DESCRIPTION OF CONTENTS
The present communication is based on the lecture given in the IV International Congress for the teaching of Chemistry in Secondary Schooling. It develops a study of the teaching of science in the secondary schooling during the last decades, analysing the changes that have taken place and the current challenges the subject of chemistry has to face, giving special attention to those which refer to the selection and contextualization of contents.
The communication starts with a retrospective of the teaching of science in the secondary schooling followed by a presentation of the current situation and the problems it faces:
During the eighties there was a significant change in the approach of the teaching of science through the fostering of conceptual aspects, stressing the principles of chemistry and the processes that lead to scientific knowledge. The aim of these changes was to prepare the students for higher education and the sequence was inspired by the evolution of the chemical concepts and models, as well as by the relevancy of the experimental work. During the nineties, the objectives and contents of science teaching were renewed through the development of projects based on the context. In the first years of the twenty first century, the process of reform went on, and both, the acquisition of competences and the scientific literacy of the students, became key issues.
Currently, many pupils fail in the subjects of science, finding their contents difficult, abstract and out of touch with today’s reality. In fact, the PISA report shows that the scientific training of the Spanish students is under the average of the countries involved. Therefore the adequacy of the current curriculum is called into question, since it does not seem to prepare the students well enough to understand scientific issues nor to take part in the scientific debates they will find in their lives. As a result of the significant decrease in the number of pupils inscribed in the science courses of the post-compulsory schooling, several curricular aspects regarding the teaching of chemistry are redefined: the contents are decontextualized and far from the pupils interest, there are few contact points with other subjects and a lack of attention towards the processes of modelling and experimenting from which the chemistry knowledge is obtained. To these factors we must add the short time assigned to experimental and research activities as well as the poor development of the communication skills, the lack of teamwork in the class and the short use of the ITC.
The author proposes a redefinition of the contents: contextualising such contents in the framework of the daily life, sequencing them properly, introducing concepts in a progressive manner, adopting teaching strategies which take into account the motivation and expectations of the pupils, introducing the use of new technologies, more practice outside the class, and involving the teachers openly in the curriculum renovation process. Moreover, an important aspect which cannot be forgotten is to provide room for the STS contents, reducing conceptual contents or treating them in more qualitative terms.
After a detailed analysis of the treatment given to certain concepts in the curriculum of our country, new proposals regarding new concepts and the depth required to understand the aspects or applications of chemistry should be set. The aim is, above all, the introduction of new contents related to the current applications of chemistry and its social implications, as well as the need to count with the proper means and realistic proposals to carry it out.
Finally, the author analyses de importance of a contextualised approach of chemistry not only in secondary schooling but also in the higher education levels (university).
REVIEWER’S COMMENTS ON THE PUBLICATION
The present communication analyses the importance of changing the curriculum in order to perform the necessary changes recommended in multiple reports presented in recent years on the teaching of science.
The inclusion of the present article is due to the following reasons: the author, whose experience in the field of science and its applications to chemistry is out of question; the fact that it deals with problems regarding the teaching of chemistry from a curricular perspective; and because it offers solutions which are consistent with those proposed in both, the studies performed by other authors and the reports carried out by the European Commission.
The historical approach presented at the beginning of the article is interesting, for it analyses how the requirements and approach of the curriculum have changed in recent years; the analysis of the aspects that should be changed, and the proposals based on the contextualization and the practical character of teaching through the inclusion of STS contents.
May be the most interesting issue of this article lies in the detailed analysis of the conceptual contents, its current treatment and their possible change through new selection criteria based on the requirements above mentioned, as well as the introduction of contents more in line with the reality of science in the world. Thus, the author warns us that the coming changes in the curriculum will depend on the demands of our society, and on the introduction of new technologies in the class; and that these measures will require open and flexible attitudes.
