Abstract
This chapter is about the Nature of Science (NOS) and the Nature of Technology (NOT) in education. Science includes the systematic study of the structure and actions of the physical and natural world through observation and experiment, and technology is the application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes. NOS and NOT have been used to refer to the epistemology of science, science as a way of knowing, or the values and beliefs inherent to the development of scientific knowledge. These characterizations, nevertheless, remain general, and philosophers of science, historians of science, and the same goes for NOT. Subsequently, an individual’s understanding that observations are constrained by our perceptual apparatus and are characteristically theory-laden is part of that individuals understanding of the NOS and NOT. In general, NOS and NOT refers to principles and ideas which provide a description of science and technology as a way of knowing, as well as characteristics of scientific knowledge. Many of these intrinsic ideas are lost in the everyday aspects of a science classroom, resulting in students learning misaligned ideas about how science is conducted. Understanding how technology relates with science and society is critical for individuals to make informed personal and societal decisions. Nevertheless, in most STEM education contexts, learning about technology typically only means learning how to be an efficient user or, perhaps, an informed competent designer of. A meaningful technology education stresses that science education efforts also teach students about NOT. Essential questions like what technology is, how it is related to, yet distinct from, science, how it shapes and is shaped by society, and perhaps most importantly, how technologies impact the way individuals think and act.
Highlights
1.1 A historical recallThe history of Nature of Science (NOS) and Nature of Technology (NOT) began as early as 600–200 B.C
When trying to describe the history of NOS and NOT, it can be useful to think of science and technological development as a culture in just the same way that we think of different cultural worlds such as art and music
NOS and NOT refers to principles and ideas which provide a description of science as a way of knowing, as well as characteristics of scientific knowledge [1, 2, 4, 5, 6]
Summary
The history of NOS and NOT began as early as 600–200 B.C. This was the era when the country of Greece developed as the center of learning of Western civilization. For the people of the Renaissance to realize that Earth and its life forms have properties that can be studied and understood is possibly the greatest scientific success of the Renaissance. Since the period of the Renaissance and until today, science has developed through an unbelievable evolution. A main feature of the scientific method is scientists attempt to look at the natural world objectively. This means that scientists try to see things as they are, without letting values or beliefs color their view [1]. This is quite unlike the early science and the science of the Renaissance. Scientists often check the work of other scientists in this way, this is what the nature of science and technology is all about [2]
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