When I was in middle school, being a good science learner meant being good at memorizing facts. Things have changed a lot since then, and I couldn't be happier about it. Today, learning involves being resourceful. It's about knowing where to find information, how to evaluate its reliability, and adapting to an ever-evolving landscape. It's an exciting time to be a science teacher!
These aren't easy skills to teach, so I've collected some ways you can use to incorporate these habits into your classroom:
Research Challenges 🌐:
Students can practice questioning, analyzing, and forming their own conclusions when you assign a research project on a contemporary issue. It's great if you can guide them to find information from a variety of sources that present different perspectives. For example, if your students are researching plastic pollution's impact on marine life, you can ask them, "Would information from a plastic manufacturing company be different than an article presented by a wildlife conservation group? Does that impact the quality of the information?"
Respectful Disagreement Model 🗣️:
If we're going to move forward in science, we need the ability to respectfully evaluate and critique arguments presented by others. This is how we refine our ideas to make them more accurate. A structured debate on a scientific controversy is a great place for students to practice respectful disagreement. For example, students could research and debate using genetically modified organisms in agriculture. You might need to equip your students with sentence stems and prompts that allow them to refine their peers' ideas in ways that are respectful and productive. You can give them phrases like, "I appreciate your argument, but have you considered this perspective?"
Encourage Growth Mindset 🌱:
As research by Angela Duckworth suggests, intelligence is not fixed; it's something that can be cultivated over time. Thank goodness, right? 😂We want to help students recognize that their approach towards learning is more important than how "smart" they are. You could share stories of resilience, like Marie Curie and her triumph over societal barriers, prompting students to reflect on their own challenges and growth. You could also give students a work portfolio or reflection journal to reflect on their personal growth. It's helpful for learners to see how their skills have changed over time.
There are still an awful lot of science facts to learn out there, but if you're able to teach your students to find their own information, evaluate their sources, disagree respectfully, and stay committed to their learning, you'll be giving them skills that will make all their learning more successful!
If you enjoyed the awesome teaching strategies shared here, join the Kesler Science mailing list below! We also send out fun phenomenon, graphs, sale notices, and product highlights throughout the year. You can unsubscribe at any time, and we never sell your info. We hate spam, too!