THE SCIENCE TEACHER AT WORK

INTERVIEW WITH

RICHARD
FERNANDES
Richard Fernandes co-founded Centre for Learning (CFL), Bangalore - an
‘alternative’ school, where he developed and implemented laboratory-based
curricula for learning Physics. A strong believer in the dictum that “Physics is best learnt by doing”,
he enjoys building experimental apparatus from material found in scrap yards or cannibalized from
discarded instruments. In this interview, he shares his experiences of being a Physics teacher at the
middle and high school.

Tell us something about your work as a science programmes ever, and drew heavily on the material
educator, especially at the middle-school level. developed by them. However, I cannot see myself being
I set up a Physics teaching laboratory for students a science teacher in the mainstream school system with
of the middle to higher secondary level, in a small, its emphasis on content and the pressure to deliver it in
‘alternate’ school that was started by a group of a specified time.
educators, including myself. The unique thing about the
On a daily basis, how do you prepare for class?
programme I set up was that experiment and theory
were not two separate aspects of the subject. Classes I do not teach school-level science any more. When
were held in the laboratory and students hardly ever I did, preparing for a class meant getting apparatus
sat down to be ‘taught’. They were on their feet doing out of cupboards and making sure that things were
things most of the time. in working order. I generally had a lesson plan that I
threw out of the window if the class took an interesting
It did not take much money to set up this laboratory;
turn. This is a big advantage of not being weighed down
most of the equipment was built by me using very
by a syllabus.
rudimentary woodworking and machining skills and
equipment. The main sources of material were the If one walked into your classroom on a typical day,
scrap shops and ‘chor bazaars’ around Bangalore. But what would they observe?
that did not mean that the experiments were crude
Students going through a set of instructions, written
and unsophisticated. Using such simple equipment
or verbal, setting up and doing a set of experiments,
brought a sense of connection with the data collected
discussing the results of these experiments, drawing
or phenomenon studied. This is in contrast to the black
logical and not necessarily correct conclusions, and
box approach that is followed even in engineering
being guided by me to the desired conclusion if that was
education today where experiments are set up and
important. These activities are often boisterous and noisy,
sealed in a polished box by some manufacturer of
and much of my effort goes into preventing accidents.
scientific equipment and a prescription then given to
get the experimental results. Do you have any advice for science teachers who
might have big ideas for ways to get their students
What made you want to become a science teacher? interested, but might not be sure how to implement
The joy of sharing what I enjoy is probably the them?
foremost. Other reasons include a missionary zeal to Early interest in Science is in wanting to know the how
do my bit to get rid of superstition and obscurantism and why of the workings of things, both natural and
in society. I was strongly inspired by the work of the human-made. Address those things that are accessible,
Nuffield Foundation, who developed one of the most be honest and logical, and do not give hand-waving
comprehensive science and student friendly education reasons. I believe that remarks like “scientists have

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 “Experiment and theory were not two separate aspects of learning Physics. Classes were held in the laboratory and
students hardly ever sat down to be ‘taught’. They were on their feet, doing things most of the time”.

found” discourages students and puts them in awe of How can a teacher motivate a student to read science
these ‘scientists’ and at best makes them want to be articles outside school textbooks?
one of those scientists. On the other hand, tell them, Informative posters, such as those brought out by
“you are the scientist, make your discovery”. The first National Geographic magazine, liberally distributed in
approach makes them ambitious; the latter gives them the laboratory, encourage students to explore reading
the confidence that comes with achievement. material in those topics. Have articles lying around.
Do not make nationalism an agenda in science education. Do not be too concerned about these being ruined by
The Raman Effect is very hard for the average high school handling. Do not force anything; just an occasional
student to understand. Leave it alone. suggestion is adequate. An open library with every spare
bit of money being spent on popular science magazines is
Is there something as a ‘natural aptitude’ for a big help. Let them see you reading; that inspires them to
science? What is the role of a science educator in do the same.
identifying and nurturing it?
This is dangerous territory for a teacher. I like to How important is it for middle school teachers to
look at science without fragmentation into disciplines
believe that all students are equally capable and I pay
(physics, chemistry, biology)?
equal attention to all of them. Students get fired up by
different things at different times. It would be wrong to We learn various disciplines in a fragmented manner.
judge students too early. Very often the more articulate This is out of convenience rather than the nature of the
and precocious students are identified as having a disciplines. Nature does not behave in this fashion. It is
natural gift. therefore necessary that teachers be aware of this; and
not place excessive emphasis on this fragmentation in
I have seen some students take to science more easily
their classes.
than others. A little detective work then leads to the
fact that the reasons are more social than anything else; Describe a teaching method or strategy that is
students are picking up stuff from their environment – successful in helping students learn a concept in
a parent, older relative or friend. biology, chemistry, or physics?
The genius and the prodigy will always find a way Follow the scientific method: experiment, abstract,
to emerge. It is the average student that needs to be predict and test.
nurtured.
Have you ever used differentiated instruction?
What if your students don’t ‘get it’? In other words,
if a lesson is not working for all your students, do In the classroom
you have a plan for remediation? situation, I have not
provided any kind
If students don’t get it, try another approach. There are
of differentiated
many ways to look at any problem.
instruction. Instead,
How important are specialist subject qualifications I prefer to use more
for effective science teachers? individualised
assessments.
In a perfect world, school science teachers would
have research degrees in their respective disciplines.
What is the role of: a) experiments, b) computers,
Not because researchers know more but because
c) place-based experiences and d) story-telling
they develop the skill to tease out information out of in middle-school science teaching? What are you
what they study. This would enhance their ability to your experiences of these? How should a teacher
attempt many different approaches to help a student introduce them in classrooms?
understand something. This is your answer to the
Without a doubt, experiments and place-based
ksjdgprevious question.
experiences are central to science teaching. We

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 …remarks like “scientists have found” discourages
place emphasis on formative assessments, and generally
students and puts them in awe of these “scientists” ignore any kind of summative assessment at the middle
and at best makes them want to be one of those school level.
scientists. On the other hand, tell them, “you
are the scientist, make your discovery”. The Can competition be re-defined to function as a
first approach makes them ambitious; the latter positive, non-stressful process?
gives them the confidence that comes with I do not believe that competition can be a non-stressful
achievement”.
process.

should not teach science as a bunch of facts or a series What is the weirdest thing that you have ever done
of explanations of phenomena that are not seen easily in the name of science?
by the student. We should encourage students to make I once sang loudly and in high falsetto into a microphone
observations about things around them, distil these connected to an oscilloscope to demonstrate the
observations, teach them to ask critical questions, frequency range of the voice. It led to considerable
and then do controlled experiments. I cannot imagine mirth (and annoyance) all around.
myself teaching science without getting students to do
experiments. When you teach about density, measure What do you love most about being in the classroom
the mass and volume of a brick, calculate its density and teaching middle school science?
and then use it to estimate the weight of the walls of the I was schooled in the conventional way: stock
classroom or a truck load of mud. The immediacy that questions with stock answers, concepts to be learned
it brings is far more valuable than a dozen problems and problems to be solved; with no emphasis on
involving the application of density. observation and deduction.
Computers are way over-rated and should not enter the Teaching middle school science brought me startling,
science classroom unless a student actually wants to yet natural, answers from students to common
use it to control an experiment. questions. This showed me that Physics was often
Anecdotes about discoveries and their discoverers counter-intuitive, and quite frequently changed my
are very valuable; the one about James Joule going perspective on what I thought I knew well.
on his honeymoon with a sensitive thermometer and
measuring the temperature difference of water at What have been some of the moments/events/
the top of the waterfall and that at the bottom evokes memories of teaching that you cherish the most?
giggles in a bunch of teenagers, but drives home an I once set a lab mock exam for students appearing for
otherwise abstruse idea. their higher secondary examination. It had to do with
observing and listing the standing waves in a hack-saw
How can teachers encourage greater participation blade excited with a variable-speed eccentrically loaded
by women in science and technology? motor. The students were doing this experiment for the
I would think that a teacher has to work on his/her first time. The “Wow!” one of them excitedly yelled out
prejudices, if any, on the ability of women to participate when he saw the first stationary wave and the many
in the scientific workspace. If no prejudice exists, such “Wows” from students when they see something
teachers will not discriminate between boys and girls that is ‘mind blowing and awesome’ is what makes up
in the classroom or laboratory. If there is prejudice, my most memorable moments in teaching science.
no amount of regulation will prevent it from being
conveyed to the girls that they are not capable of being “I generally had a lesson plan that I threw out of
just as good as the boys. the window if the class took an interesting turn.
This is a big advantage of not being weighed down
What would a science assessment in middle school by a syllabus”.
look like if you designed it with learning as the goal?
When a young student learns science, the information Do you have any advice for, say, students who
s/he absorbs is fairly rudimentary and will undergo realize they like science, or want to be a science
many refinements as s/he progresses through the teacher?
educational system. On the other hand, the methods of
It can take a long time, and there is a lot to learn before
observation have the same innate character and I would
you may get creative; just hang in there!
give far more importance to them. For these reasons, I

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