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Overview (Start Here)
Research and resources
Under 50 students
Over 50 students
Out of class activity
Media and Technology
Start Here: Inference: Defined and Explored
Drawing a logical conclusion from premises, evidence and sometimes assumptions.
Resource: Inference: Research and Resources
Annotated bibliography of web sites, books and articles for your further investigation.
Commentary: Science is a Verb
Most non-majors take only a handful of science courses, usually in lecture format. Having realized that, this teacher now has his students DO science in class whenever he can.
Commentary: Inferences and Assumptions
The role assumptions play in logical conclusion, and how assumptions influenced our scientific understanding of the nature of fire.
Teaching Tip: Helping Students Think like your Field
How students think about "learning" when they arrive on campus, and what you can do in the classroom to help them think like a junior colleague.
Activity: Diagramming Arguments
Directing students' attention to how an argument is constructed is critical to helping them assess arguments made by others and make better arguments, themselves.
Activity: Eloosis: The Scientific Method Game
Watch a simple card game teach students the basic elements of the scientific method, quickly and enjoyably. Students move from wanting to win, to wanting to analyze, hypothesize, and test.
Activity: The Observation/Inference Chart
This exercise gives students practice identifying what meaning they draw from a given set of data, and evaluating the quality of their inferences.