Chapter 15 ~ Benchmarks Online ~ Project 2061 ~ AAAS

15. The Research Base

The Role of Research
The Nature of the Research Literature
Research Findings By Chapter and Section
1. The Nature of Science
2. The Nature of Mathematics
3. The Nature of Technology
4. The Physical Setting
5. The Living Environment
6. The Human Organism
7. Human Society
8. The Designed World
9. The Mathematical World
10. Historical Perspectives
11. Common Themes
12. Habits of Mind
References

The references that follow are organized to match chapters and sections of Benchmarks, which in turn mostly match those of Science for All Americans. The list is very selective and includes only those references that met two criteria. One was relevance—some excellent papers were not included because they did not bear on one of the Benchmarks topics. The other criterion was quality—papers, however relevant, were bypassed if they were seen to have design flaws or their evidence or argument was weak. Even then, however, not all relevant and good papers are included. In many cases, a single paper has been used as representative of a number of similar reports.

It will immediately be clear that mathematics and the physical sciences have had the benefit of many more studies than have other fields. Perhaps that is because the subject matter lends itself to research more easily; in the next few years, though, perhaps the attention to cognitive research will increase in all fields.

Research Findings for Chapter 10: Historical Perspectives

Research into student understanding of the history of science is limited. Much of the literature consists of descriptions of exemplary practices or untried prescriptions for effective teaching (see, for example, Herget, 1989; Hills, 1992; Matthews, 1991; Shortland & Warwick, 1989). Claims for the effectiveness of the methods recommended are seldom supported by systematic research into what learning and how much of it took place. Some evaluation of instructional materials for bringing the history of science into high-school science classes was undertaken during the sixties. These evaluations did not yield consistent conclusions about the effect these materials had on teaching students about the nature of science, although they hint that historical materials can help change students' image of science so they come to see it as a more philosophical, historical, and humanitarian discipline than they had thought (Klopfer & Cooley, 1963; Welch, 1973; Welch & Walberg, 1968, 1972). Recent research in middle-school classrooms has shown that learning some history of science can lead students to a better understanding of the nature of science as well as the science itself (Solomon et al., 1992).

Research into the development of students' broader historical thinking (beyond just the history of science) reflects conflicting views on when history should be taught. On the one hand, some research indicates students are limited in their historical understanding before they reach Piaget's formal-operations stage (Hallam, 1970, 1979; Joyce et al., 1991). Elementary students, for example, have difficulties with time and related aspects like duration and succession (Downey & Levstik, 1988). These results have been used to argue that adolescence is the better time to begin history instruction (Joyce et al., 1991). On the other hand, recent studies indicate that young children know more history facts than has been thought and can think more maturely when they have good background knowledge (Downey & Levstik, 1991). Also, although some children have difficulty with some time concepts, young children can and do understand historical time in a variety of ways (Egan, 1982; Levstik & Pappas, 1987). They can see patterns and sequences in real events, though some of the patterns may be general and imprecise. These results have been used to argue for an earlier introduction to historical study (Downey & Levstik, 1991). Clearly, more research is needed to assess when and how historical understanding develops in young children and how it can be improved by instruction. Research is also needed to assess whether and how children's conceptions of time are connected to the development of historical understanding.

Some educators claim that simplified historical stories are appropriate content in the elementary school because they deal with basic emotions familiar even to young children (Egan, 1982). There is indeed evidence that historical narratives motivate historical interest (Levstik, 1986) and provide helpful contexts for historical learning (Levstik, 1988; Downey & Levstik, 1991). Specific research will help decide the value of using narratives to introduce young children to the study of history of science and technology.

Even high-school students have difficulties under-standing the points of view of people in the past (Lee, 1984; Shelmit, 1984). In particular, students may think their predecessors were intellectually and morally inferior or may account for their thoughts and behavior with stereotypes before they understand that past values, beliefs, and attitudes were often different from those of today (Shelmit, 1984). Research suggests students may have similar difficulties in understanding the points of view of scientists in the past. Middle-school students show little regard for the thinking of scientists whose theories they know have been superseded (Solomon et al., 1992).