Conscious citizenship and science education. Promoting students’ epistemic cognition through a taxonomy of epistemological obstacles

Living in the current information and knowledge-based society can be a double-edged sword: the possibility of reaping benefits depends, to a large extent, on the ability to decide who and what to believe, as well as on knowing how to integrate multiple sources of information to gain consistent and expendable knowledge, aimed at improving the quality of people’s personal and professional life. This means that schools and other formal agencies should provide learners with the analytical and critical tools necessary to effectively manage the flow of information they are exposed to. In this context, the paper intends to clarify under what conditions the integration of knowledge can foster a deeper understanding of scientific rationality in students, allowing them to participate in society as educated, informed and responsible citizens. For this purpose, a project of a taxonomy of epistemological obstacles will be presented as an example of an integrated approach to science teaching and learning, conceived as a correlated system of products and expert practices.