New Perspectives in Science Education

In the pursuit of providing epistemological access to the science curriculum themes for culturally diverse learners, authors such as De Beer (2019) advocate for the infusion of indigenous knowledge in the science curriculum. In this paper both the affordances of such epistemological border-crossing, as well as the problems (mainly based on ontological differences) will be highlighted.

Taylor and Cameron (2016), as well as Zinyeka, Onwu and Braun (2016), refer to three perspectives on the inclusion of indigenous knowledge in the science classroom: (a) the inclusive approach (indigenous knowledge is part of science), (b) the exclusive approach (due to ontological differences, these are separate knowledge systems, and indigenous knowledge does not belong in the science classroom), and (c) the intersecting domains perspective, which advocates for infusing aspects of indigenous knowledge into the science curriculum, provided that such content would highlight shared tenets, e.g. both knowledge systems are empirical and inferential.

In this paper, the author will illustrate how engaging pedagogies such as ethnobotanical surveys, utilizing the Matrix Method (De Beer and Van Wyk, 2011), an adapted Kirby Bauer technique (Mitchell & Cater, 2000) testing the antimicrobial properties of plants traditionally used for medicinal reasons, or the Rationality Index of Plant Use (RIPU) heuristic (De Beer, 2020) could stimulate culturally diverse students’ interest in science, and enhance self-directed learning. Embodied, situated and distributed cognition (Hardy-Vallée & Payette, 2008) will be used as theoretical framework.

REFERENCES

[1] De Beer, J. 2019. The decolonisation of the curriculum project: The affordances of indigenous knowledge for self-directed learning. Cape Town: AOSIS.

[2] De Beer, J. 2020. An ethnobotanical and anthropological study of the medicinal and magic plants of Southern Bushmanland, Northern Cape. PhD thesis. Johannesburg: University of Johannesburg.

[3] De Beer, J. & van Wyk, B.E. 2011. Doing an ethnobotanical survey in the Life Sciences Classroom. The American Biology Teacher, 73(2):90 – 97.

[4] Hardy-Vallée, B., & Payette, N. 2008. Embodied, situated and distributed cognition. Cambridge Scholar Publishing, Newcastle.

[5] Mitchell, J.K., & Cater, W.E. 2000. Modeling antimicrobial activity of Clorox using an agar-diffusion test. Bioscience, 26(3):9-13.

[6] Taylor, D. & Cameron, A. 2016. Valuing IKS in successive South African physical sciences curricula. African Journal of Research in Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 20(1):35-44.

[7] Zinyeka, G., Onwu, G.O.M. & Braun, M. 2016. A truth-based epistemological framework for supporting teachers in integrating indigenous knowledge into science teaching. African Journal of Research in Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 20(3):256-266.