Constructing Worlds through Science Education The Selected Works of John K. Gilbert

In the "World Library of Educationalists series, international experts themselves compile career- long collections of what they judge to be their finest pieces-extracts from books, key articles, salient research findings, major theoretical and/practical contributions-so the world can read them in a single manageable volume. Readers will be able to follow the themes and strands of their work and see their contribution to the development of a field.
John Gilbert has spent the last thirty years researching, thinking and writing about some of the key and enduring issues in science education. He was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution to science teaching in 2001 by the American National Association of Research into Science Teaching. In this book he brings together in one place his sixteen key and seminal writings. Starting with a specially written Introduction, the author summarizes his career and contextualizes his selection within the development of the field.
- The chapters cover:
- Alternative conceptions and science education
- Relating science education and technology education
- Models and modeling
- Informal education in science and technology

Internationally renowned and award-winning authorJohn Gilberthas spent the last thirty years researching, thinking and writing about some of thecentral and enduring issues in science education. He has contributed over twenty books and 400 articles to the field and is Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Science Education. For the first time he brings together sixteen of his key writings in one volume. This unique book highlights important shifts in emphasis in science education research, theinfluence ofimportant individuals and matters of national and international concern. All this is interwoven in the following four themes: explanation, models andmodeling in science education relating science education and technology education informal education in science and technology alternative conceptions and science education.

Section A: Explanation, Models, Modeling in Science Education 1. Horses for Courses? 2. History and Philosophy of Science through Models: The Case of Chemical Kinetics 3. A Cause of Ahistorical Science Teaching: Use of Hybrid Models 4. Epistemological Resources for Thought Experimentation in Science Education 5. Modelling, Teachers’ Views on the Nature of Modelling and Implications for the Education of Modellers Section B: Relating Science Education and Technology Education 6. The Interface Between Science Education and Technology Education 7. Positioning Models in Science Education and in Design and Technology Education 8. Modelling: Promoting Creativity whilst Forging Links Between Science Education and Design and Technology Education 9. Research and Development on Satellites in Education Section C: Informal Education in Science and Technology 10. Informal Chemical Education 11. The Design of Interactive Exhibits to Promote the Making of Meaning 12. Models and Discourse: A Primary Science Visit to a Museum Section D: Alternative Conceptions and Science Education 13. Eliciting Students’ Views Using an Interview -About -Instances Technique 14. Concepts, Misconceptions and Alternative Conceptions: Changing Perspectives in Science Education 15. Children’s Science and its Consequences for Teaching 16. Constructive Science Education

John K. Gilbert