What Science Looks Like in the Lives of 11-Year-Olds

• In Event: Activating Young Science Learners: Igniting Persistent Engagement in Science Learning and Inquiry

Abstract

The purpose of this presentation is to illuminate a variety of relationships with science that 11-year-olds express across a variety of settings through the lens of activation. Much research has investigated the pathways people take in pursuing a science career and what contributes to success in science learning along any given pathway (e.g., Carlone & Johnson, 2007). Our perspective posits that a deeper understanding of the varied ways that children and their families relate to science will help us better understand their participation and success in science learning (Stevens, 2011).

This presentation draws on an in-depth analysis of science in the everyday lives of 11-year-olds, drawing on several qualitative methods of data collection and informed by sociocultural theory. A diverse group of 11-year-olds participated in the study (N=10), which included interviews with their primary teacher, their science teacher, their parent, and the children themselves. We also conducted quasi-ethnographic interviews and observations during daily activities and structured science learning. The students completed a photo journal of “science in my life” and an accompanying interview. Finally, a science interest and curiosity survey was administered to each student.

We use these data to describe a variety of relationships with science expressed by 11-year-olds. We focus on children’s 1) propensities to exhibit curiosity about the natural world, 2) the ways students talk about science in relationship to themselves and their community, and 3) persistence in pursuing science-related activities in a variety of contexts. Emerging patterns suggest that the 11-year-olds in our sample do not necessarily characterize their interests, curiosity, and ways of reasoning as related to science. Some students describe themselves as someone who likes to think about the natural world and reason in ways that align with a scientific epistemology, but they do not express an affinity to science in particular. However, some students do seem to identify with science as a school subject they like and are interested in. In yet another relationship to science, students express an interest in science because their parents value it and encourage their success in it. We are also finding relationships to science that seem to be subsumed under a propensity to be activated to learn in general, not only in science.

The students in our sample have varying access to science learning opportunities, both in and out of school. One emerging pattern suggests that some students are potentially “activated” to learn science—they are interested in, curious about, and identify with science—but do not see themselves as having many opportunities to do so. We are further exploring how the students’ ideas about what science is relate to these varied relationships.

Qualitative and quasi-ethnographic work investigating students’ lived relationships with science is important for understanding children’s propensities to engage in science and for designing science experiences that “activate” children for future success and interest in science. A significant contribution of such work is to better understand individual children by focusing on the family, community, and cultural activities in which they participate (Rogoff, 2003).

Authors

• Megan R. Luce, Stanford University

• Tammie Visintainer, University of California - Berkeley