Religious beliefs in science classrooms

Abstract

The question of the relationship between science and religion assumes importance for many secondary school students of science, especially but not exclusively for those in Christian schools. Science as presented in many school classrooms is not as objective and value free as it might seem on first examination, nor does it represent adequately the range of beliefs about science held by students and teachers. This paper reports part of a larger research study into beliefs about science and religion held by students, teachers and clergy in a Lutheran secondary school. Results indicate that participants in the study saw the relationship between science and religious belief in ways unforeseen and unappreciated by traditional school science programs.

The Experiences and Personal Religious Beliefs of Egyptian Science Teachers as a Framework for Understanding the Shaping and Reshaping of their Beliefs and Practices about Science‐Technology‐Society (STS)

“…Within the socially-constituted nature of culture, the personal religious beliefs of individuals are likely to play an integral role in producing, filtering, prioritising and interpreting information (Fysh & Lucas, 1998). Thus, the context in which scientific concepts are presented to students may be strongly influenced by the teacher's beliefs or worldview (Cobern & Loving, 2000).…”

“…Therefore, religious influences on the lives of contemporary teachers should be considered when building up an understanding of their work in the classroom. The influence of religion on a teacher's practices will be significant, especially if he/she has to respond intelligently and effectively to the challenges of a science curriculum that includes certain controversial issues which may occupy part of the science/religion spectrum (Fysh & Lucas, 1998). Particularly where Islam is concerned, religion is a major element of the culture; thus religious influences on the lives of contemporary teachers should be taken into account when forming an insight into their experiences, and their related beliefs and practices.…”

Students' perceptions of the nature of evolutionary theory

“…Some researchers have focused on students' cognitive understanding of evolutionary theory (Anderson et al, 2002;Bishop & Anderson, 1990;Demastes et al, 1995), while others have examined paracognitive factors that influence student engagement with the content, such as their personal or religious beliefs (Brem, Ranney, & Schindel, 2003;Dagher & BouJaoude, 1997;Fysh & Lucas, 1998;Jackson et al, 1995;Roth & Lucas, 1997). Those studies demonstrate that attending to the conceptual dimension alone in teaching the theory of evolution is not adequate for improving engagement with or understanding of this theory.…”

Tre elever berättar om universum, gud och fysiken

“…Ur ett naturvetenskapligt didaktiskt perspektiv blir då en intressant fråga vilken typ av svar på de här grundläggande frågorna som elever förknip-par med naturvetenskapen och vad detta kan få för konsekvenser för deras vilja att bli en del av den naturvetenskapliga kulturen (Aikenhead, 1996). Elevers/studenters uppfattningar om relationen mellan naturvetenskap och religion har studerats tidigare (t ex Dagher & BouJaude, 1997;Esbenshade, 1993;Fysh & Lucas, 1998;Loving & Foster, 2000;Roth & Alexander, 1997;Shipman, Brickhouse, Dagher & Letts, 2002). I den här studien har ett specifikt område med anknytning till fysik/naturvetenskaplig undervisning, nämligen kosmologi, valts som en ram för samtalen med eleverna.…”