Early science: What is it and how do we support it?

Perspective Article

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Pedagogy |
Science

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Dr Sarah Earle, Bath Spa University, UK @PriSciEarle Why consider early science? The first images of science that come to mind often contain white coats, test tubes and Bunsen burners, but science is much broader than this. Scientists like David Attenborough and Jane Goodall study the natural world on location, while others look to the stars like Maggie Aderin-Pocock or care for our health like Sarah Gilbert and Chris Whitty. We use science in every aspect of our daily lives and many jobs require scientific knowledge, from firefighters and electricians to hairdressers and dentists. Awareness of the important role of science and scientists is something that is built from an early age, something that needs to be representative of the community in which you work, to ensure that children grow up thinking that ‘science is for me’ (see Nag Chowdhuri et al., 2021 for Science Capital research, resources and more on this). Science is not just for scientists or to provide a pathway to f

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References

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Early science: What is it and how do we support it?

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