Ilanit Zada
Science and Technology in NYC
Professor Adams
12-8-13
Chapter nine in Surrounded by Science discusses the ways in which science learning can be extended beyond the confines of the classroom or the environment in which it is learned and used in other contexts. There were several examples that were given to accomplish this task, while simultaneously making the learning more accessible to people, through the use of cell phones and other devices. This includes blogs, and in the case of the Exploratorium, “a virtual world that offers visitors a different kind of science experience” (164). I felt that this chapter was the perfect one to end off the semester and wrap up the different ideas discussed by emphasizing the importance of extending science learning beyond the classroom and encouraging active engagement.
Throughout the semester, we have been doing projects to investigate this idea of science learning, sparking an interest, and the importance of interactive exhibits. For me personally, I have found from the everyday science project that an interest in science can really be sparked from any kind of environment (some of which people may not even realize influences them); there were people that had an interest in science sparked from their favorite TV show, or hobby, while for others, it was simply something they stumbled upon and found to be worthy of further investigations. In the citizen science project, I found that the most important thing in sparking an interest in the children was an interactive exhibit. Children were more likely to walk up to an exhibit and enjoy for a longer amount of time when it required active participation on their part. These observations, along with the material covered in the textbook, makes us realize that the best way to teach science is by constantly exposing our children and students to the different forms of media (that could facilitate science learning), reminding them to keep an open mind, and making exhibits in informal science settings more interactive for the children.
