Scientific Inquiry

Description

Courses in this learning domain are designed to provide students with an opportunity to learn the methods of modern science and its impact in understanding the world around us. Courses in this domain are designed to help students develop a more complete perspective about science and the scientific process, including:

• an understanding of the major principles guiding modern scientific thought;
  
  
• a comprehension of the varying approaches and aspects of science;
  
  
• an appreciation of the connection among the sciences and the fundamental role of mathematics in practicing science;
  
  
• An awareness of the roles and limitations of theories and models in interpreting, understanding, and predicting natural phenomena;
  
  
• A realization of how these theories and models change or are supplanted as our knowledge increases.

Meeting the Liberal Studies Program Goals

While courses in Scientific Inquiry learning domain are expected to primarily address the critical and creative thinking goal of the Liberal Studies Program, issues regarding reflectiveness and value consciousness will also be addressed within the context of the individual course content. Some of the courses may also deal with issues of multiculturalism form the perspective of how different cultures have addressed or contributed to the understanding of similar scientific questions. However, it is the intent of the courses in this domain to primarily involve students in understanding scientific principles and to encourage exploration into the scientific method. Courses in this domain are not intended to have primary emphases in the history of science, or the roles of science in society (although courses with such emphases may be offered in other domains).

Similarly, courses in this domain strongly address the University Learning Goals of critical and creative thinking, mastery of content, and multiple literacies. In addition, Scientific Inquiry courses also enhance the Learning Goals of articulate communication and accomplishing goals both independently and cooperatively, particularly for those courses in the domain involving laboratory investigations.

Student Requirements

Students will take three courses in this learning domain. The Quantitative Reasoning course (or placement out of the course by placement test) is a prerequisite for all courses in this domain. All students will take at least one course with a laboratory component, and one (other) course with a strong quantitative component. Laboratory courses will meet 5-6 hours per week (total-including both lecture and lab components). Departments may also apply to have their three-quarter introductory sequence satisfy the requirements in this domain, and we expect that several such offering will be approved and available to students. Students majoring in one of the science departments will be exempt from the requirements in this learning domain.

Criteria for Inclusion

Courses in the Scientific Inquiry learning domain must meet the following criteria:

• The content of the course in this domain must be primarily science and/or mathematics.
  
  
• The new course Quantitative Reasoning (or its equivalent, see Section III) is a prerequisite for all courses in the domain, and Scientific Inquiry courses should draw upon the skills and ideas developed in the Quantitative Reasoning course.
  
  
• Courses should develop and hone both qualitative and quantitative reasoning skills. Students should be able to present both mathematical and descriptive reasons to support a model for physical phenomenon.
  
  
• In every course, students should be confronted with the idea that knowledge is provisional, and subject to revision based on the gathering or collecting of new data. In particular, courses might include material on the historical development of our understandings and interpretations of the physical world.
  
  
• All courses should incorporate techniques which encourage students to take an active role in learning science and to develop an inquiry frame of mind. For lecture-based courses this could include demonstration in which students participate, small group discussion, or an inquiry-based approach that guides students to reach a conclusion themselves. For courses that include laboratory components, the experiments should seek to engage students in critical thinking rather than simply to present them with a mechanical exercise in following procedure.
  
  
• All courses should make explicit attempts to include components emphasizing reflectiveness and value consciousness, two of the primary Liberal Studies Program goals. In particular, courses are encouraged to raise issues such as scientific ethics and societal/global concerns that can be addressed by scientific research where appropriate.
  
  

Courses will also be particularly encouraged that, in addition to the above criteria, incorporate one or more of the following:

• Scientific writing or oral presentation components in the course, which help to teach the methods of scientific communication and further develop the University Learning Goal of articulate communication.
  
  
• Use of computers or other technology which are used to help students accomplish curricular goals (e.g. modeling physical phenomena, analyzing data, simulating experiments, representing or graphing data).
  
  
• Use of interdisciplinary or multi-disciplinary approaches which help students to appreciate the multiple fields and perspectives required to address many scientific problems.
  
  
• Presentation of material that helps students appreciate and understand that different cultures an peoples view and interpret the world (and therefore the scientific problems) differently, and that significant scientific and mathematical contributions have come from all over the world.
  
  
• Place scientific research and scientific questions in the context of broader societal issues and real world concerns, and demonstrate how scientific research can affect our daily lives.

Laboratory course must have 5-6 contact hours per week (total-including lecture and laboratory components) engage the students actively in inquiry and critical thinking. The laboratories need not necessarily be separate meetings as regular extensions of the course, but may also be a combination of longer and shorter activities, on or off campus.

Courses qualifying for the quantitative component must have the students participate in one or more independent or group projects which involve the collection and analysis of actual data. This can include data obtained directly from student investigation and observation, or data that the students obtain from numerical models or previously collated data collections.

Departments should note the new Liberal Studies program no longer has Level I and Level II course requirements. This does not preclude departments from continuing to offer courses that require other Scientific Inquiry courses as prerequisites. However, it should be noted that he domain requirement that only one course for each student may have neither a lab nor a quantitative component suggest that enrollment in a lecture –only special topics course that requires a specific prerequisite may be minimal.

It is expected that a full set of courses complying with the domain criteria set forth above may not be available immediately, and require several years to phase in as the implementation of the new Liberal Studies Program develops. As such, it should be recognized that courses applied for in the domain may either be accepted, rejected, or provisionally accepted with the understanding that specific changes will be required for full acceptance into the new Liberal Studies Program.