TI-AIE: Practical work and investigations: teaching gravitation to Class IX

What this unit is about

Practical work is an important aspect of science education. It includes a range of activities and is also used for a range of purposes, such as:

  • illustrating a concept or idea to help students generate arguments from evidence in the process of knowledge construction
  • developing practical, manipulative laboratory skills and learning how to use science equipment such as a microscope
  • developing observational skills, such as the structure of a cell or observing changes on heating a chemical
  • developing specific science enquiry skills, such as devising suitable tests or examining evidence critically (in science investigations)
  • developing experience and understanding of ‘the nature of science’ and how scientists work.

The National Curriculum Framework (NCERT, 2005) for science says that the science curriculum should encourage inventiveness and creativity, and that ‘inquiry skills should be supported and strengthened’ (p. 49). Practical work, and in particular investigative approaches to science, can help your students to learn about how scientists work and to develop their own enquiry skills.

This unit is about using practical approaches – particularly investigative practical approaches – to help students to learn about gravitation. The strategies and techniques that you will learn in this unit will apply to other topics as well.

What you can learn in this unit