Habits of Mind: Integrating the Social and Personal Characteristics of Doing Science Into the Science Classroom

Scientific habits of mind are an integral part of contemporary definitions of scientific literacy being presented in national reform documents such as Science For All Americans ( American Association for the Advancement of Science, 1989 ) and the National Science Education Standards ( National Research Council, 1996 ). These scientific habits also serve as an important link between scientific inquiry and science education. This article focuses on three habits associated with personal values and attitudes and one habit associated with the social skills of doing science. These four habits of mind balance the objectivist perspective that misrepresents science as a cold and emotionless abstraction ( Pert, 1997 ) by highlighting a subjective view of scientific activity that is often omitted from school science. The four habits of mind are first illustrated through the story of a modern scientific investigation and then described as the basis of a school laboratory science experience. Implications related to the integration of these four habits of mind into science laboratory reform are discussed.