teacher’s notes
student’s notes
The age of the Earth:
the changing views of
science
Learning objectives:
•
that scientists use evidence to determine the
probable age of the Earth
•
that over time a range of different ideas has
been put forward based upon different
observations
Timing: 20 minutes
Introduction:
Students often think that there is one correct answer
to be found to any particular problem and that there
is no room for different interpretations of data. In
addition they often do not consider the degree of
reliability afforded to different observations and the
extent to which science can be certain about the
ideas put forward. Finally they rarely consider the
social context and its influence upon how scientists
choose to interpret (or ignore) data. This was
certainly true in the past and the story of how the age
of the Earth was determined illustrates this perfectly.
Pupils read the article The age of the Earth: the
changing views of science and answer the questions
based upon it.
A second activity The age of the Earth: can you believe
everything you read? is closely linked to this one and
could be tackled as an extension exercise. It
illustrates how people with specific beliefs may select
or misinterpret scientific evidence to suit the
hypothesis they are supporting. The final message
from this extension exercise is the extent to which
pupils should be critical of information found on the
internet.