The Nature of Scientific Enquiry

Recent work of subject-matter specialists in the field of science curriculum building has resulted in rapid and widespread change in the secondary school science curriculum. Along with this rapid change has come the need for thorough evaluation of new materials in terms of their objectives. As Bloom points out, "New curricula are not acts of faith-they represent new hypotheses which should be empirically tested before they become an accepted part of the educational program."' Unfortunately, independent evaluative efforts have lagged behind widespread adoption of the materials. This is particularly true of evaluation in terms of an objective cited almost without exception in these new materials-that of bringing students to some understanding of the nature of scientific enquiry. Two factors contributing to this lag were of particular concern in this study. One was the obscurity of new course materials themselves with respect to their treatments of enquiry. The other factor was the general lack of a sound conception of the nature of scientific enquiry on which to base evaluative efforts. The lack of clarity both of the literature dealing with the science curriculum and of the materials themselves raises the further question of what meaning, if any, such a phrase as "scientific enquiry" has for teachers who are expected to utilize the new materials.