Fix the potholes! Helping students translate their interests and life experiences into scientific investigations

Abstract

Many students, particularly those from socioeco­nomically or resource-challenged communities, often question school science because it has little relevance and bears scant resemblance to the knowl­edge and skills they use in their everyday lives (Fus­co 2001). Differentiated instruction that responds to individual students' and student groups' diverse needs can ensure that science learning becomes both effective and meaningful for them (Tomlinson 1999). One strategy for differentiating science instruction that shows promise is a shift toward valuing students' questions and life experiences (Barton 1998; Upadhyay 2006). Such a shift requires viewing students' home and family experiences as resources, or "funds," of knowledge (Moll 1992). To draw upon these "funds," we need to find out from students themselves what is important to them. Therefore, our challenge as science educators is not identifying students' general interests, but in eliciting rich descriptions of their interests and life experiences, finding overlaps among them, and helping students translate their interests into investigable questions. In this article, we present potential techniques for identifying students' specific interests and important life experiences. Also, we present ideas from our classrooms where we began to help our students practice science that grows out of their interests, concerns, and life experiences.