Building a Foundation for the Use of Historical Narratives

Abstract

Many educators today advocate the use of historical narratives as one of a number of possible contexts for teaching science. However, several pedagogical and epistemological issues arise when implementing narratives in the classroom. In this paper, we are interested in expanding our view of narrative, specific to integrating the history of science and science teaching, and we extend our argument beyond simple anecdotal references to recognise the benefits of the historical narrative in a variety of ways. At the same time, we address pedagogical concerns by broadening perceptions of the manner and contexts in which narratives can be developed so as to include imaginative and manipulative elements that provide interactive experiences for students that are more conducive to implementation by science teachers.Several practical examples are presented as illustrations of historical narratives with imaginative and manipulative elements that by design facilitate a more meaningful implementation in the science classroom.

Why Implementing History and Philosophy in School Science Education is a Challenge: An Analysis of Obstacles

“…Usually teacher beliefs and scholar beliefs about what a proper HPS and NoS teaching should be differ radically because what counts as adequate material, textbook, experiment, case studies, etc. from a historian of science's viewpoint is different from a science teachers' Metz et al 2007;Quintanilla 2007;McComas 2008;Forato 2009;García 2009;Henke et al 2009). From the academic viewpoint, textbook knowledge is fragmented, since textbook writers choose and include just a few aspects of a broader field of knowledge.…”

“…Kubli 2005;Stinner 2006;Metz et al 2007). A story about science for example has to be composed clearly, short and easy to remember (Kubli 2005).…”

The Story Behind the Science: Bringing Science and Scientists to Life in Post-Secondary Science Education

“…An historical approach (e.g. Conant 1957;Klopfer and Cooley 1963;Matthews 1994;Hagen et al 1996;Clough 1997Clough , 2004Clough , 2006Abd-El-Khalick 1999;Irwin 2000;Stinner et al 2003: Metz et al 2007 and many others) that faithfully reflects the work of scientists illustrates the humanity of science, the enjoyment and frustrations in conducting research, and the complexities and challenges individual scientists and the scientific community experience in developing and justifying science ideas. In addition to potentially enhancing understanding of science content, these examples can exemplify important epistemological and ontological lessons that are bound up in that content and central to understanding the NOS, and place the science content in a human context.…”

The Relation of Story Structure to a Model of Conceptual Change in Science Learning

“…The inclusion of story in the presentation of history in science teaching has been advocated and attempted by a growing number of science educators (Kenealy 1989;Klassen 2009;Kubli 1999;Martin and Brouwer 1991;Stinner 1992;Wandersee 1990); however, a theory for doing so has not been developed to any significant extent. Recently, with the publication of two articles, this trend appears to have changed, as a theoretical foundation for the use of narratives in the science classroom has been initiated (Metz et al 2007;Norris et al 2005). Yet, the observation of Bruner in 1986 that ''we know precious little in any formal sense about how to make good stories'' (p. 14) still rings disturbingly true, today.…”