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Cultural Studies of Science Education

, Volume 11, Issue 4, pp 991–997 | Cite as

Apprenticeship in science research: whom does it serve?

  • Paul Davies
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Abstract

This article advances the thinking of Thompson, Conaway and Dolan’s “Undergraduate students’ development of social, cultural, and human capital in a network research experience”. Set against a background of change in the biosciences, and participation, it firstly explores ideas of what it means to be a scientist, then challenges the current view of the apprenticeship model of career trajectory, before going onto to consider the nature of participation in communities of practice and issues related to underrepresented minority groups in science. Central to this analysis is the place that the notion of habitus plays in thinking about shaping future scientists and the how this can both support, but also suppress, opportunities for individuals through a maintenance of the status quo.

Keywords

Science research Communities of practice Habitus Capital Undergraduate biology 
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Copyright information

© Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2016

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.Department of Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment, UCL IOEUniversity College LondonLondonUK

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