Scientism, creationism or category error? A cross‐age survey of secondary school students’ perceptions of the relationships between science and religion

Journal article


Billingsley, B., Taber, K. and Nassaji, M. 2020. Scientism, creationism or category error? A cross‐age survey of secondary school students’ perceptions of the relationships between science and religion. The Curriculum Journal. 32 (2), pp. 334-358. https://doi.org/10.1002/curj.83
AuthorsBillingsley, B., Taber, K. and Nassaji, M.
Abstract

We report on a survey of 1717 students at two different points of their secondary school education. This survey is designed to discover their reasoning about scientific and religious accounts of the origins of the universe and life. The study was motivated by a concern, based on previous research, that factors such as the compartmentalised curriculum may limit students’ progression in interdisciplinary reasoning and their capacities to appreciate why science and religion are not necessarily incompatible. To investigate these matters, we gathered data in seven secondary schools in England. The findings indicated that a significant proportion of students are working with a poor understanding of the limits of science and of the range of scholarly positions on the nature of religious explanation. The implications of the results for educational theory and practice are discussed.

KeywordsEducation
Year2020
JournalThe Curriculum Journal
Journal citation32 (2), pp. 334-358
PublisherWiley
ISSN0958-5176
1469-3704
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1002/curj.83
Official URLhttps://doi.org/10.1002/curj.83
FunderJohn Templeton Foundation
Publication dates
Online13 Oct 2020
Publication process dates
Deposited18 Nov 2020
Output statusPublished
Additional information

Publications router: Date 2020-10-13 of type 'publication_date' with format 'electronic' included in notification
Publications router: Date 2020-10-13 of type 'epub' included in notification
Publications router: Date 2020-10-13 of type 'issued' included in notification

Publications router: License for VOR version of this article starting on 2020-10-13: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ included in notification

Licensehttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Permalink -

https://repository.canterbury.ac.uk/item/8wv68/scientism-creationism-or-category-error-a-cross-age-survey-of-secondary-school-students-perceptions-of-the-relationships-between-science-and-religion

  • 70
    total views
  • 0
    total downloads
  • 2
    views this month
  • 0
    downloads this month

Export as

Related outputs

Epistemic insight: Teaching students about the nature of knowledge, science, religion and beyond
Lawson, F. and Billingsley, B. Epistemic insight: Teaching students about the nature of knowledge, science, religion and beyond.
Preparing students to engage with science‐ and technology‐related misinformation: The role of epistemic insight
Billingsley, B. and Heyes, J. 2022. Preparing students to engage with science‐ and technology‐related misinformation: The role of epistemic insight. The Curriculum Journal. https://doi.org/10.1002/curj.190
Secondary school students’ perceptions of scientific and religious positions on miracles
Billingsley, B., Taber, K. and Nassaji, M. 2021. Secondary school students’ perceptions of scientific and religious positions on miracles. Science and Christian Belief.
Secondary students' values and perceptions of science-related careers: responses to vignette-based scenarios
Taber, K., Billingsley, B. and Riga, F. 2021. Secondary students' values and perceptions of science-related careers: responses to vignette-based scenarios. SN Social Sciences. 1 (5), p. 104. https://doi.org/10.1007/s43545-021-00130-9
Covid-19 as an opportunity to teach epistemic insight: findings from exploratory workshops on Covid-19 and science with students aged 15-17 in England
Billingsley, B., Heyes, J. and Nassaji, M. 2021. Covid-19 as an opportunity to teach epistemic insight: findings from exploratory workshops on Covid-19 and science with students aged 15-17 in England. SN Social Sciences. 1 (11), p. 260. https://doi.org/10.1007/s43545-021-00243-1
The epistemic insight digest: Issue 2: Summer 2021
Crook, Matthew, Wall, Jasmine, Chignall, David, Parker, Gayle, Wilkinson, Murray and Billingsley, Berry Shalet, Dani (ed.) 2021. The epistemic insight digest: Issue 2: Summer 2021. Canterbury Canterbury Christ Church University.
Secondary school students' reasoning about science and personhood
Billingsley, B. and Nassaji, M. 2021. Secondary school students' reasoning about science and personhood. Science & Education. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11191-021-00199-x
Primary school students’ perspectives on questions that bridge science and religion: Findings from a survey study in England
Billingsley, B., Abedin, M. and Nassaji, Mehdi 2019. Primary school students’ perspectives on questions that bridge science and religion: Findings from a survey study in England. British Educational Research Journal. 46 (1), pp. 177-204. https://doi.org/10.1002/berj.3574
Perceptions of the relationships between science and religion held by upper-secondary school students in Church of England schools
Billingsley, B. and Nassaji, Mehdi 2020. Perceptions of the relationships between science and religion held by upper-secondary school students in Church of England schools. International Journal of Christianity & Education. 24 (2), pp. 153-178. https://doi.org/10.1177/2056997119895542
A guidebook to building an epistemically insightful learning experience in primary schools
Lawson, F., Simpson, S. and Billingsley, B. 2020. A guidebook to building an epistemically insightful learning experience in primary schools. Canterbury Christ Church University. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5211208
A guidebook to building permeable classroom walls in secondary schools
Lawson, F. and Billingsley, B. 2020. A guidebook to building permeable classroom walls in secondary schools. Canterbury Christ Church University. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5220714
The epistemic insight digest: Issue 1: Autumn 2020
Billingsley, Berry, Stone, Paula, Goddard, Kim, Peters, Christopher, Wilkinson, Victoria, Wilkinson, Murray, Stockham, Claire, Spaull, Stewart, Smith, Lauren, Robinson, Benjamin and Hosseinzadehrahvar, Shirin Stone, Paula (ed.) 2020. The epistemic insight digest: Issue 1: Autumn 2020. Canterbury Canterbury Christ Church University.
Shattering the subject silos: learning about big questions and epistemic insights
Billingsley, B. and Hazeldine, L. 2020. Shattering the subject silos: learning about big questions and epistemic insights. Impact: Journal of the Chartered College of Teaching. Summer (Issue 9).
Developing a cross-curricular session about evolution for initial teacher education: findings from a small-scale study with pre-service primary school teacher
Billingsley, B., Abedin, M., Chappell, K. and Hatcher, C. 2019. Developing a cross-curricular session about evolution for initial teacher education: findings from a small-scale study with pre-service primary school teacher. in: Harms, U. and Reiss, M. (ed.) Evolution Education Re-considered: Understanding What Works Switzerland Springer. pp. 41-57
Exploring secondary school students’ stances on the predictive and explanatory power of science
Billingsley, B. and Nassaji, M. 2019. Exploring secondary school students’ stances on the predictive and explanatory power of science. Science & Education. 28 (1-2), pp. 87-107. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11191-019-00031-7
Inspiring minds: Widening participation opportunities with big questions on identity and STEM
Lawson, F. and Billingsley, B. 2019. Inspiring minds: Widening participation opportunities with big questions on identity and STEM.
A framework for teaching epistemic insight in schools
Billingsley, B., Nassaji, M., Fraser, S. and Lawson, F. 2018. A framework for teaching epistemic insight in schools. Research in Science Education. 48, pp. 1115-1132. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-018-9788-6
Entrenched compartmentalisation and students’ abilities and levels of interest in science
Billingsley, B., Nassaji, M. and Abedin, M. 2017. Entrenched compartmentalisation and students’ abilities and levels of interest in science. School Science Review. 99 (367), pp. 26-31.
Epistemic insight and the power and limitations of science in multidisciplinary arenas
Billingsley, B. and Hardman, M. 2017. Epistemic insight and the power and limitations of science in multidisciplinary arenas. School Science Review. 99 (367), pp. 16-18.
Epistemic insight and classrooms with permeable walls
Billingsley, B. and Ramos Arias, A. 2017. Epistemic insight and classrooms with permeable walls. School Science Review. 99 (367), pp. 44-53.
Epistemic insight: teaching and learning about the nature of science in real-world and multidisciplinary arenas
Billingsley, B. and Hardman, M. 2017. Epistemic insight: teaching and learning about the nature of science in real-world and multidisciplinary arenas. School Science Review.
Teaching and learning about epistemic insight
Billingsley, B. 2017. Teaching and learning about epistemic insight. School Science Review.