Anyone who, as a schoolboy, experienced the experience of ice cubes melting in the heat, the careful examination of the transformation of a plant, or the observation of a flame going out when deprived of oxygen, will no doubt remember it with a certain nostalgia. These are the “object lessons” that are emblematic of primary school.
But when did these scientific experiments appear? How did science come to school?
Science teaching has been part of school education for just over a century.
By the 16th century, most Christian lands were limited to minimal literacy.
The concern for more in-depth scientific training became evident at the end of the Grand Siècle. The absolutist state needs engineers and technicians… So, schools reserved for the elite are created to train in mathematics and science.
However, it was not until the mid-19th century that primary schools truly opened up to science. From 1860, libraries made available to students the new knowledge that their literacy allowed them to discover and understand in books.
Adolescents already engaged in working life are invited to return to school to take evening classes and learn new, more complex knowledge. We reinforce basic knowledge (spelling, grammar, arithmetic) but we also discover new knowledge. It is in these classes reserved for young adults that teachers learn that they can teach more complex knowledge.
This is how the school network puts science and technology on its curriculum.
