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As learners build their understanding of each concept and their relationship with other concepts, they can apply them to increasingly sophisticated contexts. Asa result, learners can increasingly predict the stability of an ecosystem and what may effect changes in that ecosystem. Learners can then start predicting how the same changes may play out in different environments they may have not learned about or experienced. The more contexts the learner encounters, the more accurate their predictions will become.
The science concept frameworks are unpacked over five cognitive levels of conceptual development. The five levels are not age-related levels, as each learner has a unique capacity for creating their understanding to varying cognitive levels within each concept. We encourage educators to begin with ‘safe’ contexts. 'Safe' contexts are contexts where the learner already has established some vocabulary and some experience within that context. What is critical in this phase is choosing an appropriate range of contexts for the learner to experience their learning journey through that starts with very safe and works through with increasing lack of experience and language. It is important that the first context the learner is exposed to is a 'safe' one, just as when learners learn to drive, the first lesson they experience is not doing hill starts but rather it is steering the car in a very safe environment.
The competency of ‘connecting and reflecting’ is crucial here so that each new context builds on the learner's previous experiences in science. Reflecting on the previous learning allows the learners to make connections between previous learning and the new learning.
For the ‘starting out’ level of the Science Concepts, ‘Four fundamental forces underpin all observed motion and interactions’, we could begin with creating a language around their experience of feeling forces in everyday life such as when they fall off their bike, run into someone in the playground, or slip over on a polished floor. The scientific language must be added slowly and be consistent with the learner’s experiences. The first five levels for science follow, including some of the concept frameworks and how we may express those concepts as learning statements for the learners.
The individual variables have each been underlined for each of the science concepts that follow.