Learning to explain and design with chemistry

Abstract

Contemporary science education frameworks emphasize the need for students to integrate disciplinary knowledge with practices and modes of reasoning that enable them to explain phenomena and design solutions to relevant problems. This article argues that school chemistry provides a particularly productive context for developing and coordinating two fundamental forms of reasoning to engage in those tasks: mechanistic reasoning and systems thinking. The paper analyzes the characteristics, epistemic goals, and complementarities of these reasoning approaches, as well as the conceptual and epistemological reasons why chemistry is especially well suited to foster their development. Finally, an instructional model is proposed to support their coordination in the analysis of phenomena and the design, implementation, and evaluation of solutions to scientific, technological, and socio-environmental challenges.