Elementary Students' Approaches to Uncertainty Resolution in Classrooms With Contrasting Methods for Managing Argumentation

• In Event: Science Teaching and Learning: Student Discourse and Sense-Making

Abstract

Engaging students in the epistemic practices of science such as experimental design, representing phenomena, and determining what to count as evidence drives reform-based science education. Strategies that teaches use to manage uncertainty has the potential to impact how students justify their claims. In this study, we collecting data to determine if different types of learning environments would change young students’ proclivity to select a certain type of evidence for their claim. In particular, we wanted to collect data on how young students justify their claims when they observe firsthand evidence versus secondhand evidence that does not have an example for them to observe and relies on testimony.

Authors

• Mason Kuhn, University of Northern Iowa

• Ron W. Rinehart, University of Northern Iowa

• Marine Pepanyan, University of Northern Iowa

• Todd Milford, University of Victoria

• Mark McDermott, University of Iowa