Scientific literacy is one of several types of literacy: written, numerical, and digital. In becoming scientifically literate, the student overcomes any fear of science he/she may have. The scientifically literate person is able to understand experiment and reasoning. There is a rough comfort level with basic scientific facts and their meaning. Some basic issues that the scientifically literate person understands include: how data relates to law and theory, that theory is the highest form of scientific expression and the reasons for everyday phenomena including the seasons, water cycle.
According to the United States National Center for Education Statistics, 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. It also includes specific types of abilities. In the National Science Education Standards, the content standards define scientific literacy.
Scientific literacy means that a person can ask, find, or determine answers to questions derived from curiosity about everyday experiences. It means that a person has the ability to describe, explain, and predict natural phenomena. Scientific literacy entails being able to read with understanding articles about science in the popular press and to engage in social conversation about the validity of the conclusions. Scientific literacy implies that a person can identify scientific issues underlying national and local decisions and express positions that are scientifically and technologically informed. A literate citizen should be able to evaluate the quality of scientific information on the basis of its source and the methods used to generate it. Scientific literacy also implies the capacity to pose and evaluate arguments based on evidence and to apply conclusions from such arguments appropriately.[1]
Science and Technology are tightly interwoven and literacy about both are important.[2] Much research has been done in this area[3]- see the references below for some samples or the NCREL reference above. [4] Programs of the Education and Human Services Division of the National Science Foundation The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health. With an annual budget of about US$6.02 billion (fiscal year 2008), the NSF funds approximately 20 percent of (see for example: Global Challenge Award and the other ITEST portfolio of projects) address both scientific literacy and the development of the future workforce.
Although there is not universal agreement on how to measure scientific literacy[5], organizations like the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development is a Paris-based international economic organisation of 30 countries. Most OECD members are high-income economies with a high Human Development Index (HDI) and are regarded as developed countries[6] have attempted to build useful correlations.[7]
References
- ^ NCES scientific literacy definition
- ^ NCREL Reference set
- ^ Science Matters: Achieving Scientific Literacy (Paperback) by Robert M. Hazen (Author), James Trefil (Author)
- ^ Achieving Scientific Literacy: From Purposes to Practices (Paperback) by Rodger W. Bybee (Author)
- ^ Rethinking Scientific Literacy (Paperback) by Wolff-Michael Roth (Author)
- ^ About OECD page
- ^ Country comparisons of scientific literacy
Categories: Scientific method A scientific method is a sequence or collection of processes that are considered characteristic of scientific investigation and the acquisition of new scientific knowledge based upon physical evidence | Human skills Categories: Skills | Humans | Human behavior
