Dr. Orletsky Will Change Your Mind About Science

Great Hearts teacher, Dr. Darryl Orletsky, will be leading a workshop titled, “Student Misconceptions in a Science Classroom” at the 2024 National Symposium for Classical Education, hosted by the Great Hearts Institute on March 20-22 at the Phoenix Convention Center.

With 20 years of experience in teaching, Dr. Orletsky will explain how students enter classrooms with robust notions about how the physical world works, rather than blank slates. These preconceived ideas are often quite different from accepted scientific findings. He believes that recognizing and overcoming these notions are difficult tasks but also instrumental in effective teaching. “No matter how many cool experiments, or demos, or loud pops that occur in your class, they can’t seem to change their thinking about things,” he said.

“The research on the topic is amazing and incorporating some of it into your lessons can drastically improve Socratic instruction and the conversations,” he said. “And this is across all of science: Astronomy, Biology, Earth Science, Chemistry, Physics, you name it.”

Dr. Orletsky suggests that since these students are not entering our classrooms as blank slates, that teachers need to change their approach. “And until we confront these deeply embedded pre-instructional beliefs we are simply pretending to teach, and they are pretending to learn.”

Don’t miss the opportunity to hear from Dr. Orletsky along with and other inspiring and informative speakers on March 20-22, 2024 at the Phoenix Convention Center, where they will each be giving their unique talks during the National Symposium for Classical Education. Registration is NOW LIVE!

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The Symposium will focus on renewing the Great Conversation concerning great works and perennial ideas. This year we will underscore the importance of teaching and modeling the conversations that lead to insight–among colleagues, between teachers and students, with families, and across our communities. At a time when our society most needs genuine dialogue, classical schools provide a sanctuary of genuine civility. Join us to discover how classical education embodies the good conversations, providing both the means and the model for a more civil society.

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