In my research I want to focus on science education, and in
particular education about sustainability and the environment. One idea I had was to investigate the
phenomenology of the students and their attitudes towards both the environment
and the process of science in general. I want to deeply examine and classify the
understandings to establish a clear starting point for effective teaching.
The
idea for this came simply from my own informal experiences with students, some
of which openly loathed science and saw it as only a mess of boring facts and
figures – something external and wildly irrelevant. Similarly, conversations with students about the environment
have been interesting, as the concept of environment might just extend to a few
tall trees and park in their neighborhood or simply encompass the distant rainforests
of the Amazon.
I
am still largely undecided on my topic, however, and hopefully the flurry of
blog posts and classroom discussions will help things crystallize.
I'm fascinated to see how your ideas will take form, Matt. Student perceptions are often neglected in research and its important to elicit student voice! Are you considering knowing students' current experiences with science learning/teaching, or will student sense-making be tied to activities that you or others might facilitate? Good to be working with you again!
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