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In this essay, Susan Engel argues that curiosity is both intrinsic to children's development and unfolds through social interactions. Thus, it should be cultivated in schools, even though it is often almost completely absent from classrooms. Calling on well-established research and more recent studies, Engel argues that interactions between teachers and students can foster or inhibit children's curiosity. She offers an explanation for why curiosity is not a priority in our educational system and calls for greater attention to children's interests and explorations, which, she argues, are the mechanisms that underlie authentic learning.
Several years ago, I found myself sitting in the corner of a fifth-grade classroom in a rural public school observing a science class unfold. As I looked around, I saw many of the accoutrements of an apparently good classroom. There were posters on the walls showing reptiles and fish, a diagram of the periodic table, and a photograph of a scientist in a lab coat peering into a test tube. Along one counter were several microscopes, an empty terrarium, and some bins filled with droppers, measuring devices, and scoops. The desks formed a horseshoe, all facing the front, where the teacher's desk, a tall counter from which she could make demonstrations or set out materials, was placed. Behind the teacher's desk was a wall covered with a blackboard and a screen for showing movies or presentations.
A group of twenty-one boys and girls, all around ten years old, were sitting behind their desks. The teacher, Mrs. Parker,1 was explaining that the students were to form small groups and work on an activity to learn about how the ancient Egyptians had first invented wheels for transport in order to carry stones for their huge pyramids. She then organized the children into groups of three and invited each group to come up and get the materials they needed - a flat piece of wood with a metal eye at one end, some round wooden dowels, and a small measurement device that records Newtons, the amount of force required to pull an object at a given speed for a given distance. The device had a string with a hook attached to it so that children could hitch it to the bar. She also gave...