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| The Importance of Science Literacy: A Perspective | | |
Dr. Pragya Khanna
While most of the new colleges in the UT of J&K are gearing up to introduce Science stream in their curriculum, I welcome the idea and wish to strike a chord with my readers on the importance of it and urge the students and teachers to take it in a different light this time that is more futuristic and will affect the well-being of Indian Education System in a more positive way.
Laser surgery . . . life in a meteorite from Mars . . . cable television . . . the Internet . . . gene therapy . . . faxes . . . . These are signs of our times, markers of this era’s scientific and technological revolution. Science and technology have changed the way we work, communicate, and view the world.
As adults, we can remember a time not so very long ago when our homes and businesses were quite different. Those of us born in 70s or before that clearly remember that most of electronic devises seen today were not commercially available till we reached the teen years. Now they are commonplace. In the 1980s, offices were beginning to use computers. Today, not only do most office workers have their own “PC,” but many computers are part of an extensive network, the Internet, that can bring information, photographs, and moving images to individuals at work and at home. Above all, everyone seems to have a ready access to the plethora of information right at the touch of a finger.
As the world becomes increasingly scientific and technological, our future grows more dependent on how wisely we use science and technology. And that, in turn, depends on the effectiveness of the education we receive. With the exploding impact of science and technology on every aspect of our lives, especially on personal and political decisions that sustain our economy and democracy, we cannot afford an illiterate society.
For our species to thrive in this century, we must, through deliberate education, create a universally science literate society. The life-enhancing potential of science and technology cannot be realized unless everyone understands the nature of these subjects and acquires basic scientific habits. Without a science-literate population, the outlook for a better world is not promising.
While the importance of science in our daily lives may not always be obvious, we actually make countless science-based choices each day. Right from managing our health and well-being to choosing products for our daily routines and considering their impact on the environment, science literacy plays a key role. We live in an age of constant scientific discovery, a world shaped by revolutionary new technologies. Just look at your favourite newspaper. The chances are pretty good that in the next few days you’ll see a headline about global warming, cloning, fossils, or genetically engineered food, environmental debates on ozone depletion and acid rain, to economic threats from climate change and invasive species. Other stories featuring exotic materials, medical advances, DNA evidence, and new drugs all deal with issues that directly affect your life. As a consumer, as a business professional, and as a citizen, you will have to form opinions about these and other science-based issues if you are to participate fully in modern society.
The advantages of a raised level of scientific literacy within society are obvious. People who are better able to think critically about the information they are receiving and weigh up for themselves the available evidence are more empowered to make important choices. A society that has a grasp of how science works is less prone to being misled or abused by individuals or organizations who may profit from misinterpreting data, or who may distort scientific findings to promote their own agenda.
Twenty-five years ago, if a child injured her knee while playing, parents would take her to the emergency room for an X-ray. Today, the doctor could recommend an MRI (magnetic resonance image) as well. The more familiar people are with such devices and procedures the easier it will be to make informed decisions about their use.
Many of us in our own homes and workplaces are scrambling to keep up with science and technology, but our children cannot afford to be unprepared. They must be ready to take their roles as citizens, employees, and family members in a rapidly changing world and highly competitive global job market.
Today’s science textbooks and methods of instruction, far from helping, often actually impede progress toward science literacy. They emphasize the learning of answers more than the exploration of questions, memory at the expense of critical thought, bits and pieces of information instead of understandings in context, recitation over argument, reading rather than doing. They fail to encourage students to work together, to share ideas and information freely with one another, or to use modern instruments to extend their intellectual capabilities.
Today’s science and mathematics curriculums are overstuffed and undernourished. Over time, they have grown with little restraint, overwhelming teachers and students and making it difficult to keep track of what science, mathematics, and technology are truly essential. Some topics are taught over and over in needless detail; some that are of equal or greater importance to science literacy—often from the physical and social sciences and from technology—are absent or are reserved for only a few students.
Perhaps the most important role of science is to sustain that sense of awe and wonder in young people that comes from exploring and understanding the natural and technological world. Because science can make a unique difference in a child’s life, it is important for it to be a central part of the school curriculum. When it is well taught and student engagement is high, science can be the academic subject that keeps a child’s natural love of learning alive.
Now why is a public understanding of science important? It is important especially for its civic and economic benefits. Who makes up the public? And what does it mean to be scientifically literate? More to the point: are scientists part of the public, and are they all by default scientifically literate? To answer, let me first state the obvious: scientists aren’t a monolithic bunch. Granted there are common occupational threads, but in an age of specialization it’s not unlikely that the high-energy theorist next door on the right doesn’t know diddly about what the genomicist on the left is doing. So when I say ‘the public’ I don’t mean non-scientists, I mean non-specialist (in whatever field we happen to be discussing). This definition gives the term “the public” some extra fluidity, since it implies that who we consider part of the public changes from topic to topic.
A major goal of scientists and of science education is to make sure that every individual has some basic level of scientific literacy. Scientific literacy is defined as the knowledge and understanding of scientific concepts and processes that are required to make decisions and participate in civil and economic affairs that pertain to one’s culture.
Today especially, conversations on technological advances, such as genetically modified food, stem-cell research, and cloning, are often held between scientists, politicians, and, most importantly, democratic citizens. Scientific literacy gives these citizens the ability to accurately and efficiently have conversations and make decisions about these new technologies. The more scientifically literate our citizens are, the more they’ll be able to access and engage with the scientific aspects of key public policy issues.
There are many examples that should be readily accessible to regular readers of this or other science blogs: are vaccines safe and effective, how much of our resources should we invest in reducing carbon emissions, are GMOs safe and are they a benefit or risk to the environment, should we put fluoride in public water supplies, how should alternative medical treatments be regulated and how should we invest further in clinical trials of their efficacy?
There are countless other examples, but these are some of the most prominent. In every case, understanding of how science works, of critical thinking and how people generally form and maintain their opinions, and of the specific factual details are important to arriving at a practical decision, at the personal and societal level.
Imagine the profound waste of resources (time, money, effort, media attention, raw material, land, etc.) resulting from coming to the wrong conclusion on these and other questions. Imagine the potential loss of quality and duration of life.
Now imagine we lived in a society where the vast majority of its citizens had a high degree of scientific and critical thinking literacy. To give just one example, we were a hair’s breadth from eradicating polio from the world about a decade ago. It would have gone the way of smallpox. But fear and superstition got in the way, and “evil was allowed to endure,” to quote Lord Elrond. Now we are dealing with further polio outbreaks, and the possible development of new strains resistant to existing vaccines. School is only part of the equation, however. In order to attain and maintain scientific literacy, we need lifelong learning. Most adults get their information from mass media, which means it is in our best interest to have very high standards of science journalism (something which has been waning of late). There are two basic approaches to improving science journalism. Either we need to train journalists to better understand science, or we need to train scientists to be able to communicate to the media and the public. Both skill sets are required.
I don’t know how to fix science journalism, but perhaps it can start with the public demanding better science reporting. Of course, this requires scientific literacy in the first place. One approach is for those who do have a science background to bootstrap the process by providing critical public feedback to science reporting. Social media is an excellent venue for this.
Like many things, however, promoting scientific literacy is a journey not a destination. We will never “arrive,” rather we are best served by keeping up the efforts to promote the role of science and reason in our society and spreading appreciation for and an understanding of the process and findings of science. |
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