XN000022-1979-07-16 — Page 9

MONDAY, JULY 16, 1979

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+DOING+ AND +THINKING+ NECESSARY IN LEARNING SCIENCE

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THE MAIN AIM OF THE INTEGRATED SCIENCE SYLLABUS IS TO DEVELOP IN PUPILS AN INQUIRING MIND AND AN AWARENESS OF THE WORLD AROUND THEM THROUGH +DOING AND THINKING+, MRS. LOUISE MOK, ACTING ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION (CHIEF INSPECTOR OF SCHOOLS) SAID TODAY (MONDAY),

SHE WAS SPEAKING AT THE NORTHCOTE COLLEGE OF EDUCATION AT THE OPENING OF AN IN-SERVICE COURSE AIMED AT FAMILIARISING TEACHERS WITH THE METHOD OF TEACHING THE INTEGRATED SCIENCE SYLLABUS.

+PUPILS ARE REQUIRED TO PERFORM EXPERIMENTS, OBSERVE AND RECORD RESULTS, USE MEASURING DEVICES, HANDLE SIMPLE APPARATUS COMMUNICATE WITH OTHERS USING APPROPRIATE SCIENTIFIC VOCABULARY, MRS. MOK SAID.

TEACHERS SHOULD PREPARE THEIR PUPILS BEFORE-HAND, ENCOURAGE ACTIVE THINKING DURING PRACTICAL WORK AND CONDUCT FOLLOW-UP DISCUSSIONS, SHE EMPHASISED.

AND

+BY STUDYING SCIENCE IN THIS WAY PUPILS WILL ACQUIRE BY THE END OF THE COURSE SOME KNOWLEDGE OF THE EMPIRICAL WORLD AROUND THEM, AN ADEQUATE SCIENTIFIC VOCABULARY AND THE ABILITIES TO OBSERVE CRITICALLY, TO SOLVE PROBLEMS AND TO THINK SCIENTIFICALLY,+ MRS. MOK SAID.

SHE STRESSED THAT PUPILS MUST LEARN THROUGH DOING+ AND +THINKING+ BECAUSE SCIENCE PROMOTES REASONING THROUGH PRACTICAL WORK.

*THIS IS CRUCIAL TO THE TEACHING OF INTEGRATED SCIENCE AND OTHER SCIENCE SUBJECTS LIKE BIOLOGY, CHEMISTRY AND PHYSICS,+ MRS. MOK ADDED.

THE 11-DAY IN-SERVICE COURSE HAS BEEN ORGANISED BY THE SCIENCE SUBJECTS SECTION OF THE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT'S ADVISORY INSPECTORATE.

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