Abstract

Currently, in basic education, teaching-learning is moving from a content-based approach to a competency-based one. The complexity of this second approach leads to certain weaknesses in its implementation. The above has been evidenced by the unfavorable results of PISA. This is a consequence of multiple factors, one of them being the use of school textbooks that are not yet adjusted to this approach and that warrant further study of this type. Thus, this article aims to analyze to what extent the activities proposed by the Science and Technology textbooks of the second grade of secondary education in Peru promote the acquisition of scientific skills in students. The authors decided to apply the typology of capacities, which consists of a table with 4 categories with their respective subcategories. The findings show that 36.80% of activities are proposed to promote the development of type I capacities, such as identifying characteristics, establishing relationships, comparing, and defining. 33.40% type II, how to use knowledge in specific situations, where they describe what happens, explain how it happens, and theoretically justify why it happens. 19.20% of type III, such as observing, searching for information in different sources, hypothesizing, and proposing their own work strategies, in addition to carrying out experiences to obtain data. 10.60% type IV, such as analyzing information, drawing conclusions, and arguing with a scientific basis in tests and evidence. It concludes by mentioning that, in the school textbooks under study, abilities of lower cognitive demand are promoted as a priority, such as those of type I and II, to the detriment of those of type III and IV, for which there is a need for a transformation of the proposed activities.

Keywords Scientific Competences; School Texts; Scientific Literacy