Abstract
Coyne (1997) wrote in his book, The Laboratory Companion – A Practical Guide to Materials, Equipment, and Technique, that “the most dangerous person in the laboratory, to both equipment and other personnel, is the person who through pride, ego, or ignorance, claims knowledge that he or she does not have (pp. xviii)”. Most people working in a school laboratory setting are learners (teachers, technical staff and students) and are therefore unlikely to claim “knowledge that he or she does not have”. It is not a crime if we do not know some facts or information. However, if we do not make an effort to know what we should know in our studies, or to do our work properly, then that would not be a good learning or work attitude. This is especially so in the science laboratory. Such an attitude would put everyone working in the laboratory on the path of danger. Hence, as science teachers and students, we should make an effort to know our “tools of the trade” – the laboratory apparatus, equipment and instruments. We should try to know more about the hardware we are working with for the safety of all, including ours.
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Tan, Ks. (2011). Getting to Know Your Tools as Science Teachers and Students. In: Cheng, M.M.H., So, W.W.M. (eds) Science Education in International Contexts. SensePublishers. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6091-427-0_8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6091-427-0_8
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