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<p>Nature of science education has been an enduring objective for promoting scientific literacy. Central to effective nature of science education is the concept of explicit reflection. This study explores the potential of philosophical dialogue as a didactic method to facilitate explicit reflection in high school settings, enabling both students and teachers to navigate and address diverse nature of science conceptions. Fifteen dialogues were conducted with a total of 220 high school students (aged 15–18) in nine different schools in Belgium, facilitated by an expert in philosophical dialogue. A reflexive thematic analysis of the transcriptions showed the breadth and depth of students’ engagement with eight key themes: <i>Certainty in Science</i>, <i>Instrumentalism vs. Realism</i>, <i>Physical Boundaries of Science</i>, <i>Knowledge Development in Science</i>, <i>Scientific Observations: Objective vs. Subjective</i>, <i>Bias in Science</i>, <i>Science Practices</i>, and <i>Demarcation of Science.</i> Furthermore, students’ explicit reflection is showcased through seven reflective thinking processes that occurred during the dialogues: <i>Argumentation with Knowledge Integration</i>, <i>Reflective Questioning</i>, <i>Scaffolding</i>, <i>Concept Clarification</i>, <i>Consensus Building</i>, <i>Multi-perspectivity</i>, and <i>Contemplation.</i> These findings challenge certain prior assumptions that high school students lack the cognitive maturity for NoS abstraction. Instead, this study bolsters the established scholarly move toward philosophical dialogue in science education, providing empirical support for its ability to surface sophisticated student reflections. The implications of these findings for theory, research, and practice are discussed.</p>

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Philosophical Dialogues About Nature of Science: A Thematic Analysis of High School Students’ Reflections

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年4月21日

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  • Lotte Boven,
  • Peter Van Petegem,
  • Rianne Pinxten,
  • Laura Van den Broeck,
  • Jelle De Schrijver

摘要

Nature of science education has been an enduring objective for promoting scientific literacy. Central to effective nature of science education is the concept of explicit reflection. This study explores the potential of philosophical dialogue as a didactic method to facilitate explicit reflection in high school settings, enabling both students and teachers to navigate and address diverse nature of science conceptions. Fifteen dialogues were conducted with a total of 220 high school students (aged 15–18) in nine different schools in Belgium, facilitated by an expert in philosophical dialogue. A reflexive thematic analysis of the transcriptions showed the breadth and depth of students’ engagement with eight key themes: Certainty in Science, Instrumentalism vs. Realism, Physical Boundaries of Science, Knowledge Development in Science, Scientific Observations: Objective vs. Subjective, Bias in Science, Science Practices, and Demarcation of Science. Furthermore, students’ explicit reflection is showcased through seven reflective thinking processes that occurred during the dialogues: Argumentation with Knowledge Integration, Reflective Questioning, Scaffolding, Concept Clarification, Consensus Building, Multi-perspectivity, and Contemplation. These findings challenge certain prior assumptions that high school students lack the cognitive maturity for NoS abstraction. Instead, this study bolsters the established scholarly move toward philosophical dialogue in science education, providing empirical support for its ability to surface sophisticated student reflections. The implications of these findings for theory, research, and practice are discussed.