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In the everyday sense, narratives are stories told to various audiences for different purposes. The meaning conveyed in this thesis is more specific, concerning stories people tell about themselves, involving a personal sense of knowledge and knowing (Hipkins, 2004). People construct their own narrative accounts of the world within the context of their culture, interactions and experiences (De Luca, 2010). Barker (2001), Millar and Osborne (1998), and Solomon (2002) suggest narrative can be a powerful tool for drawing students into meaningful science learning. They state that it increases understanding of the nature of science and helps enable students to take part in ethical discussions.

Narrative pedagogy places science and science issues in a global and historical context, drawing on what it is to be human. Students identify with characters involved, “taking into account both the elaborate arguments of empathy and the concerns of the heart, the core of our being, which have such an essential part to play in our reactions to stories of human distress” (Solomon, 2002, p. 103). Learners are provided with specific content knowledge, the nature of science and historical documentation.

Shepardson and Britsch (2006) and Watt (2002) reiterate the theories of Vygotsky (1986), which consider the use of language in a social context as central to the development of thinking and learning. In addition, Hipkins (2004) believes narrative pedagogy transforms traditional science concepts by giving attention to contextual detail that is often neglected. She adds that such detail gives students the ability to learn science in ways that are personally meaningful. In this sense using narrative in teaching (narrative pedagogy) can help students see a place for themselves in the context of the

eyes’, which Girod, Rau and Schepige (2003) say is important for developing insight. They suggest using narrative pedagogy provides a sense of connection, and that this can have a motivating effect on students. Using narrative pedagogy may also help students engage with science learning in a way that is more likely to develop an ethic of care for our environment (Hipkins, 2004).

Pellegrino (1999) suggests the narrative approach can easily be used in the classroom for presenting ethical decisions as problems. An example of narrative when teaching ethics in science in a primary classroom involved an inquiry on whether money should be spent saving the takahe, an endangered bird native to New Zealand (Appendix 1). The class acted out how the takahe became endangered. They could ‘experience’ what happened over a long period of time in a short space of time. The teacher also told historical stories of successes and failures of scientists who had tried to save the takahe. Students became engaged in the science issues as they put themselves in the stories and were able to see the bigger picture, including how the issues were connected.

Odegaard (2004) also reflects positively on the use of drama to tell stories in science issues. Her research showed students were more critical, reflective thinkers and had a better understanding of issues in biotechnology when they could portray the issues through a drama medium. Brock (1999) believes that by taking primary students into a creative space they are motivated and sustained by enjoyment. However, some of the challenges of the drama narrative include recall, applying scientific knowledge, working collaboratively, and sharing information in pursuit of a common goal. Adults provide the science language and support the students as thinkers.

The mantle of the expert (Heathcote, 2009) is another drama/role- play strategy for narrative pedagogy in which the class work as if they are an imagined group of experts. For example, they might be scientists working on environmental issues. Because they behave as experts, the students work from a specific point of view as they extend their learning. Through activities

and tasks, the students gradually take on the same kinds of responsibilities, problems and challenges that real scientists might do in the real world. The story puts the students ‘in the picture’ and they ‘see through others’ eyes’.

Levinson (2003) suggests that teachers start an ethics discussion with a focused, situated dilemma (narrative) and then invite students to discuss the issues. Reiss (1993) adds that the narrative should be case studies of real life situations. The teachers’ role includes presenting resource materials and a range of different viewpoints that the students evaluate. However, Sherborne (2004) emphasises that teaching bioethics and, by extension, ethics in science is not just about running small group debates. He reported three different strategies using a narrative pedagogy. The first presented an issue as a card game that involved the students making ‘real life’ decisions. A second involved making a TV news report on bioterrorism where the students had to weigh up the risks and benefits of the dangers of bioterrorism against the medical benefits of research into viruses and bacteria. The third presented a real-life scenario involving parents who had to decide whether or not to have another child to save the life of their existing child. In this last example, a panel of scientists, ethicists and legal experts (invited guests or students in role), were interviewed by students, who then had to determine how ethical considerations should be set alongside scientific and legal arguments.

Kempton (2004) endorses the use of cartoons and paintings to tell science stories and the ethical issues involved. Concept cartoons (Keogh & Naylor, 1996, 1999) are a successful way of engaging and motivating students. The cartoons are designed to stimulate thinking about issues, develop problem-solving skills and elicit tacit scientific knowledge, making scientific ideas accessible. The pictorial presentation is significant in capturing attention. Kempton (2004) suggests paintings that can engage students in a new way to depict scientific issues or accounts of the past. Students view a painting and relate what it shows. They can then discuss the issues behind the painting. In the example of a painting by Joseph Wright

diverse range of issues. These included: how scientific inventions can be used for good or evil; how scientists display awe and wonder at discoveries and may even idolise their work; care of the environment; responsibilities of manufacturers; and moral aspects of animal experimentation.

Anning (1997) stresses that drawings are a powerful mode for representing and clarifying thinking and for communicating to others. Young students in particular, she says, instinctively use drawing to converse with themselves (tell stories) when generating ideas. Incorporating drawings could be a useful strategy for engaging primary students in an ethics in science narrative. Puppets (Milne, 2009) are another way of telling science stories. The students could also use the puppets as a medium to discuss problems and make decisions. Millar (2008) described the use of playdough to model ideas while discussing ethics.

A number of teachers are also exploring the use and effectiveness of interactive boards for learning. For example, they provide lively, varied, complex and interactive lessons more easily than previously possible. Science concepts can be explained through the quick manipulation of images, thereby speeding up lesson time (Gillen, Staarman, Littleton, Mercer, & Twiner, 2007; Ryan & Cowie, 2009). Normally ‘unseen’ objects (e.g., cells) can be enlarged for observation. Animations (Mayer & Morena, 2002) can tell a science story while interactively engaging the students. Educational games (O’Day, 2008) could also be developed for ethics in science narrative, problem-solving and decision-making. Willmott and Wellens (2004) suggest students work in groups to produce websites about current controversial issues, telling their own stories.

The InSiTE project (Cowie, Moreland, et al., 2008) and Prain and Waldrip (2006) demonstrate that effective teacher-student interactions utilise multi modal representations of concepts to express ideas and enhance student learning in science. The use of narrative strategies, along with frameworks, tools and other forms of support can be brought together providing scaffolds for teaching ethics in science.