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Re: Deficient Language Skills - Serious Omission In My Previous Post



Recently Jane Jackson wrote to me (my CAPS):

"Regarding your posts on Benezet (1935/36): I SUSPECT THAT PEOPLE ARE
SOMEWHAT PUZZLED
AS TO WHAT YOU MEAN BY A SCIENCE COUNTERPART OF THE BENEZET
EXPERIMENT. I am. Can you connect that to modern-day K-6 inquiry
science programs, specifically? For example, the FOSS work at
UC-Berkeley? . . . [FOSS (Full Option Science System)
<http://www.lhs.berkeley.edu/FOSS/FOSS.html> (developed at the
Lawrence Hall of Science <http://www.lhs.berkeley.edu/>)]

Stimulated by Jane's message, I looked again at Hake (2003) and noted
that I had inadvertently OMITTED :-( the crucial Mahajan & Hake
(2000) from the reference list of that post! I thank Jane for
bringing that SERIOUS OMISSION to my attention.

The purpose of Mahajan & Hake (2000) was to EXPLAIN the meaning of
"the science counterpart of the Benezet experiment." After so doing,
in Appendix #1 we give about 2 pages worth of "Resources" (including
many "modern-day K-6 inquiry science programs" and in Appendix #2
about 15 pages worth of "References," both for a "Benezetian overhaul
of K-12 science education."

But without the Benezetian strategy of:

a. DELAYING algorithmic drill (such in long division in math, or
memorization of Newton's Laws and related mechanics-problem solutions
in physics), and

b. having students read, invent, and discuss stories and problems;
estimate lengths, heights, and areas; and enjoy finding and
interpreting numbers relevant to their lives in the manner of Swartz
(1969),

I think all the "modern-day K-6 inquiry science programs" would be
much less effective.

BTW:
1. On 30 Jun 2000, the late Arnold Arons (1990) wrote to me (my CAPS):

ARONS-ARONS-ARONS-ARONS-ARONS-ARONS-ARONS-ARONS-ARONS-ARONS
I have looked at the Benezet papers, and I find the story congenial.
THE IMPORTANCE OF CULTIVATING THE USE OF ENGLISH CANNOT BE
EXAGGERATED. I have been pointing to this myself since the '50's, and
am delighted to find such explicit agreement. I can only point out
that my own advocacy has had no more lasting effect than Benezet's.
(You will find some of my views of this aspect in my 1959 paper on
the Amherst course . . . .(Arons 1959). . . if you get around to it.)
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
I urge you to note that it is dangerous to say that "arithmetic will
not be taught until the seventh grade." This will convey profound
misconceptions and misinterpretations. Benezet taught excellent
arithmetic from the very beginning just as it should be taught. What
he removed was useless drill on memorized algorithms that had no
connection to experience and verbal interpretation.

It is worth noting that what Benezet was doing 70 years ago COULD NOW
BE DONE EVEN MORE EFFECTIVELY BECAUSE OF THE EXISTENCE OF EXCELLENT
SCIENCE AND SOCIAL STUDIES CURRICULA that would provide rich
opportunity for invoking and applying just the kind of thinking,
reasoning, and interpretation that Benezet was advocating and for
which he had to invent his own illustrations.
ARONS-ARONS-ARONS-ARONS-ARONS-ARONS-ARONS-ARONS-ARONS-ARONS

2. I note that some of these "modern-day K-6 inquiry science
programs," including FOSS, were used [see Table 2 "Curricular Units
by Grade" in Amaral et al. (2002)] in the evidently successful El
Centro, CA Program [Amaral et al. (2002), Amaral, O. (2002),
Jorgenson & R. Vanosdall (2002), SDSU (2003), Klentschy et al. 2002]
indicated in Jackson (2003).


Richard Hake, Emeritus Professor of Physics, Indiana University
24245 Hatteras Street, Woodland Hills, CA 91367
<rrhake@earthlink.net>
<http://www.physics.indiana.edu/~hake>
<http://www.physics.indiana.edu/~sdi>

"So must we see the need for nonviolent gadflies . . .(e.g. Benezet,
Arons, and Klentschy). . . to create the kind of tension in society
that will help men rise from the dark depths of prejudice and racism
to the majestic heights of understanding and brotherhood."

Martin Luther King, Jr.
"Letter from Birmingham Jail"

My thanks to Math-Teach gadfly Rene Amy for this quote.


REFERENCES
Amaral, O., L. Garrison, M. Klentschy. 2002. "Helping English
Learners Increase Achievement Through Inquiry-Based Science
Instruction," Bilingual Research Journal 26(2): 213-239; online as a
pdf at
<http://csmp.ucop.edu/csp/imperial-valley/resources.php>, scroll to "Articles."

Amaral, O. 2002. "Linking Science and Literacy," 96-slide PowerPoint
presentation; online at
<http://csmp.ucop.edu/csp/imperial-valley/longbeach.htm>.

Arons, A.B. 1959. "Structure, methods, and objectives of the required
freshman calculus-physics course at Amherst College, Am. J. Phys.
27(9): 658-666.

Arons, A.B. 1990. "A Guide to Introductory Physics Teaching." Wiley;
reprinted with minor updates in "Teaching Introductory Physics"
(Wiley, 1997).

Benezet, L.P. 1935/36. "The teaching of arithmetic I, II, III: The
story of an experiment," Journal of the National Education
Association 24(8), 241-244 (1935); 24(9), 301-303 (1935); 25(1), 7-8
(1936); online at the Benezet Centre
<http://www.inference.phy.cam.ac.uk/sanjoy/benezet/> (now featuring
photos of Benezet!). See also Mahajan & Hake (2000).

Jackson, J. 2003. "Re: Deficient Language Skills (was 'An old subject
revisited')", PhysLrnR/Phys-L/Physhare'AP-Physics post of 18 Jan 2003
10:57:20 -0700; online at
<http://lists.nau.edu/cgi-bin/wa?A2=ind0301&L=phys-l&O=D&P=12524>.

Jorgenson, O. & R. Vanosdall. 2002. "The Death Of Science? What We
Risk in Our Rush Toward Standardized Testing and the Three R's." Phi
Delta Kappan 83(8); online at
<http://www.pdkintl.org/kappan/k0204jor.htm>.

Klentschy, M., L. Garrison, & O. Amaral. 2002. "Valle Imperial
Project in Science (VIPS): Four-Year Comparison of Student
Achievement Data, 1995-1999," Journal of Research in Science Teaching
(in press).

Hake, R.R. 2003. "Deficient Language Skills (was 'An old subject
revisited')" post to various discussion lists; online at
<http://lists.nau.edu/cgi-bin/wa?A2=ind0301&L=phys-l&F=&S=&P=11527>.

Mahajan, S. & R.R. Hake. 2000. "Is it finally time for a physics
counterpart of the Benezet/Berman math experiment of the 1930's?
Physics Education Research Conference 2000: Teacher Education; online
as ref. 6 at <http://www.inference.phy.cam.ac.uk/sanjoy/benezet/>.

SDSU 2003. San Diego State University) Imperial Valley Science
Project. 2003; online at <http://csmp.ucop.edu/csp/imperial-valley/>.

Swartz, C.E. 1964. "Elementary School Science," Journal of Research
in Science Teaching 2, pp. xx-yy?

Swartz, C.E. 1969. "Measure and Find Out: A Quantitative Approach to
Science." Scott, Foresman and Company. According to the Hubisz (2001)
report (my CAPS): "Clifford E. Swartz, then Director of the National
Science Foundation Workshop on 'Elementary School Science by a
Quantitative Approach,' wrote the three volume 'Measure and Find Out:
A Quantitative Approach to Science'. . . . . THESE BOOKS HAVE WHAT IS
MISSING FROM MOST OF THE BOOKS REVIEWED IN THIS REPORT." See also
Swartz (1964, 1993).

Swartz, C.E. 1993. Editorial: "Standard reaction." Phys. Teach. 31: 334-335.