Add the Arts and Mix! Using a Sciencesthetics Approach to Expand and Enhance Students' Exploration and Inquiry Skills in Science Education

Michael Mueller
Education, Roane State Community College

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     Last modified: July 11, 2006

Abstract
Science embodies robust adjectives of the emotional, imaginative, and intuitive human being. Yet, language used in science class is often dispassionate, unimaginative, and unintuitive-far too rational. The primary use of reason in the construction of language in science class may inadvertently perpetuate a science/ arts dualism which separates the natural world from the aesthetic world. Additionally, rational language may contribute to the frustration many science teachers experience when teaching exploration and inquiry skills. However, by embracing a new approach-something I refer to as "sciencesthetics"-teachers can provide opportunities for students to symbolize and structure their experiences. This approach liberates students as they reinvent themselves through the use of metaphors, similes, and the invention of words. Sciencesthetics integrates the natural sciences and the arts, which promotes more authentic conversations and significant inquiries. Here, I discuss the importance of emotional, imaginative, and intuitive language as essential thinking tools that can expand and enhance students' exploration and inquiry skills in science education. Further, I discuss the emerging theory of sciencesthetics as an overarching project of teaching and learning science in more aesthetic ways.