Svein Sjøberg

Constructivism and Learning

Constructivism is a term that should be used with care. It is widely used in many disciplines, and even in the more limited area of education, it is obvious that the term is used with very different meanings. This article focuses on constructivism in science education. It takes a historical perspective, based on the influence of Jean Piaget and traces its development from the early emphasis on his stages of development to the more recent stress on children’s construction of concepts (and misconceptions). The epistemological and individual/personal nature of Piaget’s research program has later been widened, and now embraces more social and cultural perspectives on learning. The article argues that these different versions of constructivism share basic core ideas, and that constructivism is currently the dominant research perspective in the field of teaching and learning in science.

Perceptions and Images of Science and Science Education

Modern societies become more and more dominated and driven by science and technology (ST we need to know their attitudes, sentiments and priorities. This chapter gives a brief glimpse into this situation by presenting some data from ROSE, an international comparative research project. The data indicate that young students actually have great respect for and many positive attitudes towards S&T. This does, however, not imply that the want to choose S&T as studies and careers. The data also shows great differences between girls and boys in attitudes, values and priorities. Any attempt to redress the situation will need to take such knowledge into account in order to be successful

Results and Perspectives from the Rose Project

This article presents the comparative project ROSE (The Relevance of Science Education) on how 15-year old learners relate to science (and technology). The focus of ROSE is on the learners’ science and technology (S&T) related prior experiences, their interests, their future plans, their attitudes to and perceptions of school science and science in society, their views on the environmental challenges and questions about priorities for their future job.

Science and Technology Education: A High Priority Political Concern in Europe

This paper attempts to describe and analyse some challenges facing S&T education by relating these issues to a wider social setting. The paper suggests a series of underlying reasons for why we have problems with recruitment and public image. This is followed by a similar analysis of who needs S&T -and for what purposes. The point here is that the challenge may be perceived differently from different perspectives and interests. Hence, there may also be different views on suitable strategies to solve ‘the problem.’ A critical description of S&T in schools is offered, and some international recent trends are briefly described. These trends may provide ideas for possible ways ahead and may underlie discussions of research priorities for associations like ESERA.