ABSTRACT
To better understand the reasons for contemporary advocacy of history and philosophy in science teaching, or for teaching the nature of science (NOS) as this is sometimes called, it is informative to go back to the origins of these concerns in the European Enlightenment. Although not co-extensive with the Enlightenment tradition in education, the HPS&ST programme shares many of that tradition’s concerns for educational engagement by scientists, philosophers and historians in order to enlarge the domain of our knowledge of the natural and social worlds and to promote the betterment of culture and social life.
