Practical Work in School Science Which Way Now?

Laboratory work has been part of science education for just over 100 years and is accepted as an essential and exciting element of the discipline. This book attempts to reflect on the value and purpose of practical laboratory work for the scientific curriculum. The chapters aim to examine how practical work is perceived by students and teachers; whether we will move on to the "virtual lab"; and what role experimentation plays in current educational practice.

Practical work has been part of science education for just over 100 years and is accepted as an essential and exciting part of understanding this discipline. Although it can be costly and sometimes messy, it simply has to be done if students and teachers are to progress in their understanding. Schools and universities invest millions of pounds in it and the National Curriculum reveres it - but what exactly is going on in classrooms around the country and how are the leading practitioners moving with the times? This book attempts to reflect on the value and purpose of practical work as part of the scientific curriculum. Why are practical exercises so necessary and what do they contribute to the learning process? The chapters examine many issues such as: * how practical work is perceived by students and teachers * whether we will move on to the 'virtual lab' * the limitations of current 'hands-on' work and valuable alternatives to it * the connections between practical work in science education and 'authentic' science * what role experimentation plays in current educational practice. Jerry Wellington is Reader in Education at Sheffield University, and has taught science at all academic levels.

Part I Introduction 1. Practical Work in Science: Time for a Reappraisal 2. Rhetoric and Reality: What Practical Work in Science Education is really For Part II Perspectives on Practical Work in School Science 3. The Schooling of Laboratory Science 4. Teaching about the World of Science in the Laboratory: the Influence of Students' ideas 5. 'If this were Played on Stage...': School Laboratory Work as a Theatre of Representation Part III The Search for Authenticity 6. Is this really what Scientists Do? 7. Authentic Science in Schools to Develop Personal Knowledge 8.Learning about Dimensions in Science through Authentic Tasks Part IV Language, Images, Ideas and Practical Work 9. Science Education 10. Science as Conversation: Come and See my Air Pump! 11. 'Imaging' or 'Envisionment' in Practical Work: Developing the Link Between Action, Thought and Image Part V Further Ideas on the Future of Practical Work 12. Implicit Knowledge and Science Practical Work in Schools 13. Experimentation and Conceptual Understanding in School Science: Can Hypothesis Testing Play a Role? 14. IT in Practical Work: Assessing and Increasing the Value Added 15. Multimedia Simulation: a Threat to, or Enhancement of Practical Work in Science Education? 16. Virtual Science: a Practical Alternative?

Jerry Wellington