I wasn't really advocating that high school students should be taught
science only through the historical works. I am more interested in
understanding why the science classroom teacher does not supplement the
lecture with material from the classical works in the manner suggested by
Larry Cartwright and Donald Polvani.
If high school students can bring home Shakespeare through Steinbeck surely
there is time for students to read some of the writings from the science
classics.
Doesn't Herschel have words that would interest a student. In his "Outlines
of Astronomy" he states "Every student who enters upon a scientific pursuit,
especially if at a somewhat advanced period of life, will find not only that
he has much to learn, but much also to unlearn." Certainly these words have
a place in any course on science.
Michael Faraday's great lectures "On the Chemical History of a Candle" are
directed at young people. He states "I claim the privilege of speaking to
juveniles as a juvenile myself." "My View of the World" by Schrodinger is
another fine book that at least sections could certainly be used in a
classroom as is Planck's "Where is Science Going?" All I'm suggesting is
that there is a wealth of material that is available from the classic works
of science that would be most appropriate for use in the classroom and that
in my own experience it doesn't appear as if this material is being brought
to the attention of the students. How many times are some of the beautiful
words which have been spoken by scientists been presented in the classroom
when their material is being presented? I personally think it is a shame
that students don't hear these words early in life.
Fourier's words from his "Analytical Theory of Heat"
"Heat, like gravity, penetrates every substance of the universe, its rays
occupy all parts of space. The object of our work is to set forth the
mathematical laws which this element obeys. The theory of heat will
hereafter form one of the most important branches of general physics."
certainly can open any discussion on heat and they can be shown to be just
as eloquent as the words "To be or not to be."
I guess that I just can't agree with John Denker when he indicated that high
school teachers don't need to understand the history of their science as
that is what I understood him to be saying when he wrote "Most HS teachers
don't have this particular advanced training [regarding the history of
science]. And they don't need it." But disagreement is what makes the
world go round.
Carl C. Gaither and Alma E. Cavazos-Gaither
angelfire.com/tx5/speakingseries
Authors of the Speaking Series
Statistically Speaking: A Dictionary of Quotations on Probability and
Statistics
Physically Speaking: A Dictionary of Quotations on Physics and Astronomy
Mathematically Speaking: A Dictionary of Quotations
Practically Speaking: A Dictionary of Quotations on Engineering and
Technology
Medically Speaking: A Dictionary of Quotations on Dentistry, Nursing and
Medicine
Scientifically Speaking: A Dictionary of Quotations
Naturally Speaking: A Dictionary of Quotations on Biology, Botany and
Zoology
Chemically Speaking: A Dictionary of Quotations*
Astronomically Speaking: A Dictionary of Quotation on Astronomy and Physics*
*To be published in 2002