The Chemistry Component of Natural Science Education in Primary and Basic School: Some Major Issues

Many researches of last years specify necessity of perfection of natural science education at all levels of an education system and especially at a level of a primary and basic school. The main accent of process of natural science education in a primary school should become a different sort of researches and experiments. The weak interest of the youth to natural sciences, and especially - to chemistry, is one of the most acute problems of the present education. There are many reasons for this unflavored situation is amongst these is the insufficient attention to a component of chemistry in the content of a primary education. For the period of primary school pupils does not receive the basic initial knowledge in chemistry and research skills. On the other hand, teachers of primary classes are not prepared at a sufficient level in sphere of modern natural science education. At the basic school fastening knowledge and skills in the chemistry, received in a primary school proceeds. It is very important, that before studying chemistry as an independent subject, students have received adequate representation about the basic phenomena of the nature. The integrated course of natural science subjects should promote it. In this article results of research in which students of the fourth and eight/ninth forms have taken part are presented. Students should explain such phenomena as diffusion, dissolution, condensation, evaporation, burning and others. The assumption is done that students have propaedeutic knowledge and are capable to give the explanation, as they understand the given phenomena. On the other hand, in the program of a primary school some themes in chemistry are stipulated. In this aspect the given research shows natural science literacy of students of a primary school. Research puts forward a thorny question - how to guarantee development of knowledge and skills in chemistry at the basic school.