The members of the “Communities for Sciences – Project towards promoting an inclusive approach in science education” (C4S) met for its second online meeting on 24 February 2021. The session was conducted by Edoardo Datteri, Associate Professor of Logic and Philosophy of Science at the University of Milano-Bicocca, and Montserrat Pedreira, the director of Early Childhood Education at the Faculty of Social Sciences at UManresa (Campus of UVic-UCC).
Associate Professor Edoardo Datteri kicked off the session by talking about the concept of science and the difference between of ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ sciences. The aim was to dispel stereotypical and reductionist concepts of science and to promote a more down-to-earth understanding of science based more on epistemological issues involved in enquiry processes.
For her part, Montserrat Pedreira focused on the endless possibilities for learning and interaction that inclusive science brings. Among other topics, she reflected on the design of free choice science spaces (as in the UManresa’s Lab 0_6 Discovery, Research and Documentation Centre for Science Education in Early Childhood) stimulating and respectful with the learners’ ideas, based on the initiative of the children’s initiative and based on in the promotion of dialogue.
The next workshop of the C4S consortium will be in March 2021 and will be based on exploring further issues on and dimensions of inclusion.