Regurgitating Science & Entertainment Science

by | Apr 14, 2017 | Pickle Opinion | 12 comments

Is there a tendency in our education culture to avoid teaching the core of science?

Do science centres cheapen science by making it into entertainment – with all the slow discovery and math removed? Do our schools do a disservice to our children by giving them all of the joyous answers to big scientific questions without letting them experience the gruelling failures? What would be wrong if we encouraged children to think that the Earth was flat and the centre of the universe in grade 1? We could take them outside and show them the horizon – show them the sun moving as we stood still. Are we really afraid that the child’s mind is not flexible enough to discard an old theory when a better one comes up? Should we not actively encourage the habit of challenging old theories and discarding them when the evidence suggests something is lacking?  Should the teacher not encourage a contrarian attitude to assumed truths? Isn’t this at the core of science?

Do we spend too much time getting our children to regurgitate sterile scientific facts rather than doing science?

I’m officially concerned, but I want to hear comments and hear some positive and negative experiences before commenting further. I may be wrong 😉 Correct me if I am 😉

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