Conceptualization and curriculum coherence in science education: A proposal of pedagogical intervention

Abstract

The article presents a proposal of pedagogic intervention, supported by theoretical and empirical arguments, which defends a conceptually demanding scientific education for all students and at the various schooling levels. It is argued that the level of conceptualization and curricular coherence of knowledge and cognitive skills should be central to curricula and pedagogical practices. It is also argued that the intradisciplinary relation, together with the exploration of complex knowledge and skills, raises the level of conceptual demand of scientific learning and promotes an education that considers the hierarchical structure of scientific knowledge. The proposal of pedagogic intervention, based on the photosynthesis-respiration relationship, exemplifies the conceptual relation among the various schooling levels that should be present in the context of scientific education. The importance of implementing activities that provide conceptually and coherently articulated scientific learning is discussed, something that may require a recontextualization of curricula, whenever that is not valued in the official curricular documents.