Construction Of Scientific Knowledge Research Articles

Designing Learning Centres that Facilitate Knowledge Construction on Science Process Skills in Early Childhood Classrooms

Science education is perceived to have the potential to develop 21st century competencies. In Zimbabwe, the teaching of science in early childhood by using learning centres is considered as a way of empowering young learners with scientific knowledge and skills to become productive citizens in future. To strengthen the initiative, resources are being channelled and policies crafted to support the teaching of STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics). Despite considerable efforts to introduce STEM in early childhood development (ECD), research concerning the benefits of developing science skills using learning centres is sparse. This study adopted an interpretive paradigm and multiple case study design for three schools and three purposively selected ECD teachers. Data was solicited through semi-structured interviews, document analysis and classroom observations. The variable nature of learning centres in ECD classrooms is an indication of shortcomings in policy on teaching using learning centres. At learning centres, learners construct scientific knowledge, ideas and skills through interaction with peers and developmentally appropriate materials. Teachers should be creative and innovative and create learning centres that enable learners to explore the world and construct scientific knowledge through active participation and sharing ideas. A policy to guide the teachers on constructing appropriate learning centres for effective teaching of science skills should be drafted.

Research Methodology Courses in Advanced Studies in Education: Trends from the Portuguese Case

The identification and characterisation of all course syllabus on research methodologies in education in advanced studies in education allows to present the current Portuguese teaching and learning scenario in this field for the first time. The approach for the development of this empirical work was a national survey of all master's and doctoral programmes in education and in teaching, coding and translating the information. The data collected was validated with the respective higher education institution, the master or doctoral coordinator and the teacher responsible for the research methods teaching. A qualitative based methodology through descriptive statistical analysis enables a presentation of trends in the design and organisation of the course syllabus. The results show a research knowledge that is fragmented and not clear. The descriptions of course syllabus undervalue the epistemological and methodological issues inherent in the construction of scientific knowledge in education. Privilege is given to the operationality of the methodology with a view to developing a scientific project.

Epistemic injustice and the “Nature of Science”

AbstractScientists and science educators have argued that learners (students, preservice teachers, and inservice teachers) should understand knowledge construction in science, in addition to figuring out disciplinary core ideas. Given this goal, some science education scholars created a construct called the “Nature of Science” (NOS), which aims to simplify the complex work of scientific knowledge production for learners. Since the 1980s, the NOS construct has shaped national and international science education reforms with the goal of creating a more scientifically literate populace. In this article, we name and question assumptions built into the NOS construct using the philosophical perspective of epistemic injustice. Using specific lenses of contributory injustice and testimonial injustice, we analyzed the 97 most‐cited peer‐reviewed NOS journal articles to examine which scholars are selected to create the NOS construct. We also examined how researchers using NOS position learners in relation to the construct. We found that White men are primarily named by NOS scholars to inform the construct. We also found that NOS research often positions learners from a deficit perspective compared to the construct. We conclude by discussing the potential injustices perpetuated by the NOS construct, and offer a vision for a more complete story of science in sites of learning.

Languaging-as-practice in science education: an alternative to metaphors of language-as-tool

AbstractThis commentary proposes the metaphor of “languaging-as-practice” in science education as an alternative to “language-as-tool” metaphors. Describing language as a tool implicitly positions language as static and unchanging and assumes that named languages are distinct and bounded entities. In contrast, describing languaging as a practice acknowledges the multiple and advanced ways speakers draw on many aspects of their linguistic repertoires while often crossing purported boundaries between named languages. This approach is grounded in translanguaging theory and offers a dynamic understanding of language in educational settings. It envisions students constructing and expressing scientific knowledge by drawing on their complete linguistic repertoires. By advocating for this approach, we aim to promote practices that acknowledge and leverage the diverse linguistic backgrounds of students, fostering inclusive and effective learning environments. While this approach has gained some traction in language-education circles, we believe it needs more consideration in the science education community. We also critique the limitations of viewing language merely as a tool for reproducing predefined scientific concepts and discourses, proposing that a more expansive approach to language can enhance opportunities for scientific sense-making and knowledge construction. We urge science education researchers and practitioners to shift how we think and talk about language in the science classroom to adopt and act upon a metaphor of “languaging-as-practice.”

The University As Infrastructure of Becoming: Re-Activating Academic Freedom Through Humility in Times of Radical Uncertainty

ABSTRACT Traditionally, the field of science and technology studies (STS) considered the scientific laboratory as the central site of knowledge production and technological development. While providing rich analyses of the social construction of scientific knowledge and the role of non-human actors, STS scholars have often neglected the university – the very context in which laboratories themselves are embedded – as a relevant object of research. In this paper, we argue for re-introducing the university as a relevant category and object of analysis by using the notion of epistemic virtues to link epistemic culture – traditionally the focus of STS – and epistemic structure – traditionally the focus of higher education studies. Advancing this line of argumentation, we make three analytical moves. First, we explore academic freedom as a specific version of negative liberty that extends beyond disciplinary boundaries. We suggest that academics continuously negotiate academic freedom considering culturally and socially situated epistemic virtues such as objectivity and neutrality. Second, we introduce the notion of humility to revisit scientific knowledge production more generally and academic freedom in particular. Finally, we argue that practicing humility leads to enacting the university as an infrastructure of becoming otherwise, thereby enriching our understanding of universities as distinct and highly complex social spaces with a logic of their own.

Theory and every thing: acquiring the office of Professor Stephen Hawking as a resource for history and museology

How do the curators of science and technology collections represent the daily realities of doing science? Through the acquisition of Professor Stephen Hawking’s office by the Science Museum, this paper will explore what is involved in making major acquisitions for national collections. How do curators consider what to preserve from the eclectic range of items found in the working spaces of scientists? What do the personal artefacts of a scientist’s life represent, and what do acts of curatorial choices say about the narratives that are foregrounded – and those that are not – in positioning that life historically? And how do those choices illuminate the considerations involved in the way science and technology is represented in our national collections? By going beyond the glass case, we consider what it takes to bring an object into a collection: the intellectual considerations of how its stories are preserved for a nation and the practical considerations required so that items can even be considered for future display. The paper illuminates the formal and informal networks around scientists’ collections, and the processes and judgements that science and technology curators make every day when choosing what could be important for defining our history. Using the Stephen Hawking office as a case study the article explores the representation of scientific practice in museum collections, the relationship of some collections with celebrity and disability, and some of the challenges posed by science and technology acquisitions compared to other types of museum object. The paper explores how knowledge is generated in museum collections, through the act of acquiring a new collection. It asks fundamental questions, which are essential to the fields of museology and science and technology studies, about the contribution to knowledge made by personal scientific objects. It goes beyond the study of collections as artefacts of display in exhibitions and galleries, providing a detailed analysis of a routine but often-neglected aspect of behind-the-scenes museum work: the acquisition of a collection. Arguing that a large and complex collection is a vital tool for understanding the complexity of science, the paper uses the ‘museum as method’ (Thomas, 2016) which prioritises simple curatorial questions and the use of the objects in exploration; this enables scholars and curators to respond to material evidence of scientific knowledge, and identify narratives that are prioritised, and others that are obscured, in the historic record. In doing so, it suggests that curators are uniquely placed to provide insights into the roles of human and non-human actors in the construction of scientific knowledge, demonstrating how the Hawking collection allows us to explore the nature of scientific practice, the creation of scientific celebrity, and the potential to give visibility to disability within the history of science whilst de-centring the myth of the scientific genius in museum narratives.

Conceptual Understanding Of BSED Science Major Students Using The Molecular Models In Inorganic Chemistry

Science is dynamic in nature and with the emerging trends in the world of teaching, the methodology of the teaching process must be innovative to adapt to the current trends in education. Chemistry is often regarded as a challenging subject, an observation that sometimes discourages learners from continuing with their studies. Students prefer learning in a classroom where active participation is greatly encouraged, and it is desirable that Science teachers introduce strategies that will enable students to think of solutions that address scientific knowledge construction. With these, the researcher was interested in finding alternative ways to help the BSED Science major students improve their conceptual understanding. The highlight of the study was the use of manipulative instructional materials that will make learning and understanding molecular geometry more concrete and enjoyable, anchored on the constructivism theory, which views learning as an active process that results from self-constructed meanings. The study utilized the quasi-experimental design, particularly the non-equivalent control group design. Based on the results, there is no noteworthy difference between the conceptual understanding of learning molecular geometry using molecular models and the lecture method, and both are effective teaching strategies for improving the conceptual understanding of the BSED Science major students.

Helmholtz and the Conservation of Energy: Contexts of Creation and Reception

Helmholtz and the Conservation of Energy: Contexts of Creation and Reception

Helmholtz and the Conservation of Energy: Contexts of Creation and Reception

Helmholtz and the Conservation of Energy: Contexts of Creation and Reception

A religious past to science: How Biblical stories have contributed to the construction of scientific knowledge

Stories captivate us by speaking to our imagination and by giving order and meaning to our world. Stories not only give us knowledge about society, but they can also shape our understanding of nature. In the Western world, Christianity has provided narratives that were used as references in scientific research for centuries. In this article I discuss two such examples, the Creation story and the story of Noah and the Great Flood, and explain their prevalence in scientific endeavors conducted in the West. These stories were only replaced by alternative ones when new scientific theories and concepts were given sufficient coherence to explain new discoveries.

The Historical Milestones of Bioethics in the Construction of Scientific Knowledge

The construction of scientific knowledge reveals theories and methodologies that have been perfected over time, creating milestones that contribute to human evolution. However, in the process of knowledge construction, human beings have not always been considered as participants in scientific research, but rather as objects of experimentation.

The contribution of critical thinking to STEM disciplines at the time of generative intelligence

<abstract> <p>After more than two decades since its inception, the acronym STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics), which designated the scientific disciplines to be strengthened in the U.S. to meet the challenges of the new millennium, is changing its orientation and representations. Furthermore, this is seen in Europe and Asia, a new approach to reading the contemporary world, which is based on a few key concepts: Interdisciplinarity and complexity. Philosophy, by its nature, plays a leading role in developing those skills that the Framework for the 21st Century Learning report has identified as indispensable and grouped under the 4Cs (Critical thinking, Communication, Collaboration, Creativity). Specifically, critical thinking, which originates with philosophy, helps to settle complex situations and problems and this discipline is also capable of bridging knowledge that seems distant from each other, bringing it into dialogue. In this paper, I aim to investigate, by literature review, the role of critical thinking in the STEM disciplines, which are closely connected to the development of technological knowledge, and thus of GAI (Generative Artificial Intelligence), to contribute to a discussion on how can offer a critical understanding of GAI and its uses. The result of this reflection, which does not yet seem to be outlined in the literature, but which hopefully will be more extensively addressed in the future, indicates that critical thinking, guided by philosophy, can play a crucial role in STEM, especially concerning the Post-Normal Science model, in which the construction of scientific knowledge leaves the academy. Moreover, GAI tools significantly modify the interactions between the different knowledge actors.</p> </abstract>

Masking (Not Masking) Up: An STS Visual-Intersectional Approach to Understanding Publics and Science in Times of Rapid Change

In this paper we argue that a visual-intersectional approach can advance the field of science and technology studies (STS). Although there is a small but important body of work using visual methods in STS, it has rarely incorporated intersectional approaches. We use visual imagery about mask wearing during the COVID-19 pandemic as a case study to illustrate the potential power of a visual-intersectional approach in STS. We chose masks for three reasons. First, debates about mask-wearing were rich with visual imagery, from home-made signs posted in homes and businesses to professionally designed and printed imagery circulated by public health agencies. Second, recommendations about face coverings outside of healthcare settings changed dramatically in the first 18 months of the COVID-19 pandemic, providing an opportunity to analyze how rapidly changing scientific recommendations were debated in the public sphere. Finally, as masks entered the public sphere, they quickly became evocative technologies, deeply imbued with cultural and political meanings. By focusing on signs about masks in the United States, we demonstrate how integrating visual methods of data collection and an intersectional, visual analytical lens can strengthen STS by developing deeper understandings of (a) publics and science in times of uncertainty, (b) public health as a distinct form of scientific expertise, and (c) the role of humor and place-specific messaging in science. We close with analytic priorities for future research on mask use that could advance STS theories of the collective construction of scientific knowledge and productively inform the development of public health interventions.

Exploring Student Representations of Biodiversity in Science Education in Morocco: A Didactic Perspective

<p style="text-align: justify;">In teaching, students' representations could constitute an obstacle to the construction of scientific knowledge and are often considered stable cognitive structures whose organization is sought to be inferred through questionnaires and interviews. This study aims at identifying and analyzing high school students’ representations related to the concept of biodiversity. To meet this objective, a semi-structured interview and a questionnaire were used to collect data. 202 Moroccan students participated in this survey (46.5% from rural areas and 53.5% from urban areas of the "Direction Provinciale" of education of Guelmim city in Morocco). The results of the interview indicated that only 1.82% of the students gave a definition that consists of the three biodiversity dimensions, namely the species, the ecosystems, and the genetic diversity. The questionnaire results revealed a low to medium correlation between their representations and their acquired knowledge related to the concept of biodiversity dealt with in Moroccan school programs (from the discipline of "scientific activity" in the primary cycle and that of "life and earth sciences" in the secondary cycle). The results further indicated a low presence of supervised activities related to biodiversity within the school and therefore a low degree of influence on the students' representations. It was concluded that there was no effective transmission or adequate assimilation of the concept of biodiversity among the students surveyed.</p>

Contribution of the Inquiry Learning Model to Student Scientific Argumentation Skills on Fluid

The inquiry learning model is a model that facilitates the construction of students' scientific knowledge which can also improve students' argumentation skills. According to several research results, inquiry-based learning has proven to be effective in improving scientific argumentation skills because in the learning process students are directed in investigative activities to find scientific evidence as a basis for scientific argumentation. By considering the student learning process, the aim of this research is to describe whether the use of three types of inquiry learning models can teach fluid material and influence the student learning process, one of which is students' argumentation abilities. This research method uses mixed method triangulation. The instruments used were interview questionnaires and argumentation tests. The data obtained was then analyzed using simple statistical tests and N-gain scores. Interview data was analyzed to find out clarification of students' answers. The research results of the inquiry learning model were successful in developing argumentation skills, namely the n-gain score resulted in the use of the structured inquiry learning model gaining 0.88, the guided inquiry learning model 0.84 and the open inquiry learning model 0.74.

Constructing Scientific Knowledge through the Teacher´s Questions in a Guided-Inquiry Primary Lesson of the Water Cycle

Constructing Scientific Knowledge through the Teacher´s Questions in a Guided-Inquiry Primary Lesson of the Water Cycle

AN ANALYTICAL REVIEW OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SCIENCE AND PHILOSOPHY & THEIR UTILITY IN CONTEMPORARY GLOBAL POLITY CONCEPTUALIZATION OF TECHNOLOGY

Introduction. The central argument of this study is that for science to meet the challenges of globalization and justice in the 21st century, it needs to be ethically informed, and thus philosophical reflection on and in science is cardinal.Problem Statement. The study focuses on the 21st century trends in philosophical thoughts that influence scientific motivations. To this effect, the research question that the study sought to answer is, ‘How and to what extent can philosophy be valuable/influential to scientific advancements in contemporary times?’Purpose. This paper aims to demonstrate that despite some differences between science and philosophy in their origin and methodological conceptions, they do have reciprocal rudiments. The study gleaned this relationship with the view to assess the utility of their relationship in a technologically and fast-paced 21st Century. This study contributes to the literature by providing theoretical perspectives that critique conventional (Western) epistemic stances of scientific knowledge construction and highlights lessons to be learnt through a juxtaposed pool of ideas from all regions of the globe, not just from the West.Material and Methods. The methodology adopted for this study leans on a descriptive and thematic literature approach which builds on qualitative data gathered through academic journals, scholarly books, and online publications. The study review endeavors to focus on the 21st century trends in philosophical thoughts that influence scientific motivations.Results. The study notes that the relationship between science and philosophy has endured for many hundreds of years, and despite their differences which mainly lie in their scope, attitudes, methods, and peculiar challenges, both are keenly engaged in advancing increased human capacity for innovation, ingenuity, and critical thinking. The study concludes — from the prism of the future — that a critical global appraisal and continuous rigorous review of scientific and philosophical activities is essential today more than ever before, if the futures project is to contri bute effectively to the (re)construction of sustainable frameworks of scientific production that yield results in an equitable and environmentally sustainable manner. Conclusions. The study has brought to the fore, a stark reminder that neither science nor philosophy — operating singularly — offers genuine solutions on sustainable growth and development; hence stakeholders can make sense of complex phenomenon from both science and philosophy by critically reviewing their outcomes in a reciprocal manner that appreciates the advances, thegaps, and excesses from both sides. Most significantly, the study has pushed the envelope of comprehending science and philosophy beyond Western constructions that often tend to overlook, and in some cases purposely downgrade orthodox but otherwise valuable scientific insights from subaltern constellations of the global South.

Social construction of public relations knowledge by academic institutions worldwide: A bibliometric network analysis

This VOSviewer-enabled bibliometric study examines scientific knowledge construction in public relations research since 1955. A co-citation analysis indicates that while sustaining its cross-disciplinary nature, public relations increasingly relies on scholarship generated within its own discipline, with Public Relations Review, Journal of Public Relations Research and Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly most cited academic sources. A citation analysis of author affiliations revealed a number of findings, including universities with the highest count of publications, university pairs that tend to cite each other, as well as regional university groups and large clusters within a broader, citation-based network. Among the 108 most productive academic institutions from four continents included into the study, U.S.-based universities produced the highest number of publications in nine peer-reviewed journals. Cross-referencing citation relationships among university clusters in different world regions illustrates an ongoing pattern of globalized construction of public relations knowledge.

Modelling in engineering: A citation context analysis

Purely quantitative citation measures are widely used to evaluate research grants, to compare the output of researcher or to benchmark universities. The intuition that not all citations are the same, however, can be illustrated by two examples. First, studies have shown that erroneous or controversial papers have higher citation counts. Second, does a high-level citation in an introduction have the same impact as a reference to a paper that serves as a conceptual starting point? Companions to purely quantitative measures are the so-called citation context analyses which aim to obtain a better understanding of the link between citing and cited work. In this article, we propose a classification scheme for citation context analysis in the field of modelling in engineering. The categories were defined based on an extensive literature review and input from experts in the field of modelling. We propose a detailed scheme with six categories ( Perfunctory, Background Information, Comparing/Confirming, Critique/Refutation, Inspiring, Using/Expanding) and a simplified scheme with three categories ( High-level, Critical Analysis, Extending) that can be used within automatic classification approaches. The results of manually classifying 129 randomly selected citations show that 87% of citations fall into the high-level category. This study confirms that critical citations are not common in written academic discourse, even though criticism is essential for scientific progress and knowledge construction.

Deployment of gestures in the semiotic construction of scientific knowledge: a systemic functional approach to pedagogic semiosis

Abstract A variety of semiotic resources makes the construction of scientific knowledge possible and meaning-making resources are conveyed by certain semiotic modes. Next, numerous studies have demonstrated the pedagogical importance of gestures in the demonstration of scientific knowledge in the classroom. Drawing on social semiotic systemic functional theory and legitimation code theory, this study explores the types and the role of gestures in the semiotic construction of scientific knowledge in pedagogic semiosis and their pedagogical values for the meaning-making of science content. With this aim, a gesture observation protocol (GOP) is developed to annotate and analyze data. Two science lectures, which are broadcast remotely for middle school students including gifted students, are observed. Systemic Functional Multimodal Discourse Analysis (SF-MDA) method is employed to analyze and evaluate data. Results demonstrated that the deployment of gestures that contributes to the construction of scientific knowledge is low and deployed gestures mostly do not have pedagogical value. It is recommended that teachers should be more conscious and educated about deploying gestures to present scientific knowledge efficiently.