Science, Technology, and Society: Education A Sourcebook on Research and Practice (Innovations in Science Education and Technology (6))

David D. Kumar and Daryl E. Chubin We live in an information age. Technology abounds: information tech­ nology, communication technology, learning technology. As a once popular song went, "Something's happening here, but it's just not exactly clear." The world appears to be a smaller, less remote place. We live in it, but we are not necessarily closely tied to it. We lack a satisfactory understanding of it. So we are left with a paradox: In an information age, information alone will neither inform nor improve us as citizens nor our democracy, society, or in­ stitutions. No, improvement will take some effort. It is a heavy burden to be reflective, indeed analytical, and disciplined but only constructively constrained by different perspectives. The science-based technology that makes for the complexity, contro­ versy, and uncertainty of life sows the seeds of understanding in Science, Technology, and Society. STS, as it is known, encompasses a hybrid area of scholarship now nearly three decades old. As D. R. Sarewitz,a former geologist now congressional staffer and an author, put it After all, the important and often controversial policy dilemmas posed by issues such as nuclear energy, toxic waste disposal, global climate change, or biotech­ nology cannot be resolved by authoritative scientific knowledge; instead, they must involve a balancing of technical considerations with other criteria that are explicitly nonscientific: ethics, esthetics, equity, ideology. Trade-offs must be made in light of inevitable uncertainties (Sarewitz, 1996, p. 182). David D. Kumar and Daryl E. Chubin We live in an information age. Technology abounds: information techƯ nology, communication technology, learning technology. As a once popular song went, "Something's happening here, but it's just not exactly clear." The world appears to be a smaller, less remote place. We live in it, but we are not necessarily closely tied to it. We lack a satisfactory understanding of it. So we are left with a paradox: In an information age, information alone will neither inform nor improve us as citizens nor our democracy, society, or inƯ stitutions. No, improvement will take some effort. It is a heavy burden to be reflective, indeed analytical, and disciplined but only constructively constrained by different perspectives. The science-based technology that makes for the complexity, controƯ versy, and uncertainty of life sows the seeds of understanding in Science, Technology, and Society. STS, as it is known, encompasses a hybrid area of scholarship now nearly three decades old. As D.R. Sarewitz, a former geologist now congressional staffer and an author, put it After all, the important and often controversial policy dilemmas posed by issues such as nuclear energy, toxic waste disposal, global climate change, or biotechƯ nology cannot be resolved by authoritative scientific knowledge; instead, they must involve a balancing of technical considerations with other criteria that are explicitly nonscientific: ethics, esthetics, equity, ideology. Trade-offs must be made in light of inevitable uncertainties (Sarewitz, 1996, p. 182) Front Matter....Pages i-xii Introduction....Pages 1-8 Real Science Education: Replacing “PCB” with S(cience) through STS throughout All Levels of K-12 “Materials” as One Approach....Pages 9-19 The Development of Civic Scientific Literacy in the United States....Pages 21-47 STS Science in Canada From Policy to Student Evaluation....Pages 49-89 Trade-offs, Risks, and Regulations in Science and Technology Implications for STS Education....Pages 91-120 Thoughts about the Evaluation of STS More Questions than Answers....Pages 121-140 Science,Technology,Society,and the Environment Scientific Literacy for the Future....Pages 141-165 Marginalization of Technology within the STS Movement in American K-12 Education....Pages 167-192 Student Understanding of Global Warming Implications for STS Education beyond 2000 1 ....Pages 193-230 STS Education for Knowledge Professionals....Pages 231-255 Reculturing Science Politics, Policy, and Promises to Keep....Pages 257-276 Trends and Opportunities in Science and Technology Studies A View from the National Science Foundation....Pages 277-291 Back Matter....Pages 293-308

This volume will take a comprehensive view of STS education, the goals of which are manifold, and include making science and technology literacy available for all Americans, preparing those not bound for college to compete successfully in an increasingly science- and technology-oriented global market, and equipping the average person with the information necessary for making informed personal and policy decisions concerning the role of science and technology in society.