Behaviorism Blog

I could shape my students’ behavior in teaching them how to use the scientific method to do lab work. The general steps are make observations, ask a question, form a hypothesis, design an experiment to test the hypothesis, conduct experiment and record the data, draw conclusions, and summarize the results of the experiment.

1.      First, I would teach them how to make observations. I would put the students in groups of three and have them look at a living organism. They would make a list of observations that they made about their organism and share with the class. Then we would talk about the differences between inferences (assumptions) and observations (something they actually see). Then I would have them rewrite their inferences as observations.

2.     After that, we would use a common experiment and I would walk them through each of the remaining steps of the scientific process, checking with students on each step to make sure they are understanding and doing it correctly, offering feedback if they are not doing it correctly, and positive reinforcement for the progress they make on each step. The reinforcement I use would most likely just be words of praise.