What are the Needs and Importance of Curriculum Science?

Needs and Importance of Curriculum Science

The present age is the age of Science and technology. The progress and development of the society in now closely linked with the progress and development in the field of sciences, which in turn depends upon the quality of science education imparted to the youngsters in schools.

Consequently, it needs the inculcation of genuine interest towards the study of sciences, development of scientific attitude and nurturing of the creative and inventive faculties of the students. The formal classroom teaching or laboratory work alone neither help in providing wider opportunities for the inculcation and development of such interests and attitudes nor it cater to the development and realization of the scientific talent.

Therefore for serving the desired purpose there is a need of some other platform or means which may be helpful not only in supplementing the task of formal classroom science teaching but may also prove a source of constant inspiration and enthusiasm to the budding scientists for blossom out. The role of such and platform and means in this direction can effectively be played by the science club organized in our schools.

The significant contributions of the science clubs in comparison to formal classroom instructions have been beautifully summarized by Mcknown in the following words:

“The club offers the pupil and opportunity’ for the classroom his work is formal, in the club it is informal, in the classroom he is told what to do, in the club he chooses; in the classroom his method of dealing with topic is clearly outlined by teacher-imposed restrictions, in the club programme the method is of his own devising; in a classroom he tries to please the teacher, in the club he works for his own and club’s interests and for the joy of doing his works, in the classroom he conforms to a system, in the club he suits his own convenience. In short, the club represents freedom and expression whereas the classroom represents conformity and repression.”

In the way, while being informal in its nature and operation, the activities of the science club offer valuable opportunity for the realization of the broader objectives of science education. The advantages drawn may be summarized as below:

1. It helps in inspiring and energizing the students to work independently or jointly in a team spirit towards learning and using scientific facts and principles and thus proves a birth place for the future scientist.

2. The theoretical knowledge gained in the classroom and the practical skills acquired in the laboratory may take their applied shape fully through the activities of the science club.

3. It helps in linking the schools studies more firmly with the outside work and brings schools very close to the society.

4. It provides opportunities for the satisfaction of the instinctive urges like instinct of curiosity, constructiveness, inventiveness, hoarding etc.

5. Science club provides opportunities for the self- realization and self-expression and thus proves very good educational sources for the release of pent-up emotions and canalizing the energies of the students towards desirable goals.

Although the concepts of text books and audio visual aids used in science teaching have been dealt in this chapter in brief, but as they play much important roles in science teaching, because of which mention of these have been done in separate chapters in length also.