This chapter, ironically, broke down the teaching of science into a science. I was surprised to find out that people record conversations at museums in order to figure out how to better design their museum, and to figure out the most optimal way to convey their knowledge. I also wondered if any of my conversations at museums have been recorded (probably not, since a waiver is needed to be signed). But it’s great to know that there are people out there whose sole job it is to listen to conversations had by people at an exhibit, and engineer the most favorable museum design based off of those conversations. Social sciences such as these are gaining more ground nowadays, and it’s one of the new and great ways we’re expanding our knowledge. This in itself is an example of our use of metacognition and points to our higher intelligence. Very exciting stuff.

I also found myself agreeing with the section about how parents can reinforce and develop their children’s knowledge. The example of  a mother clarifying information about dinosaur eggs was a perfect scenario that demonstrates this. Similarly, it speaks to how having an expert in the field conducive to learning without introducing a discomfort factor. The discomfort factor, as I experienced, usually occurs when an expert in a field (usually much older than I am) lingers after his explanation as I try to play with the tools in an exhibit, or talk with my friends about my thoughts of it. It doesn’t allow me to freely brainstorm and experience the exhibit with privacy. This factor is eliminated if the expert is somebody who I know well or is close to my age.

Another great method of encouraging learning brought up by the text is positive reinforcement. The text spoke about how girl scouts receive a badge every time a favorable behavior has been performed. For example, if a child constantly expresses curiosity, this action might earn them a badge. Psychologically, this method has been proven to work. However, one pitfall to this method is that the subject might then be encouraged to continue performing this behavior solely to continue earning that reward (the badge) and not because they honestly wanted to react that way. Museums eliminate this constraint by allowing visitors to freely explore whichever exhibits they feel drawn to.

Adults must also be careful when teaching children. In the boat-building example, we see the parents doing most of the challenging problem-solving tasks, such as building differently shaped boats, while leaving the logistical tasks to their children, such as setting off the boats into the water. The child might end up missing the point of the activity or feeling insulted that the parent doesn’t allow them to think on their own. This is one of the ways an aversion to learning is often developed. Although sometimes the problem might be too challenging for a child to solve and an adult’s help is necessary, other times it’s necessary to let them have a go at it. It’s very easy to become absorbed in an activity so much that you forget your purpose is to have your children learn too. I speak from a psychological perspective as well as from experience, since I find myself guilty of sometimes doing this with my seven year old sister.

The main point that Chapter 4 in Surrounded by Science emphasizes is that communicating and interacting with other people plays an important role in learning. People can learn from each other about topics they did not have previous knowledge or about a subject that someone else had a deeper understanding.  As stated in the text, engaging with people who are more knowledgeable in a particular area and exchanging of ideas and reflections supports our own individual learning.  We do not know everything about a topic; engaging and talking with others allows us to uncover more information about that topic and perhaps think about things that we did not think about before.  Some individuals may be more knowledgeable than others can help others learn by pointing out things that they may not have noticed, provide knowledgeable input or structure a discussion that focuses on science.  I know that for me it is sometimes more helpful to talk to other people about certain topics than just reading about it.  For example, it was much easier to understand about coronary bypass surgery, the machine used during the procedure and all the technical stuff by talking to someone about rather than just reading about it from a book that has so much confusing terminology. I definitely learned and understood much more about the operation by talking with a perfusionist and a cardio-thoracic surgeon than from reading about it.

Interaction with others definitely plays an important role in learning. Throughout the chapter it has been stated the importance of parents, adult caregivers, peers, educators and mentors in science learning. These people help us throughout our lives to learn about science and the world around us.  Children learn from parents and siblings about topics that are relevant to science even though the activity that they are doing may not have a designated purposed to teach them about science. Children learn things about the world and question things they see and touch without immediately being in a formal education setting. Also, older siblings can help their younger siblings learn by helping them understand plot lines in education programming and answering questions that their siblings may have.  My older sister has definitely helped me understand things that I have seen on television or read about in books. She has answered my many questions, from things that are simple to topics that are complex, that have aided my understanding of them and have encouraged me to delve deeper into that area.

However, it is important that interaction with others does not hamper the learning of others. In the text, it is stated that while children can learn from their parents while visiting informal science institutions like museums, at times, parents may become too involved and limit their child’s ability to learn and discover things on their own. It is important, therefore, to know how much mediation is really needed for children in order for them to reap the optimal benefits of a particular activity.  Parents should guide and aid their children during informal experiences, but not to a point where their guidance actually hinders their cognitive learning.

Communicating and interacting with others is importance in informal science learning. Therefore, these types of experiences should be created with groups of people in mind so that optimal engagement between people is taken advantage and capitalized.  Studies have been conducted in order to optimize the benefits of interacting with others, particularly through listening to conversations of people in informal settings. This in itself can be difficult to do, as researchers have to find appropriate ways to record conversations, transcribe them, and then ultimately come to a conclusion about what they mean.  Although a challenging task, this information can be used to create meaningful experiences which will help those who participate to learn about science.  Hopefully, with this information, those creating informal science learning activities will design experiences that encourage interaction, communication, discussion and reflection.

Informal science and formal science have a strong connection. In order to have the full effect of an informal science learning experience, certain techniques that are present in formal science settings are necessary. One such item is the method of conversation. As seen in the chapter, there are various types of communication and conversation that develops and takes place in these informal settings. However, the most effective form of conversation and the one in which the most learning occurs is when the parent/adult probes the child. The adult switches between “teacher” and more informal tones in order to engage the child in the most productive way. In such a manner, the child is able to gain the most out of his/her experience.

This type of conversation should not be limited to a “formal” informal setting, such as a museum exhibit. This type of conversation can be expanded to the dinner table, television shows, walks in the park, playtime at the playground, etc. In such a conversation, the child is able to learn so much more. A child has a lot of understanding and ideas of various things in life; he/she just needs someone to encourage him/her to share her ideas and thoughts. And, with this form of communication, both child and parent are able to have the most enjoyable and productive experience.

What I found most striking in this chapter is the amount of angles from which education can be looked from. Typically, I judge my education based off of three things:

1. How much did I learn?
2. Was it interesting?
3. Was it interactive?

After reading chapter three, however, I realized that there is much more to educating than just those three factors. There is the importance of having multiple modes of learning. There is even importance in assessing a student’s prior knowledge, and if it’s faulty, to correct that knowledge. This is referred to as “juxtaposition” by the text. Having all these new aspects to consider makes me appreciate the multifaceted nature of educating. It’s a complex field to understand, and I have a deeper understanding of how educators need to account for many variables to make sure their teaching is on par.

I believe that juxtaposition is one of the most important of these variables to include in education. Having the element of surprise in teaching can keep students on their feet and constantly interested in what they’re learning. One of the most boring things for a student to experience is learning something that they already know or don’t care about. But if you surprise them with information which contradicts their preconceived understanding, it wakes them up and alerts them. In essence, a surprising juxtaposition to prior knowledge is a stimulant.

Humans tend to fall into a phenomenon known as “hedonic adaptation,” which means we quickly grow accustomed to pleasure from the external world. We lose the excitement of having a new television within a few weeks of its purchase. Look at an amazing view every day, and after a while the view will cease to be as amazing. We build tolerance and constantly need new stimulation to excite ourselves. In a way, this breeds progress. Within the context of hedonic adaptation, juxtaposition is a great tool for education. It finds a way around our tendency to adapt to stimuli by constantly surprising us with new facts.

The same can be said for making learning interactive, hands on, and social. Each of the case studies in the chapter spoke to how alluring science with these qualities can be, with the participants getting much enjoyment. One of the most interesting case studies was the skeleton exhibit. As you cycled a stationary bike, a mirror to your side would overlay your skeleton onto your reflection, allowing you to see its movement in real time. According to Surrounded by Science, “Of the 93 children in the sample, 96 percent correctly drew skeletons whose bones began or ended at the joints of the body.” This is proof of how engaging and effective hands-on science is.

Chapter 3 in Surrounded by Science emphasizes the importance of creating experiences that will ultimately enhance the understanding of people and allow them to be more flexible in their learning.  I think that it was interesting to learn about the importance and necessity of creating and designing good informal education experiences. Even good programs need constant improvement so that the people that participate in them reap the maximum benefits. One way to improve programs was based on how learners responded to the activity they engaged in.  They used the feedback of people to add or change something about a particular activity so that the people are not just having fun, but are also learning something in the process.

The chapter also focuses on the facets of learning, which are the development of expertise, the role of intuitive ideas and prior knowledge in gaining a deeper understanding, and the ability to reflect on one’s own thinking as a way to build one’s understanding. It was fascinating to learn that experts are not just people who think well or are extremely intelligent, but people who know how to organize their knowledge and understand relationships between facts and also are able to distinguish central ideas.  All this enables them to be flexible in their learning and apply their knowledge in different contexts. This means that people like you and me can also be experts in a particular field if we know cultivate the skills needed to organize our knowledge and to apply it to several different settings.  I agree with the text that our childhood does develop some level of expertise in an area because when we are little we learn to figure out things for ourselves.  We are not placed immediately into a classroom; rather we interact with people and come up with our own intuitive ideas about the things we see and feel without any formal education.  This prior knowledge helps up to delve deeper into topics as we seek to understand certain things about the world around us.  We become more aware of our ideas and express them.  Our reflection and awareness of our ideas allows us to understand how we think about something and perhaps even challenge ideas that we have and expand on them.

To expand on the previous thought, I think one of the most interesting things I learned from this chapter was metacognition. This is the ability to reflect and monitor one’s own thinking. It is specific to a particular area, but it can supported and taught.  I think this ability, to be aware of how we think, can ultimately lead to greater understanding.  Once we know how we think we will be better able to find ways to help aid us in our understanding of science.  Also, reflecting on our thinking will help us discover what we know so that we are able to delve deeper in to an area of a subject that we may not have known before or were wrong about.

In hand with these facets are ways that learning can be encouraged and supported. The text tells of various ways to engage people in a way that they can cultivate their minds and ultimately gain a deeper understanding of what they are doing.  These strategies are juxtaposition, multiple modes and interactivity. Juxtaposition is beneficial when informal environments are created that juxtapose peoples’ understanding of the natural world with the formal ideas they have been taught that explain the world.  This juxtaposition will hopefully lead learners to examine their own understanding of a particular subject and work towards improving it.  Multiple modes is beneficial in learning because it allows there to be different ways for learners to utilize concepts and practices in activities and supports a flexible transfer of knowledge from one area to another.  Interactivity in learning encourages learners to discover things for themselves by actively participating in events. People should be interested and engaged in what they are learning in order to increase their knowledge and their ability to reason out information in science.

Throughout the chapter, examples are provided in informal education experiences in which these strategies are present.  One example is an exhibition called Cell Lab, which is located at the Science Museum of Minnesota.  This activity allows visitors to use real laboratory equipment to conduct experiments in order to learn about genetics, cell biology, microbiology and enzymes.  They work at stations, testing their hypotheses and interacting with other participants.  This opportunity allows its participants to engage in an authentic science lab experience.  Participants even wear lab coats, goggles and gloves to make the experience more real.  Experiences like these allow people to be actively engaged in the activity and have fun doing it while also allowing them to share ideas and learn together about science.

I found it very interesting that the six strands are really far-reaching. It was interesting to see how the stands of learning are met so accurately in the informal science settings of both the museum exhibits and the longterm programs.

My little sister is part of a girls program in our neighborhood.  Girls her age meet up at someone’s house on Saturday afternoon for some snacks and games. Then, every so often, there are bigger activities/trips for the girls that participate in this program from all the age groups and neighborhoods. One of the activities this past year was a science program on Sunday afternoon. The girls watched the instructor handle dry ice and watched pennies chatter. They then got to do some science of their own and make goo and bouncy balls. My sister told me all about the processes to make the toys in a very animated manner. Even now, almost a year later, she will still bring up how fun and funny it was to participate and to watch the pennies “shiver.” Additionally, I remember being part of a Sunday Science Program when I was in grade four. We learned about the role your nose plays in tasting food. I came home and was so excited to have my other family members try it out.

I believe that informal science programs tend to give children more excitement and interest in science. When one becomes personally involved by engaging with science, they feel a sense of ownership and pride in the experiment they worked with and in science as a whole.

On Jeffrey P. Cohn’s article “Citizen Science: Can Volunteers Do Real Research?”

Cohn’s article  discussed Citizen Science, a form of informal science learning that incorporated many strands of informal science learning mentioned in Surrounded by Science. Citizen Science projects allowed and encouraged volunteers to understand scientific content and knowledge, to engage in scientific reasoning [while not by manipulating or testing in the form of experiments, but by observing and exploring the living things on which they collected data], and to use the tools and language of science (strands 2, 3, 5). One would hope that Citizen Science projects also encouraged volunteers to reflect on the scientific experience and the learning experience and cultivate a scientific identity (strands 2,6). Citizen Science also relies on the first strand; without an interest or curiosity in the subject of a citizen science project, few would volunteer to participate.

While Cohn’s article was an excellent example for understanding the six strands of informal science learning, it was also an interesting and impressive read. It’s ironic that scientific organizations and groups “can’t get enough research assistants to do what [they] can get volunteers to do” (Cohn, 193). I would think that researchers love their field of work and would jump at every opportunity to be involved in research, whether or not they were compensated for it; after all, they did choose to make scientific study their career.

Citizen Science projects are such a great idea that I’m surprised I haven’t heard about them until this class. The field of science benefits from the data collected by citizen scientists and the public is inspired to appreciate nature, and learn more about and be involved in a field of study that it finds interesting. I used to think scientists were highly-educated and highly-trained professionals who were  a very exclusive group, and too an extent they still are, but projects and experiences like citizen science make science a more attractively inclusive subject, especially if citizen scientists can be as young as third graders to participate.

-Adrienne Zhou

As a child, I was always taught that science is defined by the steps in the scientific method: observation, hypothesis, experiment, analysis, conclusion. Chapter two of Surrounded by Science gives a different take on what science is. It summarizes science learning into six strands. These strands are revolutionary in that they broaden the confines of the definition of science, and allows the common citizen to be a participant in science.

I noticed that the strands also follow the typical process by which a person involves himself in science. First, interest in a particular subject is sparked. Then, a person would explore this subject. Through their exploration, they would learn vocabulary words, scientific terms, and scientific processes. If a person persists in the exploration of a scientific field and contributes to a study, they would eventually identify themselves as a member of the scientific community. Similarly, Surrounded by Science constructs a parallel series of events in its strands.

The example of citizen scientists contributing to the field of ornithology is a great example of these strands put into action. A person who is watching a robin might have his interest sparked (strand 1). This person might proceed to do online research on birds, and become well versed the scientific content he reads (strand 2). He might want to get more involved in ornithology, and therefore participate in a study such as Project FeederWatch. He would catalog and report the different birds he observes in his community, and then reflect on the methods he used and the information he learns (strands 3 and 4). As he sharpens his skills, he will be able to have conversations with other ornithologists about the science (strand 5), and would feel like part of the scientific community (strand 6). Interestingly, although the strands are not designed to be in any particular order, it seems as if they are already in chronological order.