The development of a group test of formal operational logic in the content area of environmental science

An instrument was developed to assess the logical reasoning capacity of adolescents in the content area of environmental science. Characterized as a group test, the instrument consisted of five concrete experiences related to environmental concepts, to which pencil-and-paper responses were made. The instrument was validated through (1) logical analysis of items from the standpoint of Piagetian theory, (2) correlation with clinical interviews and group test results in physical science, and (3) factor analysis. The results indicated an acceptable level of validity for the instrument in each category. Concurrently, the results of the study indicated that the reasoning level of the subjects was well below the theoretical levels predicted for them by theory. The results also suggested that reasoning ability in environmental science was lower than in areas associated with the physical concepts usually tested. The data suggested the presence of a horizontal decalage, or time lag, between the development of logical reasoning skills in areas of familiarity, such as physical science, and areas of content less familiar to the subject or those in which logical structures may be less frequently used in the development of evaluation instruments.     

Can the History of Science Contribute to Modelling in Physics Teaching?

A characterization of the modelling process in science is proposed for science education, based on Mario Bunge’s ideas about the construction of models in science. Galileo’s Dialogues are analysed as a potentially fruitful starting point to implement strategies aimed at modelling in the classroom in the light of that proposal. It is argued that a modelling process for science education can be conceived as the evolution from phenomenological approaches towards more representational ones, emphasizing the role of abstraction and idealization in model construction. The shift of reference of theories—from sensible objects to conceptual objects—and the black-box models construction process, which are both explicitly presented features in Galileo’s Dialogues, are indicated as highly relevant aspects for modelling in science education.