SCIENCES CLASSROOM
Table 5.11 (below) shows in bold font which of the NOS categories were lacking in Life Sciences textbooks, as well as in the teachers’ use of the textbook.
143 TABLE 5.11: Common categories not represented in textbooks and not infused in the teaching of Life Sciences
Source: Researcher
NOS categories NOT represented in Textbook C
NOS categories NOT infused by teachers in the Life Sciences classroom.
Makes calculations;
Participates in thought and experiment; Use of observation and inference; Analysis and interpretation; Empirical basis of science Use of assumptions;
Inductive/deductive reasoning; Cause and effect relationship; Evidence and/or proof
Scepticism and criticism;
Human imagination and creativity; Characteristics of scientists;
Various ways of understanding the world; Societal and cultural influences;
Public and peer collaboration; Limitations of science; Ethics in science
Makes calculations;
Analysis and interpretation; Use of assumptions;
Imagination and creativity; Careers in science and technology; Contribution to diversity;
Limitation of science
From Table 5.11 (above) it is clear that even though science textbooks are important and functional in the teaching of science, the way teachers use them (McCormas, 2003; Tyson, 1997, Wong, 1991) is the most important in infusing the NOS. Altogether, there are 17 NOS categories not represented in Life Science textbook that the teachers used in the classroom. However the teachers’ effective use of the Life Sciences textbooks shows that there are only five of these NOS categories that are not included in their teaching of Life Sciences.
There are two NOS categories represented in the Life Sciences textbooks, but not included as part of the teacher’s use of the textbook. These include Careers in science and technology and Contribution to diversity (Table 5.10). I feel that the teacher’s do not regard these two
144 categories as necessary or important in the science classroom as it is part of the learner’s knowledge that can be gained through their own interaction with outside sources.
It is important to note those NOS categories not represented in Life Sciences textbooks, and those that are not included as part of the teacher’s teaching. These categories are: Makes calculations; Analysis and interpretation; Use of assumptions; Imagination and creativity; and Limitations of science (Table 5.10). Learners receive their view of science and scientific knowledge from Life Sciences textbooks and from their science teachers. Learners are at a disadvantage in not engaging with these NOS categories if they lack in both resources namely: the teacher and the Life Sciences textbooks.
The categories not highlighted in the textbook column have been infused as part of the classrooms activities. The teacher was able to include these as part of the teaching and learning of Life Sciences even though it was not represented in the textbook. These NOS categories are: the use of Observation and Inference, Inductive / deductive reasoning, Cause and effect relationship, Scepticism and criticism, Characteristics of scientists, Various ways of understanding the world, Societal and cultural influences, Public and peer collaboration, and Ethics in science (Table 5.10, above).
The teacher’s use of the textbook shows that even though teachers use Life Sciences textbook as the most important teaching and learning tool, aspects of the NOS not in the textbook can still be and have been included as part of the lesson through the use of the teachers teaching and learning activities.
5.6. CONCLUSION
All three participants studied incorporated the four NOS themes, to some intent, in their Life Sciences lessons. Kate used the textbook in her teaching of enzymes, Don used the textbook in his practical lesson on starch testing, and Irma used the textbook to design a test that learners wrote, which she was busy reviewing. The analysis shows that Kate’s and Irma’s lessons infused the NOS knowledge theme quite substantially. The Life Sciences textbook was used as a resource for pictures, summaries and consolidation homework exercises, as well as a teacher’s guide for practical discussion.
145 Their use of the textbook to infuse the NOS themes was clear, although some categories that could have been included were lacking. I have made suggestions on how the teachers may have infused these NOS categories into the lessons that I had observed.
Kate, Don and Irma have academic qualifications and a minimum of 16 years of experience and this has allowed them to supplement their teaching for those NOS categories that were lacking in the textbook. I can thus conclude that, in my case study, Life Sciences textbooks were thus used appropriately in infusing the NOS. In the classroom they were used as a teaching resource, as a visual learning material, as well as for consolidation purposes of making summaries and answering questions.
146
CHAPTER SIX
CONCLUSIVE FINDINGS AND SUGGESTIVE
RECOMMENDATIONS
FIGURE 6.1.: Flowchart for the research report
Source: Researcher
6.1. INTRODUCTION
The aim of this study was to analyse Grade 10 Life Sciences textbooks for the Nature of Science (NOS) and to study the teachers’ use of the Life Sciences textbook in infusing the NOS in their teaching. Both aims of the study were conducted in two phases. Phase One included an analysis of three Biology textbooks and three Life Sciences textbooks. Phase Two analysed the teachers’ use of the Life Sciences textbook in the Grade 10 classroom. In Phase One, the findings on the analysis of Biology and Life Sciences textbooks were compared, to identify whether the curriculum emphasis was denoted in the textbooks, and to compare the extent to which the nature of science was represented in textbooks. The findings of Phase Two reported the ways in which the NOS were included in the teaching and learning of Life Sciences, through the use of textbooks.
A qualitative paradigm framed both phases of the study. A content analysis technique was used to analyse textbooks, and a case study method adopted for the teachers’ use of
Answer the research question Present and discuss the findings of the data Execute the design to collect data Plan and design the empirical study Literature review presenting discourses Identify the research problem
147 textbooks. The conceptual framework for the study was adopted from Chiappetta, Fillman and Sethna (1991). The four NOS themes used in the study are: (i) science as a body of knowledge; (ii) science as a way of investigating; (iii) science as a way of thinking; and (iv) the interaction between science, technology and society (STS). The theoretical framework by Rogan and Grayson (2003) was used to identify the school’s capacity to innovate the NCS as the new curriculum featuring the inclusion of the NOS.
This chapter includes a discussion on a summary of the findings in Phase one and Phase two of the study, followed by recommendations. The limitations and personal reflections of my study will also be highlighted, and areas of further possible research are suggested before the conclusion of the report.
FIGURE 6.2: Summary of findings in Phase One and Phase Two of the study
Source: Researcher