Taoism and its implications for science education

Abstract

As one of the major schools of thought in ancient China, Taoism centers on the concept of "Tao", the Way, which has two distinct characteristics: (1) Tao itself can be deemed as a final "reality" that is equivalent to the ontology of the Universe; and (2) Tao itself cannot be defined directly by human language. Taoism posits a holistically cosmological view on the universe as an organic Whole and illuminates that there is always a tendency to establish a dynamic balance within the Universe. Based on these characteristics and the belief that, to a certain degree, relationships exist between Taoism, modern science, and the contemporary environmental crisis, this paper attempts to render a number of implications for science education including: (1) providing a philosophical ground to loosen the tension resulting from current arguments on science education research in the postmodern era; (2) setting an alternative possibility for developing science curricula; and (3) serving as a practical ideology for self-reflection on science teaching.