Harvard University Graduate School of Education
Designed to introduce students and prospective teachers to scientific thinking rather than to scientific content, this introductory course focuses on the nature of scientific models and the evidence that supports them. The models discussed will be drawn from the biological and physical sciences and will be integral to the scientific education reforms proposed by the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the National Research Council. The course will emphasize the limited number of fundamental principles that form the basis of each model and give students extensive practice in applying these principles. Where possible, the models will be illustrated by simple computer programs that demonstrate how rich and sometimes unexpected consequences can flow from simple assumptions. Each model will be developed in historical context, and features common to all scientific models will be emphasized. Students will examine contemporary reports of scientific developments in newspapers and magazines within the framework of evidence and inference. (What is the model underlying the report? What evidence is cited to support this model? Does the evidence warrant the conclusion drawn? What additional evidence, if any, needs to be obtained to draw a reliable conclusion?) A substantial portion of the course will be devoted to discussion of materials presented by the students. Students will be evaluated on the basis of class participation, one or more papers, and a final examination (possibly an oral presentation). The course is required of and limited to science students in the Midcareer Math and Science Program and science concentrators in the Teaching and Curriculum Program. Permission of the instructor is required.