The development of science explanations in children and adolescents: A structural approach.

Two scientists-in-the-making were overheard heatedly discussing the nature of atoms while being driven to the science museum. The 9-year-old agonized over how he could walk through atoms without seeing or feeling them. His 6-yearold brother countered that atoms were only “in things that you can see” such as tables and chairs, and that they were really just “little pieces of sand glued together.” Although differing in method from the research presented here, the naturalistic observations just reported raise interesting questions for educators and psychologists concerned with the development of scientific understanding. We might consider, for example, whether the boys’ explanations of atoms differ in significant ways and whether this difference could be apparent in their explanations of other phenomena. The origin of each boy’s understanding of atoms would also be of interest. Perhaps their teachers presented the concept of atoms differently and this difference is manifest in their explanations. Alternatively, their explanations may be more a function of world views that reflect their maturational levels than any specific educational experiences. Finally, their discussing atoms at all places the conversation in the 20th century (as does the automobile), thus suggesting questions about the influence of cultural factors. The research presented in this chapter suggests some ways to study these questions. This chapter reports the results of two studies of science explanations given by children and adolescents in response to demonstrations of and questions about electromagnetism and gravity. Using a structural-developmental framework (Kohlberg, 1969 …