Practical Work in Science Education

This book contains 18 reviewed papers originally presented at the conference Practical Work in Science Education - the Face of Science in Schools, held at the Royal Danish School of Educational Studies in Copenhagen, in May 1998. Substantial literature about practical work has been published during the last decade. This book contains contributions by researchers from England, France, Germany, Norway, Israel, Italy, Sweden and South Africa and adds important aspects to a varied and balanced view of practical work. Some of the papers are conceptual, addressing aims and rationales for practical work from a theoretical and critical perspective. Most papers, however, encounter recent empirical research. Important aspects about the outcome of students' practice of science both inside and outside the conventional laboratory are addressed and make a substantial contribution to our understanding of the effectiveness of practical work for conceptual learning and the attainment of skills and processes normally associated with science.