Teaching the Nature of Science in Physics Courses: The Contribution of Classroom Historical Inquiries

Physics and chemistry programs at the secondary school level in France recommend introducing components of the history of science (HS). Emphasis is placed on a ‘cultural’ dimension, which is poorly defined but essentially refers to elements of epistemological nature. Moreover, the few examples of activities based on HS suggested by the programs and science textbooks are means to learn scientific content and convey a reductive and false image of the nature of science (NoS). Our main issue is to examine the possibility to communicate a more authentic image of NoS with HS. We begin by demonstrating how our historical and epistemological analysis led us to distinguish different learning goals about NoS. We then show how these goals can generate classroom activities involving collective inquiry based on the implementation of documents. These documents may or may not be paired with experiments. Finally, we discuss the tensions that our choices created with science curricula and among teachers.