Teaching the Nature and Limits of Science

Science attempts to explain the natural world through observation and investigation. As explained by the National Academy of Sciences, science is a particular way of knowing about the world. In science, explanations are limited to those based on observations and experiments that can be substantiated by other scientists. Explanations that cannot be based on empirical evidence are not a part of science.2 For example explanations which rely on supernatural occurrences cannot be meaningfully tested and substantiated by other scientists.  Therefore, such explanations are outside the realm of science.

Liberty Common School’s complete Policy on Teaching Science is located in Section 7.3 of the school’s Policy Manual, and also is included in the downloadable content at the bottom of this page.

Teaching Human Reproduction: Section 4.1 of the Policy Manual

Parents own the fundamental responsibility for their children’s education, which includes the teaching of human reproduction. The school’s role should be viewed as a supportive one.   We respect the right of parents to engage in conversations with their own children regarding human sexuality separate from the content taught by the school on human reproduction.

Children are naturally modest concerning their bodies and their functions and are not ready to learn everything at once.  They are naturally curious, however, and need to get answers to their questions in a way appropriate to their stage of development.  In teaching this topic, we want to minimize the embarrassment associated with it for both children and parents. We refer parents to chapters 1 and 3 of Why Johnny Can’t Tell Right from Wrong, by William Kilpatrick, as a supporting reference.

We teach human reproduction in the context of science in the fifth grade and in subsequent life-science courses through twelfth grade.   In the elementary grades we adhere to the Core Knowledge Sequence, which includes human reproduction in fifth-grade science.  These discussions will occur during regular school hours in gender-separated environments. Parents will be notified in advance and invited to attend class with their child. An alternative activity will be provided for students whose parents choose to excuse their child from the class.  The fifth-grade material dealing with human reproduction will be repeated in an evening class.  The evening presentations will also be separated by gender, and parents will have the opportunity to preview the material to be covered.  Parents may choose to attend any of the evening classes with or without their child.

Therefore, nonacademic topics, such as contraception and relationship models in which students and their peers may engage, are appropriately taught by parents, rather than members of the LCS Science Department.