We live in the age of information. Traditionally, people acquired knowledge about the world through books, newspapers, magazines, television and radio news reports. With the advent of the 24 hour news cycle and the Internet, access to information has exponentially increased. Today we are continuously bombarded with “facts” that can be useful, interesting or nonsensical. Most of us are in information overload and the challenge is sorting and evaluating all these facts, stories, and opinions by relevance and usefulness.
How does a person determine whether the information they are seeing is relevant? How can someone use the information they have to make informed decisions? Scientifically literate people have the skills necessary to evaluate information for validity, apply information to answer questions or solve problems and to effectively communicate their ideas or positions.
Evaluating Information
Research from 2009 revealed that the average American consumes 34 Gigabytes of data on a daily basis. The amount of information we are exposed to daily has only increased since then. Behavioral targeting allows companies to sort the information that is presented to us based on our interests and beliefs.
Advanced tracking technology is used by advertisers and media outlets to only present information that is interesting to an individual on the Internet. Search engines, advertisers and media target us by monitoring our interests/beliefs and tailoring the information a person sees in their news feed or advertisements to the individuals previously held opinions. For example, if you search for information on golf clubs on the Internet, you will immediately start seeing golfing ads popping up as you do anything else online.
The scientifically literate person knows how to evaluate information they are exposed to for validity. Information is questioned. Claims need evidence to support them. Scientific principles are understood and applied to the details of a news story and multiple sources are sought out to justify, substantiate and confirm the details prior to opinions being made.
Applying Scientific Understanding to Decisions
We were recently presented with a federal study outlining the catastrophic effects of climate change. Would a scientifically literate person have extensive climate knowledge and facts? Probably not – but they would have a basic understanding that weather and climate are different and no single weather event is evidence of climate.
Engaging in a conversation about the climate report with a scientifically literate person (maybe you!) would include:
- an understanding of the research and how well it correlates to other studies.
- changes you have witnessed in your climate over the years. For example, winters were colder with much more snow or the number heat waves experienced in the last few years may come up.
- speak about climate change using facts from more than one reliable source.
- burning fossil fuels produce greenhouse gases and those gases contribute to global warming.
- a basic understanding of clean energy sources, citing the pros and cons.
- digging into the issue, investigating both sides and using several sources to gather facts to make an informed decision about climate change.
Using Evidentiary Based Argumentation
The key here is that the decision is informed – which allows the scientifically literate citizen to intelligently participate in discussions in the community about possible solutions to the problems that face our world. Discussions on alternative energy sources will include evidence from many sources. The scientifically literate person will be educated on pros and cons of each type of energy source, the economic benefits or shortcomings of each and be able to provide thoughtful opinions backed up by evidence. He or she may even cite the sources of research.
One of the most difficult skills to develop in my students was learning to use evidentiary based argumentation. When presented with data, we should expect students to make claims that use prior and new knowledge. They must be required to support their claims with evidence based on data and explain how they came to their conclusions using scientific reasoning. When evidence does not support their claim they must learn to question – Why not? – What am I missing? How can I explain the discrepancy?
To that end, as teachers, we have a duty to teach our students how to develop claims, evidence and reasoning in all of their learning. Science is the perfect vehicle for providing students with these skills so that they become scientifically literate adults.
Demonstrating Scientific Literacy in Daily Activities
Science pervades our lives on a daily basis whether we are conscious of it or not. For example, flipping a switch turns on a light. Heat or cold can change a substance like oatmeal or chocolate. Knowing the outside temperature tells us whether we should dress warmly. We may know there are four seasons. Does this mean everyone is scientifically literate? Not really.
So why doesn’t basic understanding of science make one literate? Surface knowledge simply isn’t enough. For example, swimming is a popular sport families enjoy, but every year swimmers get caught in riptides. Many times they drown. What does a scientifically literate swimmer do differently? Before going to ocean or lake, they may check with the website of the park or beach to check out conditions. They research to find where riptides most likely occur. They ask how to avoid riptides or what to do when caught in one. They take safety courses, read literature and watch videos on how to swim out of a riptide. The scientifically literate swimmer may even learn how to effectively rescue another swimmer caught in a riptide. Being scientifically literate can save your life.
Having basic understanding of science is great, but we should ensure that all of our students have the skills to become scientifically literate. Students must be taught to ask questions, make predictions based on prior knowledge, check information they glean from media for validity and use claim, evidence and reasoning in all opinions on scientific issues. It will be critical for future generations as technology advances.