Science Education Needs a Multilevel Approach

Abstract

Triggered by an increasing consensus on the importance of science education for the economy and society as a whole, in recent years, a growing number of educational programs, initiatives and projects have been launched by various players (from educational policy makers over teacher education institutions to industry). Many of these initiatives have a direct or indirect link to molecular sciences. In this article, we develop a two-dimensional framework which can be used as a guideline in the classification and discussion of existing projects as well as in the planning and design of future initiatives. The framework incorporates three organizational levels or groups of persons and the two very central fields of objectives 'knowledge and skills' and 'motivation and interest'. On the basis of this framework, we discuss four projects in which our science and technology education center has been involved, with respect to their influence on the knowledge, skills and interest of pupils, teachers and school administration representatives in science.