Below are guidelines that help science educators move
in the direction of a more student-centered instruction.
These pairs of statements represent endpoints on a continuum
of teaching and learning practices. 'Best Practices' focus
on the strategies shown on the right hand side.
| Decrease Emphasis On: |
Increase Emphasis On: |
| Mastering prescribed activities |
Exploring, inventing, and comparing |
| Assessment focused on mastery of facts |
Assessment exposes depth of understanding of concepts
and processes |
| Exclusive use of paper, pencil, and blackboards |
Use of manipulatives, journals, computers and calculators |
| Investigations with one correct outcome |
Problem-solving investigations, students design
questions; many possible outcomes |
| Teacher demonstrations |
Labs, field experiences, simulations |
| Science as a single subject with little relationship
to mathematics, social studies, language arts, art
or music |
Science as part of an interdisciplinary world, relating
science to the students' world that is less compartmentalized |
| The teacher imparts knowledge and students learn
it; one way communication |
The teacher as a facilitator and a learner and teacher.
Networks emerge instead of one-way channels of communication |
| Decrease Emphasis On: |
Increase Emphasis On: |
| Math and science for some |
Math and Science for all |
| Text based |
Experience and materials based |
| Single exposure to content |
Spiral curriculum |
| Teacher centered |
Student centered |
| Isolated topics |
Integrated topics and applications |
| Emphasis on facts |
Emphasis on problem solving and concepts |
| One correct way to solve a problem |
More than one correct way to solve a problem |
| Competitive or individualized |
Cooperative learning |
| Limited use of technology |
Integration of appropriate technology |
| Passive learning |
Active learning |
| Paper and pencil assessments |
Multi-dimensional assessments |