind against the inclined surface of the kite generates lift. We have all experienced Newton's third law of motion: "To every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction." In this case, the action of the wind when it is deflected downward off the flat surface of the kite causes a reaction of the kite getting pushed up. The angle of the kite against the wind is important. The kite strings maintain the appropriate angle. Think of all the experiments that could be done investigating the shape, size, weight, construction materials, and steering capabilities of a kite.
Science is based on logical arguments and simple strategies. The laws of nature govern everything from the smallest subatomic particles to the movement of the planets. There are relatively few scientific principles, and most of them can be understood in a way that is simple and intuitive. The key to much of biology is the survival of the fittest, and the need for animals to develop a niche where they can live, eat, and reproduce. Perhaps more natural laws govern the physical world, but there are many interesting systems that can be presented in a user-friendly way. Two of the questions I collected from a fifth grade student illustrate this concept: "Why are baby animals so cute?" and "How does a musical instrument make sound?"
First, how do Darwin's theories apply to baby animals? Cuteness has survival benefits. Soft fur or downy feathers keep small animals or birds warm. The spots on a fawn act as camouflage when the baby hides from predators, and the long legs on a zebra foal enable it to run with the herd shortly after birth. When young animals play, they are developing important survival skills such as running or hunting. Of course, the details of a biological system may have to be researched, but the underlying concept of the need to survive puts many details into perspective.
Similarly, young children can design experiments to investigate how a musical instrument makes sound by examining the ideas of vibration and sound waves. When we hear sound, we perceive vibrations. These vibrations move through the air as sound waves, which are detected by our ears. Slower vibrations make lower sounds; faster vibrations make higher pitches. This is fertile ground for designing experiments. Noise-making vibrations can be produced by twanging stretched rubber bands, tapping bottles filled with different amounts of water, rubbing a moistened finger around the rim of a stemmed glass, ringing bells, etc.
Science is further simplified by the use of controlled experiments. If an experiment is properly planned, it should yield data that are easy to analyze. The results of a controlled experiment should point to the correct answer. Here is an example. The children in a first-grade soccer league wear reversible blue and gold T-shirts. Each team is assigned a color for each game, and players on opposing teams are differentiated by the color of their shirts. The teams switch colors from week to week. After the first three games, one boy wondered, "Why does the blue team always win?" Adults realize that these results are simple coincidence. Eliminating misleading chance occurrences in scientific experiments is important, however. The best way to avoid being deceived is to do controlled experiments. How can the "blue team theory" be tested? The simplest experiment would involve only two teams. The teams should play soccer six or eight times. (The large number of games helps "average out" day-to-day variations in the level of play.) As all players will probably improve their soccer skills over the course of the experiment, each team should wear the coveted blue T-shirt for alternate games. I suspect that by the end of the experiment, there would be no correlation between winning and the color of the jersey. If all the players believed that the blue shirt conferred good luck, it is possible that the added self-confidence would affect the outcome of the game. The best experiment would involve players who did not know that the "blue team theory" was being tested. (Note added in proof: the gold team won the fourth and fifth games.) If the experiment is bounded by controls, it is easier to draw correct conclusions from the data. (Designing controlled experiments is explained more completely in Chapter 4.)
Young children can be introduced to science in a variety of ways. In this book, I propose a method that starts with children's questions about science. Students then design experiments to answer their questions, and learn how to analyze and present their data. I favor this technique because the "Brains-On Method" is a complete representation of the scientific method, and because students are likely to feel responsible for and interested in experiments of their own creation. The brains-on method is just one approach to teaching science, but the techniques described in this book can also be used to enhance and clarify other methods. All students should be encouraged to ask questions. Experimental controls can be added to science demonstrations. The suggestions for graphing, preparing laboratory notebooks, and creating posters can be applied to any experiment. Most importantly, children should have a personal stake in the experiment. Children are naturally curious, and science is a way they can learn about their world. To use the words of Dr. Bruce Alberts, president of the National Academy of Sciences, "learning science is something that students do, not something that is done to them."
The brains-on approach helps students create their own experiments.
The brains-on method goes one step beyond hands-on science activities for children. Not only do the students do the experiment, they first conceive of the idea, refine their idea, plan the experiment, perform a controlled experiment, and analyze and present the results. This is easier than it seems. It does not require trained professionals, and you can attempt it in your own home or classroom. Here is a brief overview of the brains-on approach to science.
(1) Start with science questions asked by children.
The world around, above, below, and within us is fascinating, and children are naturally curious about themselves and their environment. I tried to tap into that curiosity by collecting questions from elementary school students. As a scientist, I was delighted with the quality of the questions and gratified to know the answers to some of them. The questions varied in subject, scope, and difficulty. Some were easily answered. "How many grams are in a pound?" (There are about 454 g/lb.) Some questions hint at problems of such importance that their answer may someday be worthy of a Nobel Prize. "How does medicine know where to go?" (The efforts of many talented scientists and many research dollars are currently being directed at "magic bullet" therapies in which anti-cancer drugs are targeted directly at the cancerous tissue.) By starting with questions asked by students, we start with their interest, and show them how to follow up on it.
(2) Show how students can turn questions into experiments.
Chapter 2 is about questions. Several examples are given of how questions can be clarified and refined so that they can serve as the nucleus of an experiment. Of course, not every question leads to an experiment, but if enough questions are collected, there are sure to be some that are suitable for experimentation. How to turn a clear and well-thought out question into an experiment is discussed in Chapter 3. With some adult guidance, a group of children can work together to build a model of how they think their experimental system may work. They propose possible answers to their question, and think of ways to test which of their ideas are correct.
(3) Plan the experiment.
In Chapter 4, I explain how to do a controlled experiment. Experimental controls are often overlooked in elementary science, but controls make the results more meaningful. Controls frame the logical argument. Negative controls measure background, and positive controls test if the experiment is working. Many examples of negative and positive controls are presented as well as reasons for doing them.
(4) Do the experiment.
Doing the experiment and collecting the data are two of the most fun parts of the experimental process. Data must be collected in an organized and careful manner. Chapter 5 covers doing the experiment, collecting the data, and keeping a laboratory notebook.
(5) Figure out what was learned.
How to make sense out of the data is discussed in Chapter 6. Lots of numbers can be baffling. Non-numeric data can be confusing too. Making sense of the experimental results and understanding the data is fun and rewarding. Topics include graphing, experimental error, qualitative analysis, and presentation of data. These subjects are discussed in a way that is appropriate for experiments done by young children.
(6) Ask more questions.
Did the results of the experiment lead to more questions? Is it possible to follow up on any of these questions? How could the experiment be improved? Was something unexpected learned from the experiment?
The brains-on approach.
The brains-on method is diagrammed in Figure 1.1. Some people call this the scientific method. The ideas presented in the flow chart are simple. Everybody has problems. We all ask questions. We have done library research or looked up answers to questions. The terminology used in the problem-solving path may be unfamiliar, but we all use problem-solving techniques. Each step is described in detail in later chapters of this book.
Asking a question is the first step in problem solving because the question defines the problem. A question can be analyzed to determine if the answer will be found more readily by experimentation or by researching the findings of others. In some cases the question must be refined, the terms must be defined and clarified before it becomes a testable question. A testable question suggests a hypothesis or model. A hypothesis can be tested by experimentation. If the experiment is properly controlled, it will yield data that should, upon analysis, answer the question. Some questions can be answered directly (see heavy dashed line). Sometimes the answer will lead to further questions or problems (light dashed line). This book will provide a point-by-point description of how to implement the brains-on method starting with questions asked by elementary school students.
Problem solving is not as daunting as it seems.
People solve problems using this method every day. The process is natural to humans. We may not think about solving problems in a formal, diagrammatic manner. We just do it. Children use problem-solving techniques at an early age. For example, one child covets a toy another child is using. The two children can try a number of strategies to get and keep the toy, and probably only some of these techniques will be acceptable to their parents. The problem is getting and keeping the toy. The first question is "How can I get the toy?" A more refined question might be "Can I get the toy by grabbing it?" or "Can I get the toy by asking for it?" The child will brainstorm a number of methods for obtaining the toy. The attempt to commandeer the toy is the experiment. The data or results are whether or not the attempt is successful. Both children will imagine additional experiments.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Science Is Golden by Ann Finkelstein Copyright © 2001 by Ann Finkelstein. Excerpted by permission.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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