From talk to thought: The power of dialogic interactions in science education

Abstract

Science education often disproportionately emphasizes the transmission of concepts and the development of technical skills, while undervaluing the importance of dialogic interactions between teachers and students, as well as among students themselves. These interaction-based teaching strategies, centered on argumentation, deliberation, and both guided and unguided exchange of ideas, are crucial for fostering scientific thinking and constructing meaningful knowledge. In this presentation, we underscore the significance of dialogic strategies in the classroom as fundamental tools for enriching the learning experience and promoting scientific literacy, and specifically, ecological and evolutionary literacy. We present results from educational initiatives spanning different levels, from primary school to university. For instance, in primary education, we observed that engaging students in dialogic processes fostered collective sensemaking and co-construction of core ideas about the living organisms. Additionally, these dialogic strategies enhanced the understanding of scientific practices and the emergence of aspects of the nature of science in children’s discourse, compared to a control group. At the university level, a game-based initiative focused on learning biological evolution revealed that students participating in collaborative activities emphasizing argumentation and deliberation exhibited greater conceptual understanding than those who worked individually. These findings highlight that dialogic interactions not only improve the comprehension of biological concepts but also enhance critical skills such as reasoning and collaborative problem-solving. Practical cases will be presented to illustrate how these dynamics can be effectively integrated into diverse educational contexts, emphasizing their role in cultivating scientific citizenship from early childhood to advanced academic stages.