Science is a dynamic, collaborative human activity that uses distinctive ways of valuing, thinking and working
to understand natural phenomena. Science is based on people’s aspirations and motivations to follow their
curiosity and wonder about the physical, biological and technological world. Scientific knowledge represents
the constructions made by people endeavouring to explain their observations of the world around them.
Scientific explanations are built in different ways as people pursue intuitive and imaginative ideas, respond
in a rational way to hunches, guesses and chance events, challenge attitudes of the time, and generate a
range of solutions to problems, building on existing scientific knowledge. As a result of these endeavours,
people can use their scientific understandings with confidence in their daily lives. Because scientific
explanations are open to scrutiny, scientific knowledge may be tentative and is continually refined in the
light of new evidence.

The Integrated Science General course is a course grounded in the belief that science is, in essence, a
practical activity. From this stems the view that conceptual understandings in science derive from a need to
find solutions to real problems in the first instance. The inquiring scientist may then take these
understandings and apply them in a new context, often quite removed from their original field. This course
seeks to reflect this creative element of science as inquiry. It should involve students in research that
develops a variety of skills, including the use of appropriate technology, an array of diverse methods of
investigation, and a sense of the practical application of the domain. It emphasises formulating and testing
hypotheses and the critical importance of evidence in forming conclusions. This course enables them to
investigate science issues in the context of the world around them, and encourages student collaboration
and cooperation with community members employed in scientific pursuits. It requires them to be creative,
intellectually honest, to evaluate arguments with skepticism, and to conduct their investigations in ways that
are ethical, fair and respectful of others.

The Integrated Science General course is inclusive and aims to be attractive to students with a wide variety
of backgrounds, interests and career aspirations.