Although the education of young children in science is not a completely novel field of research, recent years have seen a renewed interest and a shift in research discourse toward addressing contemporary challenges and dilemmas. Within this, some features maintain continuity with past traditions, developing them to a place of contemporary relevance, as is the case for the focus on children’s perceptions of various scientific concepts and phenomena as well as teachers’ perspectives on these issues. At the same time, new research dimensions have emerged that focus less on the “what” of learning and more on the “how”. In this direction, innovative educational practices are being designed and implemented, diverse forms of representation and expression are being exploited, and learning contexts are broadened. This article presents such research directions and perspectives on early childhood science education that advocate more participatory and inclusive approaches, more attuned to the multiple forms of expression that young children use to make sense of the world.
Delserieys et al. (Thu,) studied this question.