2.1 Curriculum – Miss Whiteman's ePortfolio

Scientific Literacy and Education

After our most recent science input, we were asked, in groups, to write a short essay discussing scientific literacy and it’s links to education. Following the assessment criteria, these were our thoughts;

Explanation of the concept of scientific literacy;

Scientific literacy is an often-misunderstood term and in recent years, with the increasing demand to make scientific literacy more known in schools, it is more important now than ever to ensure we have the correct understanding of what it means to be scientifically literate. In this assignment, we will go into more depth about what scientific literacy is and how this can be taught is schools; and also, the impacts of a lack of scientific literacy, especially within the media.

Many see scientific literacy in primary school as learning to spell scientific vocabulary or completing a science-based comprehension. However, while these may be useful for scientific knowledge, they do not teach children scientific literacy.

In a book discussing science in education, it is stated that “scientific literacy is the knowledge and understanding of scientific concepts and processes required for personal decision making, participation in civic and cultural affairs, and economic productivity” (National Research Council, 1996). This means that people who are scientifically literate should be able to apply their knowledge of scientific concepts to everyday life and be able to confidently explain the theory behind these concepts. They also have the responsibility to dispute reports and inaccurate publicising of scientific information.

Analysis of an example where a lack of scientific literacy has led to inaccurate media reporting;

An example of a lack of scientific literacy was a paper written by Dr Andrew Wakefield. He claimed that there was a link between the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine and autism. He stated that the combination of the three viruses contained in the vaccine may overload the body’s immune system and that there was evidence that children’s behaviour changed after getting the MMR vaccine. This led to a range of inaccurate media reporting. In turn, the number of children receiving the vaccine dropped significantly as parents were concerned about the risk of autism. This has resulted in preventable outbreaks of measles, such as one in California in 2014 where schools had to be closed.

However, it has been stated that there is, in fact, no link between MMR and autism. After carrying out a study with around 95,000 children, scientists have discredited the work of Andrew Wakefield after publishing their study in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Parents have been reassured that the MMR vaccine is safe for their children. After a hearing at the General Medical Council on 28^th January 2010, it was ruled that Wakefield acted unethically in his research.

Discussion of how teaching fair testing in school science links to scientific literacy;

It is extremely important for children to be able to gain a good understanding about fair testing. Fair testing allows children to be able to assess and produce accurate results when conducting scientific experiments in the classroom. The concept of fair testing is that only one variable in the experiment is changed at any one time, however, every other variable has to stay the same throughout the experiment. For example, “when testing various brands of kitchen paper to find out which is most absorbent, pupils learn that the size of the sheet of paper and the volume of water used are among the variables that must be controlled if the results are to be accurate” (Inspectorate Evaluation Studies, 2008). Therefore, fair testing in school science has an impact on scientific literacy, as it is important that children understand that changing a variable has an impact on the outcome of the experiment and will allow them to have a greater understanding of the experiment as a whole. Teaching fair testing allows the children to understand that there are no deliberate advantages or disadvantages within the experiment to any of the variables. Therefore, making the information reliable. Fair testing is linked to scientific literacy as the children will be able to perform the experiment and analyse the results. This will allow greater understanding of specific concepts in depth as they will be able to identify the problems within in the experiment.

References

BBC News (2008) MMR Research Timeline. Available at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/1808956.stm (Accessed 9th February 2018)
Inspectorate Evaluation Studies (2008) Science in the Primary School. Marlborough Street, Dublin: Inspectorate, Evaluation Support and Research Unit, p. 4. Available at: https://www.education.ie/en/Publications/Inspection-Reports-Publications/Evaluation-Reports-Guidelines/Science-in-the-Primary-School.pdf (Accessed: 11 February 2018).
National Research Council (1996) Available from: https://www.nap.edu/catalog/4962/national-science-education-standards
The Guardian (2015) No link between MMR and autism, major study concludes. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/apr/21/no-link-between-mmr-and-autism-major-study-concludes (Accessed 9th February 2018)
The National Health Service (2015) MMR Vaccine. Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vaccinations/mmr-vaccine/ (Accessed: 9^th February 2018)

Our first lecture in the values module looked at the themes ’empathy and the sociological imagination’. Before this input, we were asked to look through various materials and one video, a talk by Clint Smith, in particular has stuck with me over the last few weeks.

Sharing your thoughts and opinions is a struggle that many people have throughout their lives. Whether this is due to a fear of public speaking, anxiety or just not feeling comfortable in speaking out, it is an issue that can affect both yourself and people around you.

In this video, Smith discusses how at the start of the school year, he reinforces the idea of “telling your truth”. At several points in the video, he revisits the idea and comments on that fact that many people are “listening to what people are saying but barely paying attention to the things they don’t say”. I feel that he is touching on the point that when someone is saying something, there may be an underlying issues. Of course, others may have a different take on this, but this is just what I think it means. Another comment made by Smith which has really stuck with me is – “validation doesn’t need words to endorse its existence”. I really feel that this is a strong statement, explaining that we don’t need people to give us permission or approval in what we say or share. The only validation we need in order to share our feelings and beliefs, is our own.

As a discussion point, we were asked to make a note of how certain issues could be seen as both personal troubles and public issues. By looking more in depth into this issue, we can see how it affects not only yourself, but also other people.

Not being able to speak up in certain situations can clearly be seen as a personal trouble. It may be because you feel you may be judged or that you worry that you may offend someone with differing opinions. This is applicable to all ages, especially schools, I feel. We’ve all been there; not wanting to speak out in class in case our answer is wrong and all the other kids laugh. It’s something that the majority of pupils go through because no one wants to embarrass themselves in front of their peers. Some people may just feel that they are not worthy enough to share their opinions if it is with people of higher status and instead just go with popular opinion. It is unfortunate that people feel this way, but it does happen. Smith states that often instead of sharing our true thoughts, we are just “telling people what they want to hear rather than what they need to hear”. I feel that this is something that everyone is guilty of. However, I wouldn’t say that this is always a bad thing and that sometimes, in order to save hurting someones feelings, it may actually be better to tell them what they want to hear rather than what you actually think. (Again, just my opinion; others may differ).

As well as a personal trouble, this can also be a public issue. If no one speaks up to protect someone or something that requires assistance, it may be defenceless and left open to mistreatment, whether that is verbally or physically. This may be rather excessive in some circumstances, but sometimes it is the case. Regarding less extreme circumstances, simply not sharing ideas and thoughts could potentially lead to bad decisions being made in a group because there were little options.

This issue is particularly important to me as being in lecture theatres full of people, I understand why some people may find it difficult to speak up and share their opinions. The thought of being judged by your fellow peers seems scary, but we all just need to remember that we are all in the same position. We may have differing opinions, but surely being in a module focused on Values, we would know not to judge others for their ideas and feelings.