our educational institutional, instead of producing creative minds; are stuffing the ... Science, technology and inventions are now rightly regarded as the most.
IJP, Vol. 5, No. 1, January-June 2012 pp. 7-9
SCIENCE TEMPERAMENT IN INDIA A. K. Srivastava1, M. K. Prajapati2 and Maya Chouksey3 1Prof.
& Head, Department of Physics, Dr. C.V. Raman University, Kota, Bilaspur Professor, Dept. of Physics, Dr. C.V. Raman University, Kota, Bilaspur 3Research Scholar ,Dr.C.V.Raman University, Kota, Bilaspur
2Associate
Abstract: Despite manifold increase in the number of seats in higher education institutions in India since independence, with a corresponding increase in Gross. Enrolment Ratio (GER), the decline in quality in quite worrisome. Scientific temper has declined especially in young generation. Apart from education science temperament plays vital role in learner from very childhood. There are a lot of commission concerning science temperament have been constituted to uplift as well as for development. The commission is only for co-operation and helping as a catalyst not as a czar. In the paper it has been focused mainly on science temperament which is very essential to keep in mind from bottom level. Keywords: Temperament, Scientific, Catalyst, Temper.
The advancement of civilization from Stone age to the present is the result of man’s creative imagination. As Einstein said-imagination is more important than knowledge. Science education is compulsory with creativity. Looking at your own backward, it is found that our educational institutional, instead of producing creative minds; are stuffing the students with the ill digested knowledge for the sole purpose of passing the examination. We tend to make our children Scientific encyclopedia we seldom allow them to ask questions, explore, toy with new ideas and tools. Which is the hallmark of creative learning process? No wonder that the vast majority of them are incapable of contributing anything new and fresh. There was a time when science was the preoccupation of lone scientists trying to unravel the mysteries of nature. Their purpose possibly had been to derive ethereal sense of pleasure by contributing in some measure towards the intellectual growth of mankind. Recent past has brought about revolutionary change in the scientific outlook of the people, especially after realizing that nature is a great source of power, and it is science alone that can assist in placing that power in the hands of man for promoting the human welfare. Science today has developed a very real and concrete objective, the objective of human progress, prosperity and well being. Science, technology and inventions are now rightly regarded as the most important means for improving the materials welfare of the people. The agency of science *
Corresponding author: ajeet2002.2007 @ rediffmail.com
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IJP, 5(1), 2012
as a major force of social reconstruction now stands universally accepted. It is no wonder, therefore, that the scientific development of a country becomes the yard-stick of its progress and greatness. Realizing fully the paramount importance of science and technology in the reconstruction of modern India, the Government of India gave attention to its development immediately after the attainment of independence. A separate port folio for scientific research was created at the centre on the very day of the advent of freedom to India, and was placed under the direct charge of the late Prime Minister, Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru, who through his vision and faith in science did so much to promote the scientific development in the country. The Department of Scientific Research was established in June, 1948, and three years latter a fully fledged Ministry of National Resources and Scientific Research was created. The spirit and enthusiasm of the people in India for scientific pursuits received great stimulus when a very comprehensive resolution, Known as the Scientific Policy Resolution was brought forth in 1958 in the parliament embodying the considered Scientific policy of the Government of India. Thus, thin Scientific Policy Resolution demonstrated both a declaration of faith in science and technology and an instrument of national progress as well as a directive for specific steps to be taken. The constitution of India upholds cultivation of scientific temper as one of the fundamental duties of citizens. Does science education in schools and universities has any role to play in nurturing scientific temper in the students? Of course, yes. Information about physical world can be organized and interpreted correctly only if belief in the principles of natural science and the impeceability of deductive logic go together. We often find that with complete disregard to principles of established Physical Science, astrologers, fortune tellers, quacks and many others can employ logic to draw inferences from same outlandish idea to convince their hapless customers. On the other hand we also find many people with science education, though aware of principles of science, are not sure that the explanation of physical phenomena has to be unique and unambiguous relation facts to the principles of science. Science education in schools is directly related to inculcating the scientific temper in the minds of the students. Making the students remember the information related to scientific facts and learn techniques of solving numerical problems based on that information, mastering the so-called experiments skills of using modern technology in laboratory and such things may be adequate for the success in examination but does it help cultivate scientific temper? Scientific temper is reinforced by experimental component of science education if introduced with the right spirit. To bring about the desired change in the outlook of the students, first the teachers must imbibe the philosophy of experimental method and understand the correct significance of lab courses in science education; often it is found that knowing the expected result students enter the data that would lead to correct result. There is a thought that open ended experiments would be more reliable to test the students. But the lab courses are meant for training which can be meaningful only when the students learn now to discover their mistakes. It is not enough to give open ended experiments with the belief that such experiments would automatically make the students learn investigate
Science Temperament in India
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techniques. Without the initial training in experiments with known results such open ended experiments would simply be useless. Dramatic scientific demonstrations are useful to fire the imagination of students and hold their attention in the topic under discussion. Such demonstrations are aids to classroom lectures and the conclusions drawn are generally qualitative. But quantitative lab work has different objective of science education. For development of scientific temperament a large number of scientific and technological activities have sprung up in the country. A chain of National Laboratories has been set up by the council of scientific and Industrial Research all over the country for doing fundamental and applied research in the field of science and industry. In 1956, UGC was set up by an act of the parliament to look after higher education and research in Universities. An important function of the commission is to take suitable steps for the coordination. The commission has been giving good consideration to help and finance universities in the matter of scientific equipments, libraries and award of research fellowship. It is necessary to give due attention to all the aspects of researches-pure, applied and development. Essentially these are inseparably inter-connected and one generates the other. But the starting point for all these are a sound scientific training researches in pure sciences, often termed as fundamental researches. The teaching community should arrive at a consensus to introduce simple elements of uncertainty analysis at the school level science, So that the students develop scientific temper. The finer details may be left untouched to be studied at advanced levels in appropriate disciplines of science. Clear thinking is the essence of scientific temper and using any techniques without understanding the reasoning behind them is determined to nurturing scientific temper. References [1] Michael Grabe (2005), Measurement Uncertainties in Science and Technology, Springer Verlog. [2] Stephanie Bell (2001), Measurement Good Practice Guide No. 11 (Issue 2). [3] Vigyan Pragati, 2010-11. [4] Science Reporter, 2010-11. [5] Everyman’s Science Journal, 2009-11.
