Stories in the Science Classroom: Supporting a Humanistic View of Scientific Literacy

Abstract

“Keep what’s true in front of you…you won’t get lost that way” (Wagamese, 2016, p. 74).

“Science…must be taught as a humanity” (Aoki, 2004, p. 199).

These two quotes effectively provide a lens through which to examine the current state of science education and the teaching of scientific literacy. The COVID-19 pandemic exposed several chinks in the armour of science teaching. Indeed, developing scientific literacy is a fundamental goal of many educational jurisdictions. As one example, in the province of Alberta, the curriculum document, (known as the Program of Studies) for secondary science stated: “The secondary science program is guided by the vision that all students have the opportunity to develop scientific literacy” (Alberta Education, 2014, p. 1). Roberts and Bybee (2014) supported this by stating that the development of scientific literacy in students is an inextricably linked goal of the education system. Despite an educational focus on scientific literacy around the world many individuals discarded the knowledge learned in science class in favour of alternative ways of knowing. These included things like political leanings (Weisel, 2021), belief in conspiracy theories (Miller, 2020), and level of education (Albrecht, 2022), indicating that perhaps you don’t need a specific science education but just a general higher level of education to be able to make better public health decisions. It was clear that conventional science education was not sufficient for individuals to understand the “truth”, (drawing on their scientific literacy) and many were getting lost as a result.

Aoki (2004, referencing Smith, 1991) highlighted that many university students felt their pre-university science education did not adequately prepare them for post-secondary studies. This, in conjunction with the evidence from the COVID-19 pandemic make it clear that there is a clear need to change science instruction in K-12. With this in mind, Aoki (2004) asserted that “science must be taught as a humanity” (p. 199), marking a fundamental shift from conventional K-12 science education. To explore this shift, the concepts of the Nature of Science (NoS) and socio-scientific issues (SSIs) (Zeidler et al., 2005) will be employed as a theoretical framework. This approach aims to dismantle barriers to science education for students who do not fit the stereotypical image of a scientist (Barman, 1999) while also showcasing the extensive range of opportunities available within the broad field of science, and to truly tell the story(ies) of science. In so doing, scientific literacy can be attainable by all, helping individuals be more prepared for engaging in science within a societal context.