Some classes might focus on textbook material while others involve students in directly reading journal articles. In either case, the goal is to sort through the conclusions that researchers have reached and the theories that they have established over time. Learning science should teach you to pick through the information and figure out what is relevant and/or what seems scientifically valid. This includes being able to analyze a research design and find potential flaws that may have effected the outcome of a study. This ability will help you develop your own experiments. Furthermore, interpreting research enhances critical thinking skills needed in other areas of study.
A science course should bestow the ability to remain objective. Learn to set aside any personal biases when conducting or reading research. The concept includes learning how to define ideas so that they cannot be interpreted in multiple ways. Moreover, because no one is completely objective, you should also develop an eye for finding, and taking note of, possible subjectivity in the research of others.
Methodology, not facts, lies at the base of scientific thought. One of the key goals of learning science, therefore, is understanding the scientific method. The overall idea is to always follow a step-by-step process.Once you have learned to interpret research, you should then be able to form hypotheses, or educated guesses, about what will happen in future experiments. While developing methodology skills, you also learn to define variables, execute procedures, present results and make conclusions. Science classes should help you refine these abilities and practice them according to your age and level.
Different fields of science require different tools and measurements. Hence, a science class will teach you how and when to use the appropriate ones. For instance, the goal of a chemistry class would be to familiarize you with chemistry lab tools like beakers and Bunsen burners. A psychology class might focus on surveys and questionnaires. All science classes put an emphasis on empirical data that can be observed and measured.
The most important goal of learning science at any level centers around an ability to identify patterns and relationships between objects or phenomena. Whether reading a textbook, analyzing studies, or forming conclusions about the variables in an experiment; you must be able to determine cause and effect. Sometimes this includes a detailed understanding of the processes involved. On the other hand, learning science gives you the "gift" of having light-bulb moments such as that of Benjamin Franklin when he discovered the relationship between lightning, his kite and electric shock.