Current Approaches to Science Education

In this article, different curriculum approaches to science education are discussed with respect to characteristics of students with disabilities. Science education is an area of increasing national interest as well as one that a recent survey of teachers identified as a highly suitable subject area for mainstreaming. A cross-categorical perspective is presented on the characteristics that serve to limit mainstream success for students with disabilities. Four major domains of functioning are identified, including language and literacy, cognitive-conceptual development, psychosocial functioning, and sensory-physical abilities. Although functioning in each of these areas can be improved through special education methods, it can also be argued that mainstream curriculum approaches themselves, representing textbook-content approaches as well as activity-inquiry approaches, interact with these disability areas. A case is made that different curriculum approaches to science education can differentially facilitate or inhibit mainstreaming success of students with disabilities.