Liz,+Jen,+Shane

How do we balance the tentative nature of science with the possibility of epistemic doubt? How is this connected to BCD's argument about a culture of science in schools?

What about the structure of 552? Is there an implicit model of learning? What is your evidence for this model?

TSS talks about culture of the classroom in a different sense (atmosphere that promotes learning). How does this parallel or not BCD's cultural notions of learning?

How is knowledge defined in the situated perspective (as represented by BCD)? What about learning?

Knowledge Learning Conceptual Change (Cognitive) Fill in here and here Situated Learning and here and here

What is authentic activity? How is it different (or not) from school activity?

school activity is a basic foundation building time. Authentic activity is ordinary practices of a culture, according the to BCD article. In our opinion school activity is a preparation for authentic activity. School activity is a time where you acquire facts and develop basic skills. Without basic knowledge or skills it's hard to enter directly into another culture without preparation.

How can school activity be connected to real world activity (either JPF activity or disciplinary activity)?

by designing activities that fit into the students culture. For example, if you are teaching in a rural area you can use an example involving farming because that will create a vivid image in the majority of the students minds.

creating activities that mimic everyday situations. Instead of using high-tech gadgets you can use items that students deal with on an everyday basis. For example, having students design an experiment that is open to the students to express their creativity and originality. For example, after discussing a topic in the curriculum have the students, in groups, design an experiment. While the experiment itself is up for design by the students they will have a general topic and a question that they are trying to answer. Also, provide structure in the assessment that way the students will know what you are grading them on. You can assess them on the thoughtful development of their experimental design, the evidence they provide for their conclusion, etc and NOT on the success or the failure of the experiment in the terms of providing "good" data.

How big is a culture? Is science a culture? Is biology? Is organismal biology? Is zoology, herpetology, the group of scientists that studies amazon treefrogs? What about a school district, a school, the science department, a set of classes taught by the same teacher, a single class?

Have to separate the classroom activities from the theory of learning/teaching. Activities (like phenomenon) can be explained by multiple theories, like theories in science. So, for example, hands-on experiences in classrooms have a value both in cognitive and situative theories (explanations), but why they have value depends on the theory (perspective/lens) you take on the activity.

Can you separate the learning of content from the learning of culture? Is this true in both cognitive and situative models?

Is an apprenticeship model appropriate at some levels (e.g. graduate work) and not at others (K-12)? What does this say about learning and teaching as a stable model across contexts? It would be appropriate if somehow an internship could be incorporated into a high school level in a way that they could gain real world experience. That could be accomplished through a half day option at the junior or senior level. This way a student could get some hands on experience in a cultural field before they go off to college and really have to commit to something.

Do what degree are all these discussions about learning theory just the same conversation over and over again with new words? There are references to history, in particular Dewey, so is there a new idea here?