TheBoyPaj
Graduate Poster
- Joined
- Aug 14, 2003
- Messages
- 1,640
Don't worry! I'm teaching the TRUTH about homeopathy.
I was asked to teach a section of the General Studies A level (17-18 year olds) called "Science and Technology". The problem is, the syllabus is so open and vague that there only a tiny chance that anything we teach them will come up in the exam. The only way the kids can pass the exam is by being generally well-informed and by reading a lot.
So, as I was given a free choice about what to teach I decided to do a course on pseudoscience. I cover dowsing, UFOs, telepathy and homeopathy mainly. We talk about the scientific process and then compare real experimental method with what often passes for science. I explain some of the ways in which experiments can be flawed, covering things like confirmation bias and blinding.
One bit I really like is when I get the kids to design an experiment for telepathy. I propose a claim and ask them how they would test it. They normally come up with something quite leaky, so I suggest ways in which I would cheat. Eventually, the pupils become remarkably strict.
For example, they sometimes suggest the "draw what I'm thinking of" experiment. I ask them what they would do if the target was an elephant and I drew a rhino. "After all, they're both grey and thick-skinned. Surely that can't be a coincidence," I offer. But they're usually quite dismissive of any attempt to fish for hits.
The key is not to dismiss the ideas out of hand, but to think about how we would explore whether they were true. Most of the pupils have never heard of homeopathy, and are amazed when I explain the preparation process. I like to think that they will think more critically when they are faced with the product on the shelves.
Normally they love the lessons. Only once have I come across a pupil (with a rather flaky mother) who was hostile to my handling of the topic.
Do other teachers have any tips for sneaking critical thinking into the curriculum?
I was asked to teach a section of the General Studies A level (17-18 year olds) called "Science and Technology". The problem is, the syllabus is so open and vague that there only a tiny chance that anything we teach them will come up in the exam. The only way the kids can pass the exam is by being generally well-informed and by reading a lot.
So, as I was given a free choice about what to teach I decided to do a course on pseudoscience. I cover dowsing, UFOs, telepathy and homeopathy mainly. We talk about the scientific process and then compare real experimental method with what often passes for science. I explain some of the ways in which experiments can be flawed, covering things like confirmation bias and blinding.
One bit I really like is when I get the kids to design an experiment for telepathy. I propose a claim and ask them how they would test it. They normally come up with something quite leaky, so I suggest ways in which I would cheat. Eventually, the pupils become remarkably strict.
For example, they sometimes suggest the "draw what I'm thinking of" experiment. I ask them what they would do if the target was an elephant and I drew a rhino. "After all, they're both grey and thick-skinned. Surely that can't be a coincidence," I offer. But they're usually quite dismissive of any attempt to fish for hits.
The key is not to dismiss the ideas out of hand, but to think about how we would explore whether they were true. Most of the pupils have never heard of homeopathy, and are amazed when I explain the preparation process. I like to think that they will think more critically when they are faced with the product on the shelves.
Normally they love the lessons. Only once have I come across a pupil (with a rather flaky mother) who was hostile to my handling of the topic.
Do other teachers have any tips for sneaking critical thinking into the curriculum?
