![]() In traditional science classrooms, an observer might be sparked to ask, “What are you learning about right now?” and receive responses such as, “We are learning about photosynthesis.” The observer’s question and the students’ remote response are indicative of how science was taught in the past: through learning and memorizing of facts. The result is that students may know science without being able to use it–which is what NGSS aims to correct. A student could memorize and “know” all of the words/terms in the diagram, without having any understanding of what those terms do or mean. The converse is not true–students can know information without being able to make sense of it. Students must have information in order to make sense of the information. Information-based instruction is still important: we still want our students to know science. ![]() NGSS is shifting instruction away from simply knowing science to emphasizing using science and engineering practices to make sense of the world or solve problems. Essentially, sense-making is about actively trying to figure out the way the world works (for scientific questions) and exploring how to create or alter things to achieve design goals (for engineering questions). You are engaged in the process of sense-making. We often use the phrase “figure something out.” When you are trying to figure something out, you are trying to make sense of it. Sense-making is the conceptual process in which a learner actively engages with the natural or designed world, wonders about it, and then develops, tests, and refines ideas. Science is fundamentally about making sense of the natural world. Now that the previous blog helped us gain a stronger understanding of the three dimensions of Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), let’s shift our attention to the key innovation for NGSS: sense-making.
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