What is Science?

1. What is Science?

2. Activity • On your own (5 min) • Write down in one or two brief sentences, what the word “Science” conveys to you • In pairs • Compare what you have written with one of your neighbours. Try to come up with a definition of Science between you

3. Activity (continued) • In fours. • Join with another group. Compare your definitions and from them try to compile a list of words that represent what science is about. • Appoint a member of your group as a spokesperson.

4. Some Features of Science • Empirical • Deterministic • Parsimony • Falsifiable • Hypothesis testing

5. Stages of development • Experience • Observation & Classification • Quantification • Determining Relationships • Developing and Testing Theories

6. Activity -Why do experiments? • With your neighbour: • List four reasons why experiments are carried out. • In Fours:(combine with an adjacent group) • Compare lists. Try to identify categories of experiment.

7. Analyse Compare Correlate Identify Measure Model Order Prepare Sequence Survey Test hypothesis Some categories of experiment

8. Activity • Take each of the categories of experiment and relate them to one of the stages of development. • Draw up a table with stages in one column and categories in the other.

9. Possible Solution

10. Summary • Science is a practical activity which proceeds by • Systematic observation • Experimentation • Testing the validity of hypotheses

11. The End