Voici un ptit article bien marant. Désolé il est en anglais mais je mettrai une traduction dans quelques articles.
K-6 Textbooks and "Science myths" (c)1996 William J. Beaty
in Popular culture
The complex and abstract nature of Science makes the subject difficult to
understand. But complexity is not the only reason that Science is hard.
The subject is made much more difficult by the presence of numerous
misleading "Science Myths" which circulate in the popular culture, which
are handed down from parents to children, and which have become so common
and widespread that they even appear in science textbooks and are taught
as facts in elementary school.
These "science myths" or "urban legends" present a major barrier to
students because the kids must unlearn the incorrect myths before they can
make further progress in their understanding. Unfortunately, this process
of UNLEARNING happens rarely because the myths are supported by so many
teachers, and they appear in so many textbooks. Most people never suspect
their presence. If a particular concept in science seems impossible to
understand, students won't blame their books. Instead they will blame
themselves, or will blame the new concept for being too complex or too
abstract to understand. Teachers won't suspect that errors are present in
the books, reasoning that if several books teach the same concept in
exactly the same way, how could all those books be wrong?
Why do textbooks spread misconceptions? Because there are very strong
forces preserving the mistakes. Tolstoy says it well:
"I know that most men, including those at ease with problems of the
greatest complexity, can seldom accept even the simplest and most
obvious truth if it be such as would oblige them to admit the falsity
of conclusions which they have delighted in explaining to collegues,
which they have proudly taught to others, and which they have woven,
thread by thread, into the fabric of their lives."
Or less kindly: "A lie repeated often enough becomes the truth."
Below is a collection of misconceptions I collected from science textbooks
at the Kindergarten to 6th grade levels. Since physics is my specialty,
errors involving this topic stand out for me, and the major part of the
list involves physics misconceptions. (There may be misconceptions in
other subjects, but I never "unlearned" them, and therefor cannot see
them!)
in Popular culture
The complex and abstract nature of Science makes the subject difficult to
understand. But complexity is not the only reason that Science is hard.
The subject is made much more difficult by the presence of numerous
misleading "Science Myths" which circulate in the popular culture, which
are handed down from parents to children, and which have become so common
and widespread that they even appear in science textbooks and are taught
as facts in elementary school.
These "science myths" or "urban legends" present a major barrier to
students because the kids must unlearn the incorrect myths before they can
make further progress in their understanding. Unfortunately, this process
of UNLEARNING happens rarely because the myths are supported by so many
teachers, and they appear in so many textbooks. Most people never suspect
their presence. If a particular concept in science seems impossible to
understand, students won't blame their books. Instead they will blame
themselves, or will blame the new concept for being too complex or too
abstract to understand. Teachers won't suspect that errors are present in
the books, reasoning that if several books teach the same concept in
exactly the same way, how could all those books be wrong?
Why do textbooks spread misconceptions? Because there are very strong
forces preserving the mistakes. Tolstoy says it well:
"I know that most men, including those at ease with problems of the
greatest complexity, can seldom accept even the simplest and most
obvious truth if it be such as would oblige them to admit the falsity
of conclusions which they have delighted in explaining to collegues,
which they have proudly taught to others, and which they have woven,
thread by thread, into the fabric of their lives."
Or less kindly: "A lie repeated often enough becomes the truth."
Below is a collection of misconceptions I collected from science textbooks
at the Kindergarten to 6th grade levels. Since physics is my specialty,
errors involving this topic stand out for me, and the major part of the
list involves physics misconceptions. (There may be misconceptions in
other subjects, but I never "unlearned" them, and therefor cannot see
them!)
