Scientific Skills

Scientific skills are involved manipulative skills, science process skills (SPS) and thinking skills.

Science Process Skills (SPS)

a) Basic SPS: Observing (attributing), Classifying, Measuring, Using Numbers, Predicting, Communicating, Using Space Time Relationship and Interpreting Data.

b) Integrated SPS: Defining Operationally, Controlling Variables, Hypothesizing, Experimenting.

*** Scientific Skills is interrelated to Thinking Skills


Thinking Skills


a) Critical Thinking Skills

A person who thinks critically always evaluate an idea in a systematic manner before accepting it.

It includes Attributing, Comparing and Contrasting, Grouping and Classifying, Sequencing (e.g food pyramid), Prioritizing (e.g nutrition), Analyzing, Detecting Bias (e.g teacher asks students to detect bias in an advertisement), Evaluating and Making Connections.

b) Creative Thinking Skills

A persons who thinks creatively has a high level of imagination, is able to generate original and innovative ideas, and modify ideas and products.

It includes Generating Ideas (approach in open enquiry : round robin), Making Inferences, Predicting, Making Generalizations, Visualising (e.g computer simulation), Synthesising, Making Hypotheses, Making Analogies and Inventing.

Thinking strategies are high order thinking processes that involve various steps.

a) Conceptualising
b) Making Decisions
c) Problem Solving

***Beside the thinking skills and strategies, another skills emphasised is
reasoning.

Reasoning is a skills used in making logical, just and rational judgement.


Scientific Attitudes and Noble Values

Scientific Attitudes: being objective, being systematic, being cooperative, being fair and just, daring to try, etc

Moral dilemma: teacher may try to tell a story and see students can think what is right and what is wrong. Beside, teachers also can ask student to detect bias.