Paradigm

Dear Pramod,
I must admit that your report was good barring a few things I have mentioned. As far as the word 'paradigm' is concerned I don't think that the word has originated from physics. I have compiled a few things on paradigm from here and there, hope you find them interesting. Hope you will not mind.
Best wishes
Rajesh
Paradigm (Etymology)
The word paradigm (Greek:παράδειγμα (paradigma),composite from para- and the verb δείχνυμι "to show", as a whole -roughly- meaning "example") (IPA: /ˈpærədaɪm/) has been used in linguistics and science to describe distinct concepts.
To the 1960s, the word was specific to grammar: the 1900 Merriam-Webster dictionary defines its technical use only in the context of grammar or, in rhetoric, as a term for an illustrative parable or fable. In linguistics, Ferdinand de Saussure used paradigm to refer to a class of elements with similarities.
From the 1960s, the word has referred to thought pattern in any scientific discipline or other epistemological context. The Merriam-Webster Online dictionary defines this usage as "a philosophical and theoretical framework of a scientific school or discipline within which theories, laws, and generalizations and the experiments performed in support of them are formulated; broadly : a philosophical or theoretical framework of any kind.[1]
Alternatively, the Oxford English Dictionary defines paradigm as "a pattern or model, an exemplar." Thus an additional component of Kuhn's definition of paradigm is:
• how is an experiment to be conducted, and what equipment is available to conduct the experiment.
Thus, within normal science, the paradigm is the set of exemplary experiments that are likely to be copied or emulated. The prevailing paradigm often represents a more specific way of viewing reality, or limitations on acceptable programs for future research, than the much more general scientific method.
An example of a currently accepted paradigm would be the standard model of physics. The scientific method would allow for orthodox scientific investigations of many phenomena which might contradict or disprove the standard model; however grant funding would be more difficult to obtain for such experiments, in proportion to the amount of departure from accepted standard model theory which the experiment would test for. For example, an experiment to test for the mass of the neutrino or decay of the proton (small departures from the model) would be more likely to receive money than experiments to look for the violation of the conservation of momentum, or ways to engineer reverse time travel.
One important aspect of Kuhn's paradigms is that the paradigms are incommensurable, which means that two paradigms can not be compared to each other. A new paradigm which replaces an old paradigm is not necessarily better, because the criteria of judgement depend on the paradigm.
A more disparaging term groupthink, and the term mindset, have very similar meanings that apply to smaller and larger scale examples of disciplined thought. Michel Foucault used the terms episteme and discourse, mathesis and taxinomia, for aspects of a "paradigm" in Kuhn's original sense.
Simple common analogy: A simplified analogy for paradigm is a habit of reasoning or, the box in the commonly used phrase "thinking outside the box". Thinking inside the box is analogous with normal science. The box encompasses the thinking of normal science and thus the box is analogous with paradigm. "Thinking outside the box" would be what Kuhn calls revolutionary science. Revolutionary science is usually unsuccessful, and only rarely leads to new paradigms. When they are successful they lead to large scale changes in the scientific worldview.
Scientific paradigm
Historian of science Thomas Kuhn gave the word paradigm its contemporary meaning when he adopted it to refer to the set of practices that define a scientific discipline during a particular period of time. Kuhn himself came to prefer the terms exemplar and normal science, which have more exact philosophical meanings. However, in his book The Structure of Scientific Revolutions Kuhn defines a scientific paradigm as:
• what is to be observed and scrutinized
• the kind of questions that are supposed to be asked and probed for answers in relation to this subject
• how these questions are to be structured
• how the results of scientific investigations should be interpreted
In 1962, Kuhn published The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, which depicted the development of the basic natural sciences in an innovative way. According to Kuhn, the sciences do not uniformly progress strictly by scientific method. Rather, there are two fundamentally different phases of scientific development in the sciences. In the first phase, scientists work within a paradigm (set of accepted beliefs). When the foundation of the paradigm weakens and new theories and scientific methods begin to replace it, the next phase of scientific discovery takes place. Kuhn believes that scientific progress—that is, progress from one paradigm to another—has no logical reasoning. Kuhn's theory has triggered widespread, controversial discussion across many scientific disciplines.
Kuhn defines a paradigm as: “an entire constellation of beliefs, values and techniques, and so on, shared by the members of a given community”(Kuhn). This definition by Kuhn appears in the 1969 postscript to his original book, because originally the use of the term paradigm was not clearly defined. Besides this definition Kuhn mentioned another sense of use he had: a Paradigm also “denotes one sort of element in that constellation, the concrete puzzle-solutions which, employed as models or examples, can replace explicit rules as a basis for the solution of the remaining puzzles of normal science” [Ibid]. The term remains imprecise due to the different uses it is given.
Paradigms could be described from a structural perspective. Paradigms operate on different levels; the macro, meso and micro levels of the paradigm's structure. The levels address the fundamental structure of the paradigms, rather than its chronological-historical categorization or the etymological use, as used by most disciplines. The levels of paradigms are always present and not limited to these categories. They assist in an understanding of the functioning of a paradigm.
In the macro' level, a cognizance of the basic assumption to the question: ‘what can be understood’ is required. The question is: "Can it in reality be assumed that the essences of ideal things could be known at all, as in Plato's and Aristotle's use of the theory of ideas? Besides the essentialistic approaches of these two philosophers, is it not possible that "the things themselves reveal themselves as they are", analyzed in Heidegger's fundamental ontology? The assumption we make in answering these questions will predispose the perception that determines the way we ask the question about how we come to knowledge.
In the meso level, the question is how the macro level influences and forms the resulting theory of knowledge. “Is only deductive-delimited knowledge of human perception available to man, or is man open to an inductive-comprehensive understanding of the world?”. If man is open to inductive knowledge, where does it originate? The assumption on the macro level is the basis for this assumption. All philosophical efforts since the pre-socratics are essentialistic. An ontological approach seeks to evade the essences of things, requiring the things themselves to reveal them as they are.
In the micro level, the consequent perception of the two preceding levels, answering the questions of what is in the world and how the world is understood, is used in a practical way of doing. Is the praxis built on multiple ‘laws of conduct’ (ethic), or is it a fundamental and constant encounter with the open world as a different way of perception? Such a different perception is an 'affective awareness'. Previous and current understanding of perception is limited to essentialistic categories of limitation. 'Affective awareness' is by nature open and unlimited, inductive and not limited to 'sense perception'.
A paradigm is a view of reality that is a 'Gestalt' resulting from the three branches of philosophy; metaphysics, epistemology and ethics (see Encyclopædia Britannica: Branches of Philosophy):
(1) a metaphysical assumption of what could be known (refer to the pre-Socratics Parmenides and Heraclitus). It forms the basis for:
(2) a conception of epistemological knowledge acquisition. This is the essentialistic line of thinking essentialism from Plato, Aristotle and Popper vs. the ontological line of thinking (ontology) opened up by the 'uncertainty principle' of Heisenberg's quantum theories to Heidegger's 'Fundamental Ontology'. This in turn is the basis for the:
(3) praxis in an ethic for living.
It is obvious that the three branches of philosophy describe the structure of a paradigm. None of the branches of Metaphysics, Epistemology and Ethics can be left out for understanding paradigms. Together they describe a 'Gestalt', akin to a spiral (not a mere circular) movement, forming Hermeneutical understanding.
The result is that Hermeneutics can not be reduced to an interpretation of something in context of the text itself in a mere 'hermeneutic circle'; it is a developmental cycle that involves:
(a) "Wahrnehmung" as an 'affective awareness', which is more than mere sense perception. The method toward an affective awareness is through 'ontological understanding'. It forms the principles behind a paradigm, conceived as either the Heraclitean 'flux' (Heraclitus) or the Parmenidean 'one' (Parmenides). This principle is perceived as the relation of the limited to the unlimited. Meta-ethical 'principles', like the golden ethical rule of “Do unto others as you would like them to do unto you”, are formed here.
(b) "Verstehen" as the analysis of 'being' to reach understanding of the 'self'. Here the building of, or coming to, a theory of knowledge is achieved, determined by the assumptions in my metaphysical 'belief' of the nature of reality in (a). These assumptions necessarily tend to a predominantly inductive or mainly deductive theory of knowledge acquisition, which is reflected in my epistemology. Messo-ethical 'norms', like the sanctity of human life and freedom, are formulated at this level.
(c) "Ethos" is the attempt to form the world we live in, by growing an 'attitude' or participation in a mutually structured reality. All those who choose to participate in this reality, do it by 'taking responsibility for personal actions' in a social environment. More concrete micro-ethical 'codes of conduct', like monogamy and what we consider to be 'true and correct behaviour', is systematised into our 'dogma' at this level.
(d) "Praxis" is doing the 'right' thing. It is the behaviour resulting from systematising (a), (b) and (c) into a Gestalt, where the whole is more than the sum of the parts. This behavioural level is again the basis for "Wahrnemung", repeating the cycle on a new level. Most important is to understand that this cycle does not now start from the previous position of departure. There is a 'new awareness' of the praxis due to the previous stages in the cycle. The next cycle of "Wahrnemung" is elevated from the previous level of affective awareness to a deeper understanding. This is the basis for a new understanding of development. Development is far more than a 'mechanistic' process, by definition mechanistic processes all function and are 'essentially' closed systems. Development is by definition dependent on an inductive element. Another important point is that there is no start or end point in the cycle, every stage is on an elevated level from its previous position. Contrasted to that, a circle has a start and an end, which has actually no development; it is only a reaffirmation of what was before in a stagnant fundamentalism.
Thus, a Paradigm can only be understood in the context of a Hermeneutical cycle (rather than a Hermeneutical circle) within the Structure of the Paradigms. It supersedes mere interpretation or just bringing understanding. It implies that Paradigms are developmental by nature, moving in a hermeneutical cycle instead of a process of recurring mechanistic circles. Describing a paradigm as an era, epic, model, weltanschauung, or any other term is hardly more than merely renaming the concept of a paradigm to some other known concept, risking to be a tautological swapping of terms.
Secondary source: '"Paradigm Development in Systematic Theology"', Dissertation at the University of South Africa (UNISA) by Lando L Lehmann, Nov 2004.

Other uses

Handa, M.L. (1986) introduced the idea of "social paradigm" in the context of social sciences. He identified the basic components of a social paradigm. Like Kuhn, Handa addressed the issue of changing paradigm; the process popularly known as "paradigm shift". In this respect, he focused on social circumstances that precipitate such a shift and the effects of the shift on the social institutions, including the institution of education. This broad shift in the social arena, in turn, changes the way the individual perceives reality.

Another use of the word paradigm is in the sense of Weltanschauung (German for world view). For example, in social science, the term is used to describe the set of experiences, beliefs and values that affect the way an individual perceives reality and responds to that perception. Social scientists have adopted the Kuhnian phrase "paradigm shift" to denote a change in how a given society goes about organizing and understanding reality. A “dominant paradigm” refers to the values, or system of thought, in a society that are most standard and widely held at a given time. Dominant paradigms are shaped both by the community’s cultural background and by the context of the historical moment. The following are conditions that facilitate a system of thought to become an accepted dominant paradigm:

• Professional organizations that give legitimacy to the paradigm
• Dynamic leaders who introduce and purport the paradigm
• Journals and editors who write about the system of thought. They both disseminate the information essential to the paradigm and give the paradigm legitimacy
• Government agencies who give credence to the paradigm
• Educators who propagate the paradigm’s ideas by teaching it to students
• Conferences conducted that are devoted to discussing ideas central to the paradigm
• Media coverage
• Lay groups, or groups based around the concerns of lay persons, that embrace the beliefs central to the paradigm
• Sources of funding to further research on the paradigm

The word paradigm is also still used to indicate a pattern or model or an outstandingly clear or typical example or archetype. The term is frequently used in this sense in the design professions. Design Paradigms or archetypes, comprise functional precedents for design solutions. The best known references on design paradigms are Design Paradigms: A Sourcebook for Creative Visualization, by Wake, and Design Paradigms by Petroski.

This term is also used in cybernetics. Here it means (in a very wide sense) a (conceptual) protoprogramme for reducing the chaotic mass to some form of order. Note the similarities to the concept of entropy in chemistry and physics. A paradigm there would be a sort of prohibition to proceed with any action that would increase the total entropy of the system. In order to create a paradigm, a closed system which would accept any changes is required. Thus a paradigm can be only applied to a system that is not in its final stage.

Dear Friends

First of all

1. I am taking my words back if it hurt you or any buddy else.

Then

2. Those are my individual observations and I shared it with. Other might have different observations. Don’t take it as offensive.

3.I thought the group would be positive to the criticism but any way.

Well, that is surprising for me that “you felt” the discussion was dragged because of me also. I didn’t even realize thanx I will try to maintain the spirit of the team.

4. The word “paradigm” came from physics.

Albert Einstein published his paper on special relativity, which challenged the very simple set of rules laid down by Newtonian mechanics, which had been used to describe force and motion for over two hundred years. In this case, the new “paradigm” reduces the old to a special case in the sense that Newtonian mechanics is still a good model for approximation for speeds that are slow compared to the speed of light.

Now this was the origin of paradigm for me it was really hard for me to think “paradigm” in term of “some what… special perception?” and there was no time to explain this term to each one.

Response to Pramod

Dear Pramod,
I have tried to resist to respond to your post: "I also observed that but for a few (like me and Himansu) most participants were using heavy jargons very loosely(epistemology, pedagogy, paradigm, constructivism etc.) We were a little uncomfortable with this as the message can easily convey without them. At times people tried drag the discussion endlessly."
I feel that I should respond to this post as I believe that your comments are irresponsible and you are being disrespectful to your colleagues. First of all since we are working in education for quite some time so I think we should be in a position to understand the underlying concepts or jargon as you call them. I don't think anyone was using the concepts loosely. As far as your comment: "At times people tried drag the discussion endlessly." is concerned I believe your name should be on top of the list of the people who dragged the conversation endlessly.
Regards and best wishes
Rajesh

By Pramod Maithil

Pune workshop on Qualitative Research

Introduction

Himansu and I attended the 1^st workshop of the ICEE-initiated series on qualitative research in Pune. It was on first week of September (from 1 to 6 sept. 08) This workshop series aims to provide us with methodological skills for conceptualizing and executing a field based research project. The first workshop was about conceptualizing and proposing a research project. Qualitative Research is to get to know some thing qualitatively whereas there is another stream called Quantitative Research. Qualitative research involves analysis of data such as words (e.g., from interviews), pictures (e.g., video), or objects (e.g., an artifact). Quantitative research involves analysis of numerical data. The strengths and weaknesses of qualitative and quantitative research are a subject of perennial debate, especially in the social sciences. The issues invoke classic 'paradigm war'. The personality / thinking style of the researcher and/or the culture of the organization are as a key factor in preferred choice of methods. Overly focusing on the debate of "qualitative versus quantitative" frames the methods in opposition. It is important to focus also on how the techniques can be integrated, such as in mixed methods research. More good can come if social science researchers develop skills in both realms rather than debate which method is superior. I took an appropriate text to orient my thoughts from the following website on qualitative versus quantitative research www.wilderdom.com/research/qualitativeversusquantitativeresearch.html

I am very much thankful to Eklavya for giving me such an opportunity. This is a powerful tool which I was just waiting for.

Learning

This workshop enabled me to learn to organize my thoughts. Also it provoked us to see and check that where exactly our research fit into the larger professional research on mathematics education. We also learnt the importance of using language precisley from this workshop.

What is qualitative data? More specifically we got an understanding of the difference between an elaborate description and a qualitative research data.

A qualitative research is an inductive process. We don’t go to test any hypothesis but we build an assumption from the data and process it through and constantly change it as the data requires. That is why richness in the data is important.

I had a question in the beginning that what’s the difference between a statement based on general observations and a statement based on qualitative research. Now it is clear to me that the rigor involve in qualitative research makes the difference.

The Process

The study of qualitative research is a combination of distance components and intensive workshop. The detailed syllabus is attached.

‘Learning general principles and working on specific issues’ was the workshop’s key feature. We were studying qualitative research and simultaneously were utilizing the learning to work on our personal or individual research proposals.

We were supposed to read materials in advance and also given some assignments to submit during the workshop. During the classes we used to discuss components of qualitative research and share that particular component of our research project with all

All these three parts were very closely interlinked.

Reading - We mainly followed Maxwell, J’s (1996) text on qualitative research. We also got readings of other writers. I will place a copy of all the readings in the library of Hoshangabad center.

Assignments – we submited assinments related to our research project. Assignments were - reading review, the concept map & first draft of final praposal

It was realy very tightly scheduled. At least I and Himansu used to work in the office till late in the night. So we used to use the ICEE systems in the office over all I will say it was good since we were learning too. .

Organizers & the participants

ICICI Center for Elementary Education initiated and organized this workshop for people working in education research from ICEE itself and from partner NGOs like Eklavya, Diganter and Vidhya Bhavan Society.

Our Instructor

We will have Dr. Anju Saigal as our instructor for the nine-month period. She has a master’s degree in social work (TISS) and also a master in education (Harvard University) and a doctorate in education (Harvard University). In addition, she has worked with Pratham during its early days in Mumbai. She was constantly sharing examples from the experience of her research work. It was an ethnographic study of women literacy workers in Mumbai.

The participants

ICEE – Thomas, Rabi & Arpita

VBS – Namrita & Prasoon

Digantar – Kuldeep & Rajesh

Eklavya – Himansu & Pramod

Observations of the workshop

I and Himansu both were working on a topic which involves a distinct branch of qualitative research called “Action Research”. Since we have to take part in the process and our input will make some effect as well and this type of qualitative research where the researcher is also a factor is called Action research. The others had taken up themes from social sciences.

I also observed that but for a few (like me and Himansu) most participants were using heavy jargons very loosely. (epistemology, pedagogy, paradigm, constructivism etc.) We were a little uncomfortable with this as the message can easily convey without them.

At times people tried drag the discussion endlessly. However, our instructor was very sharp & calm. She kept cutting irrelevant talk very politely and kept us going in the right direction.

Outcomes

The First and very significant outcome has been the research project.

I have selected a topic on math teaching - “The teaching of place value using Ganak (the modified abacus used in bal vaigyanik)”.

The following questions were used as a guide for my research design:

· Why are you doing this study?

· What do you think is going on?

· What do you want to understand?

· What will you actually do?

· How might you be wrong?

These questions helped me to articulate the rationale, the conceptual context, the research questions and methods of our study and how we will deal with issues of validity of our study.

The materials generated

1. The research proposal –fist draft of the research proposal. I got some comments of which a few were incorporated. I need to read little more about the topic during this distance component and upgrade my proposal.

2. The assignment 2 Idea of “literature review” – read and review three papers or literature.

3. The Concept map & its narrative.

4. PowerPoint presentation of the proposal.

I am going to enclose

1. First draft of my research proposal

Pramod Maithil, Eklavya Hoshangabad

16/09/2008

International Herald Tribune

The social animal
By David Brooks
Friday, September 12, 2008
Near the start of his book "The Conscience of a Conservative," Barry Goldwater wrote: "Every man, for his individual good and for the good of his society, is responsible for his own development. The choices that govern his life are choices that he must make; they cannot be made by any other human being." The political implications of this are clear, Goldwater continued: "Conservatism's first concern will always be: Are we maximizing freedom?"
Goldwater's vision was highly individualistic and celebrated a certain sort of person - the stout pioneer crossing the West, the risk-taking entrepreneur with a vision, the stalwart hero fighting the collectivist foe.
The problem is, this individualist description of human nature seems to be wrong. Over the past 30 years, there has been a tide of research in many fields, all underlining one old truth - that we are intensely social creatures, deeply interconnected with one another, and that the idea of the lone individual rationally and willfully steering his own life course is often an illusion.
Cognitive scientists have shown that our decision-making is powerfully influenced by social context - by the frames, biases and filters that are shared subconsciously by those around. Neuroscientists have shown that we have permeable minds. When we watch somebody do something, we re-create their mental processes in our own brains as if we were performing the action ourselves, and it is through this process of deep imitation that we learn, empathize and share culture.
Geneticists have shown that our behavior is influenced by our ancestors and the exigencies of the past. Behavioral economists have shown the limits of the classical economic model, which assumes that individuals are efficient, rational, utility-maximizing creatures.
Psychologists have shown that we are organized by our attachments. Sociologists have shown the power of social networks to affect individual behavior.
What emerges is not a picture of self-creating individuals gloriously free from one another, but of autonomous creatures deeply interconnected with one another.
Recent Republican Party doctrine has emphasized the power of the individual, but underestimates the importance of connections, relationships, institutions and social filaments that organize personal choices and make individuals what they are.
This may seem like an airy-fairy thing. But it is the main impediment to Republican modernization. Over the past few weeks, Republicans have talked a lot about change, modernization and reform. Despite the talk, many of the old policy pillars are the same. We're living in an age of fast-changing economic, information and social networks, but Republicans are still impeded by Goldwater's mental guard-rails.
If there's a thread running through the gravest current concerns, it is that people lack a secure environment in which they can lead their lives. Wild swings in global capital and energy markets buffet family budgets. Nobody is sure the health care system will be there when they need it. National productivity gains don't seem to alleviate economic anxiety. Inequality strains national cohesion. In many communities, social norms do not encourage academic achievement, decent values or family stability. These problems straining the social fabric aren't directly addressed by maximizing individual freedom.
And yet locked in the old framework, the Republican Party's knee-jerk response to many problems is: "Throw a voucher at it." Schools are bad. Throw a voucher. Health care system's a mess. Replace it with federally funded individual choice. Economic anxiety? Lower some tax rate.
The latest example of the mismatch between ideology and reality is the housing crisis. The party's individualist model cannot explain the social contagion that caused hundreds of thousands of individuals to make bad decisions in the same direction at the same time. A Republican administration intervened gigantically in the market to handle the Bear Stearns, Freddie and Fannie debacles. But it has no conservative rationale to explain its action, no language about the importance of social equilibrium it might use to justify itself.
The irony, of course, is that, in pre-Goldwater days, conservatives were incredibly sophisticated about the value of networks, institutions and invisible social bonds. You don't have to go back to Edmund Burke and Adam Smith (though it helps) to find conservatives who understood that people are socially embedded creatures and that government has a role (though not a dominant one) in nurturing the institutions in which they are embedded.
That language of community, institutions and social fabric has been lost, and now we hear only distant echoes - when social conservatives talk about family bonds or when John McCain talks at a forum about national service.
If Republicans are going to fully modernize, they're probably going to have to follow the route the British Conservatives have already trod and project a conservatism that emphasizes society as well as individuals, security as well as freedom, a social revival and not just an economic one and the community as opposed to the state.

Photographs from Phase 1

Some more photographs

Photographs from Phase I

Dear friends
I 'm uploading some photographs of the workshop on the blog.
Best
Rajesh

What is the history of qualitative research methology?

Could anyone of you suggest some reading on historical evolution of qualitative reserach methodology?

With regards,
rabi

Understanding how children perceive space in classroom

Introduction to Research topic:

Developing an understanding of three-dimensional perspective is an important life skill; we all make judgments continuously about the relationships among three-dimensional objects. We use these relationships to navigate, understand, and follow directions, construct things, and make interpretations and decisions about arranging objects in our homes or offices.

Many school topics require an understanding of perspective. Social studies courses require map-reading and scale-drawing skills. Students in science classes record and process information using their understanding of structures, place and location, and other relationships. In mathematics students use visualization, spatial reasoning, and geometric modeling in constructing of mathematical knowledge.

Piaget and Inhelder (1956) engaged in extensive studies of the mental development of perspective and concluded that its development progresses through stages. Critic of Piaget's claim further gives yet another opportunity to examine spatial learning even more critically.

Research question: The focus of the research will be to understand about the space as perceived by a child in relation to the context of their learning in the classroom like textbook and other teaching learning materials.

The research will be with children of the following age group: 3, 5 and 7. The sample will be collected from Vidya Bhawan School. A well-defined battery of task will help in data collection from children on how they perceive space in various contexts. An in-depth interview with each child will supplement information on what contributes in its understanding of a given space. Some actual mathematics and language class observations will provide further insight on what spatial construct teacher use in the classroom and with what understanding and how do children perceive these spatial concepts. For example, a teacher may use direction like up down, right, left with a completely different spatial understanding than a child may perceive. To further elaborate, through yet another example, what spatial understanding, say, a child construct when the child reads in the textbook that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west and many more similar constructs.

The research will try to understand whether spatial understanding of certain concept changes with experience or remains the same unless a deliberate attempt is made to interpret experience differently.

Why this research: I have been working in elementary education for a while now. Working towards development of a better textbook and a meaningful classroom well defines the major portion of my work. I have chosen the present topic for the research as an opportunity to read and understand some of the seminal work done in understanding of how children develop intelligence and develop abstract thinking and its direct relevance to the kind of work I do. I strongly belief that understanding of the above research topic will help in creation of a better teacher-student interaction in the classroom and better use of textbooks in the classroom by the teacher. For example, how children perceive picture in their textbook, illustrations, map etc will be an input in development of a better textbook, better use of the existing textbook and better inputs for teacher in communicating more effectively in the classroom.

List of Readings:

1. The early growth of logic in the child: Inhelder and Jean Piaget
2. The child's conception of space: Inhelder and Jean Piaget
3. The construction of reality in the child: Jean Piaget
4. The Child's Conception of the World. Patterson, NJ: Littlefield, Adams, 1960. Questia. 24 Aug. 2008 .
5. Piaget, Jean. The Origins of Intelligence in Children. Trans. Margaret Cook. New York: International Universities Press, 1952. Questia. 24 Aug. 2008 .
6. Piaget, Jean. The Psychology of Intelligence. London: Routledge, 2001. Questia. 24 Aug. 2008 .
7. Sigel, Irving E., David M. Brodzinsky, and Roberta M. Golinkoff, eds. New Directions in Piagetian Theory and Practice. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1981. Questia. 24 Aug. 2008 .
8. Smith, Leslie, ed. Critical Readings on Piaget. New York: Routledge, 1996. Questia. 24 Aug. 2008 .
9. Stiles-Davis, Joan, Mark Kritchevsky, and Ursula Bellugi, eds. Spatial Cognition: Brain Bases and Development. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1988. Questia. 24 Aug. 2008 .
10. Wellman, Henry M., ed. Children's Searching: The Development of Search Skill and Spatial Representation. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1985. Questia. 24 Aug. 2008 .
11. LMT: Map making and conception of space .

Research purpose of the study to be done by Himanshu:

In the context of the topic of 'Motion and Force', find out the various routes by which the theory can / should be introduced to the students of class 9th and 10th and explore the criteria for prioritizing a few of the routes, deciding the sequence in which they could be applied, and the factors to be considered in any such approach.

Issues in Science Education today:

Worldwide, various groups who are doing research in Science education have been trying out different methods to come up with a better teaching strategy. They are focusing on issues like how preconceptions give rise to misconceptions; how to incorporate hands-on activities and thought experiments in order to get the students to understand various concepts; the role of guided inquiry and group discussions in classrooms. Tools like graphs and simulations have also been tried out in different scenarios, in different contexts and with different age group students.

Over the last twenty-thirty years, the focus of the research in science education in the area of children's conceptual understanding in science, has been changing very rapidly. One of the features of the Science teaching schemes which have been developed over last few years is first and foremost a rejection of science as a catalogue of facts. According to Grayson (2006), in the early 1980s, interest was in alternative conceptions that students held about various physical concepts. The mid-1980s saw an interest in computer-aided instruction. In the early 1990s, interest was on curricula that promoted hands-on learning. In the late 1990s, the focus shifted to student cognition. Nowadays there is a practically an unanimous consensus among the researchers' lobby about the need for a multi-pronged approach which brings out the relevance of the history of science, inquiry based learning, open ended group discussions in classroom or children’s daily-life-experiences in the educational process. All of these approaches obviously have strong implications for classroom practices since they involve a range of different pedagogical strategies. Now, the central question is what guidance can the research programme on children's conceptions and conceptual change offer to the teachers in reponse to current classroom practices, where there is hardly any space to intervene because of the pressure of syllabus completion or the need to produce good results in board examinations. How can instruction in science be changed so as to improve the students' ability to think independently and make abstractions or applications with the knowledge they have?

Even though there are plenty of activity and project books available in the market, we don't have materials that systematically develop understanding of basic concepts and themes. These activity books have random interesting items given without any ordering according to the concepts that they underline or the sequence in which they are used in order to form a conceptual framework. It is thus necessary to provide teachers and students with alternative possibilities in terms of materials on the key concepts that are interactive, contextualised or related to life, these should ideally be activity based so as to make the teaching and learning process lively engagement.

Developing alternative modules at Eklavya:

We are in process of developing theme based modules on science and technology. These modules could be used in the classroom with children and also in out-of-school situations. A typical module would explore the child’s prior understanding of the topic and elicit commonly held ideas relating to it. It would proceed step by step towards building the concept in question through the use of textual discussions, guidelines for activities and also descriptions of major historical experiments. They would also contain discussions of the application of these ideas in daily life, especially in the rural context with notes and instructions for teachers. In this sense, they would be different from usual textbook chapters. They can be used with students with guidance from a teacher, parents or others. We are also thinking of exploring the possibility of simultaneously bringing out ‘stand-alone’ material for children. Hence a module may have two components - one for teachers and the other for children.

As is our custom, these modules are being developed through the intense involvement of subject experts as well as school teachers and students. The added advantage of these modules would be that they would go through field trials in our own cultural contexts and would be accompanied by a minimal kit to assist the user.

The selection of topics for any such module is based on few assumptions like:

1. Indispensability of the concept in Science.
2. That concept should be able to explain a broad range of physical phenomenon.
3. It should have links with daily life.
4. It should throw light on the nature of Science (this is more related to how we treat the concept).
5. Most importantly, is it possible for children to understand this concept at this age (13-16 years of age)?

Alternative framework:

The very basic assumption that we start with is that the students coming to the class are not blank slates. They have already built up some conceptions about various phenomenon studied in science by perceiving the world around them. They seem to link these different alternative conceptions, weave them together and develop a schema at broader levels too. Sometimes this schema is very well defined and coherent when the students try to generalize a particular conception in different contexts and find no conflict in their arguments. But in general, these preconceptions are very immature and students would exhibit discrepancies while describing or trying to explain different situations.

Misconceptions:

The traditional classroom teaching does not address these pre-scientific notions at all. In fact, our system which encourages rote-learning and the pattern of evaluation followed does not reveal these misconceptions at all. In addition to this, there is a lack of conceptual clarity among teachers themselves and a lack of motivation. The content of textbooks and the strategy with which teachers plan their sessions cause further misconceptions among students. In fact, very few teachers appreciate and provide enough room for students' preconceptions and encourage their students into guided inquiry. Classrooms do not allow open ended group discussions; hardly any school allows students to do experiments on their own and even if they get the children to do some 'practicals', these experiments are mere verification experiments and the students go for the experiments with a very narrow mindset in which they already know the outcome of that experiment and they do all their best to come close to that theoretical result.

Misconceptions in 'Motion and Force':

The situation cannot be said to be better in any topic, but some of the difficulties are compounded in the area of mechanics. This topic 'Motion and Force' is introduced for the first time in class 9th and 10th formally. Before that there is hardly any work done on graphs or vectors and students are hardly exposed to any kind of experimentation skills. They have also not been encouraged to search for abstractions when they learn any new topic, and are not able to apply their learning in any new situations. Due to that, children try to imagine each problem situation independently. They look for attributes within each context that would help them answer the questions rather than apply in general principles that would work for all situations.

Few common misconceptions in this topic are:

1. There is no force acting on a stationary object.
2. The direction of motion is same as the direction of force applied on the object.
3. More amount of force implies more speed of the object.
4. Terms like work done, power, strength and energy are mostly interchanged with each other while arguing about any mechanics phenomenon.

Beyond this, there is a long list of misconceptions and confusions.


Exploring different approaches and their limitations:

At one level, every method has its own benefits, but there are certain limitations to every approach as well. For example: if Aristotelian physics is presented in a very fragmentary and oversimplified way, it distorts the whole meaning of Aristotelian concepts. Hurried identification of pre-scientific notions and Aristotelian physical concepts do not show the actual thoughts of Aristotle in action. The reading of the original texts is always a richer intellectual experience and that should be incorporated in the whole learning process somehow.

Similarly, the thought experiments, erroneous and correct both, have a special role in an ongoing process of conceptual refinement of naive physics learners. But they are more prone to errors than lab experiments. This process of evolving models can be unsuccessful because of either wrong assumptions or an inadequate picture of the world. So the students would require careful guidance to use this tool.

Activities, in and out of labs, have their advantages and they serve their very purpose in bringing out the nature of science. The development of curiosity, openness, objectivity, accuracy and cooperation in teamwork should be seen as other side benefits. But in Indian context, either schools do not have infrastructure for labs or even if they have it, they do not allow students to go independently and with open-mindedness into exploring phenomena and that kills the whole purpose of doing experiments.

In this particular context of kinematics or even in dynamics, graphs seem to be a quite promising tool. But in previous classes, a sufficient background of graphs is not being prepared. So, we propose to include the understanding and use of graphs in the module.

It is very clear that neither can all of these approaches be tried out simultaneously for very obvious constraints, nor that all of these are relevant in the context of 'Motion and Force'. So one needs to select and prioritize among these methods. Given the limitations of every approach, I would like to investigate the problem of prioritizing and look for what can/should be covered using a particular approach or a tool.


Relevance of the idea with my work:

As mentioned earlier, I am also part of the team working on this topic 'Motion and Force'. We have thought of a sequence and we are working on the content. We have recently organized a teachers' training to check out some of our developed material. Now we are in the stage where we have to supplement our material with different other tools like: simulations, graphs, experiments, etc. and try out various permutations and combinations in terms of the sequence. In parallel, we are referring to original research papers to come up with a proposal of a better teaching strategy. In that sense, this project seems to be promising and relevant.

Regarding Prasoon's Question "Why Educate?-A Fundamental Question"

It is true, this is really a fundamental question. Our policy documents and debates on education have always been ignoring to answer this question. In fact, there are few things that can be considered the logical necessities why we should educate our children.Human being is a social being and can only live in society. Society is a complex system. If we want to live here, we must know the all that intricacies that are neccessary to live and contribute properly in this society. And what these intricacies are? These are "Knowledge", "Skills", and "Values". And all these intricacies are to be learned. Hence, every child has to learn all that "Knowledge", "Skills", and "Values". Therefore, formal education is necessary because this is a deliberate environment based on a philosophy where the children are facilitated to develop their innate capacity of learning to learn how knowledge is formed, to gain live experiences to develop rational and critical understanding and skills and values necceassary for better and satisfactory life and responsible participation in society.But here one another most important question arises that how and why you will decide that which knowledge, skills and values are to learned by our young generation?