Abstract

Epistemic Epistemicpractices are the socially organized and interactionally accomplished ways that members of a group propose, communicate, assess, and legitimize knowledge claims. Drawing from studies of science and education, this chapter argues that epistemic practices are interactional, contextual, intertextual, and consequential. Through a review of science studies, the argument for the relevance of a focus on epistemic Scientificpractices to derive implications for science teaching and learning. There has been considerable empirical work from multiple disciplinary perspectives informing perspectives about science and the inner workings of scientific Scientificcommunities. These studies examine the practices, discourses, and cultures of scientists and scientific communities. These perspectives are applied to three types of educational approaches for science learning to examine ways that engaging in epistemic practices supports goals of LiteracyscientificScientificliteracyScientific literacy. The chapter shows how a focus on the knowledge construction processes in schools offers contributions to thinking about science education.