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Eric Janshego TE 804 April 18th 2014

Scientific Literacy When people are asked if they are literate in a subject areas many of them are quick to respond by saying YES, but what does it really mean to be literate in a subject. For an English teacher the definition could involve having the student read, write and discuss different aspects of literature. For an art teacher they may require a student to display various techniques and contrasts in their work. Since literacy is such a large topic it has to be broken down individually according to its subject area along with being broken down by the individual instructor. When I begin to discuss scientific literacy in my class, I break it apart into two objectives. One objective is that my students must be able to hold a discussion relating to a scientific topic, and use evidence they have discovered to support their claims. My second objective is that my students must be able to use scientific concepts from class, and relate them to events they see occurring in their daily lives. Only when my students can show me their ability to preform theses two objectives, can officially say that they are literate in the field of science. By requiring my students to use scientific data to support their claims, I feel as if they are better prepared to critique and judge information they hear in their daily lives. My students need to be able to identify what is considered quality unbiased information, and learn to not always believe everything they are told. By allowing my students to participate in classroom discussion and support their ideas with evidence found in data tables or laboratory exercise, they are demonstrating their ability to utilize these concepts in the same way as the rest of the scientific community. Not only does this concept help them to distinguish between various forms of quality information, but it also aligns with both the State and National standards for scientific education. In both the State and National standards, students are required to form claims based off of their own interoperation of scientific data. On standardized test students are also asked to work individually to identify trends, which they will use later to form a sound scientific argument. In order to help my students build upon this practice, I have incorporated multiple inquiry-based activities into my daily lessons. During these activities my students are provided with various types of data tables and hands on demonstrations, which helps to guide them towards forming their own conclusions. They will then use this data, along with their observations, in order to better interoperate what is actually occurring. My students are also provided with the opportunity to partake in both small and large group discussions, where they can freely exchange ideas and help each other identify patterns they may have previously missed. One of the main reasons that many teachers have failed to preform similar inquiry activities is because they worry that they will require additional preparation time. The problem with this mentality is that planning an inquiry activity does not take any longer than planning for an application-based lesson. The same amount of time is required to plan for both activities, but the knowledge and pride grained by your students, from an inquiry activity, is far greater than that of the application-based activity. Another reason

that many teachers do not use inquiry in their classroom is because they feel that it does not show an accurate interpretation of the science field. This is one of the largest misconceptions I have heard in regards to the idea of implementing inquiry. In fact this is almost the complete opposite of what inquiry brings to the classroom. Inquiry activities provide students with the chance to take on the role of a scientist, and investigate new discoveries. For example if my students were discussing the theory of evolution and how natural selection has played a substantial role, I would have my students begin by researching their own animal. From here the students would begin constructing a concept map, which would allow them the opportunity to see how what characteristics have helped them survive. I would then provide my students with a hypothetical situation where they were required to construct an animal that contained the necessary adaptions, which they would need in order to survive. From here the students would again take on the role of the scientific community, and present their animal to their fellow classmates. From here the groups would make a claim and support it with reasoning, in order to explain why their animal would be able to survive. This activity then allows the students to work through an inquiry-based activity, while still solving and voting on correct solutions similar to the scientific community. The most important idea I try to convey to my students is how scientific practices and concepts can be used in their daily lives. Whenever I have the opportunity to present I new subject, I start with an overarching question. These questions are selected based off of current news events, and my students personal interests. Not only does an overarching question help students to see the connections between schoolwork and their home lives, but it also helps them to increase their standardized test scores. Since many of the national tests require students to see connections between historic scenarios and readings, I can use news events to begin helping my students pull scientific evidence from nonscientific sources. One problem I have noticed throughout my teaching career is that many teachers do not know how to incorporate cross-curricular ideas into their classrooms. One-way I have worked to overcome this obstacle is by deliberating with teachers from other content areas. By taking the time to discuss with these teachers I have been able to create fluidity between my students day. This fluidity comes from allowing my students to discuss the same topic in every subject area they visit, but it also allows them to see how science is incorporated into every subject. When it comes to scientific literacy there are many different aspects you can begin to focus on, but they all have the same message in the end. In order for our students to be scientifically literate they must be able to demonstrate, and incorporate scientific reasoning into their daily lives. They must then be able to see the importance of science and how it can be used throughout other subject areas. They must be able to see that science goes far beyond the classroom, and is able to be incorporated into every aspect of their lives. Only when this understanding and incorporation of science is achieved in my students, can I truly say that they are literate in the field of science.