"Everyday biology" and its interaction with school biology

1992 Fiscal Year Final Research Report Summary

• Project/Area Number: 02610036
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for General Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Research Field: Psychology
• Research Institution: Chiba University
• Principal Investigator: INAGAKI Kayoko Chiba University, Faculty of Education, Professor, 教育学部, 教授 (90090290)
• Project Period (FY): 1990 – 1992
• Keywords: everyday biology / school biology / raising animals and plants / personification / mind-body distinction

Research Abstract

This project aimed at examining the nature of young children's biological knowledge acquired through everyday life experience, and its interaction with school biology. Studies using interview methods indicated that young children who had raised animals (e.g., goldfish) for an extended period at home came to attribute non- salient biological properties shared by most animals to other animals dissimilar to people; children of ages 4 and 5, and even of 3 for some phenomena, recognized that something inside the body is not fully subject to their intention. These results, along with others, suggest that young children before schooling have a form of biology, which might be called "everyday biology".
Questionnaires given to elementary and kindergarten teachers and some pilot observations revealed that in the instruction for raising animals and plants not only kindergarten teachers but also elementary ones often gave young children personifying explanations and/or feedback, sometimes overly personifying. Experimental studies showed that giving hints which would activate children's knowledge about humans tended to facilitate their biological understanding; however, some overly personifying explanations given by adults tended to inhibit children's biological understanding.
Future studies are needed to develop more concrete and more detailed instructional methods helping children elaborate their everyday biology.