Children's Informal Ideas in Science

<p>The ideas that children have about science concepts have for the past decade been the subject of a wealth of international research. But while the area has been strong in terms of data it has suffered from a lack of theory.<br><em>Children's Informal Ideas in Science</em> addresses the question of whether children's ideas about science can be explained in a single theoretical framework. Twelve different approaches combine to tackle this central issue each taking a deliberately critical standpoint. The contributors address such themes as values in research the social construction of knowledge and the work of Piaget in a rich contribution to the debate without claiming finally to resolve it. The authors conclude with a discussion of how a theory can be built up along with suggestions for ways ahead in the research.</p>