What is the purpose of Science education?
A science education which strives for scientific literacy must engage students in asking and answering meaningful questions. Effective science education should enable students to connect concepts with daily life and establish relations between the concepts. The concepts learned are understood and students can make connections with other previously known knowledge, aiding in further understanding. It has been more than two decades since the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada (1997) outlined their vision for science education in the Pan Canadian Common Framework of Science Learning Outcomes, K to 12; things have changed a lot since then.
In a 2016 research paper titled, Science Education in Canada to 2030, an expert panel identified the following trends, issues, and areas of focus as being the most influential in shaping new visions of science education in Canada: i). globalization influences; ii). skills for the 21st Century (now referred to as global competencies); iii). science education and sustainability; iv). emergence of new technologies for learning; v). the relevance of science education for students; and vi). Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (Murray, 2016: pg. 20). Since the Delphi Study on Canadian Science Education report of findings was published, all of the trends previously listed have been the focus of discussions about how advance science education in many jurisdictions across the country.
What constitutes as “meaningful learning” in K-12 classrooms today?
When students are provided with opportunities to link their classroom learning to real-life experiences and bring real world issues, challenges and concerns into the classroom, the learning is meaningful. Also, meaningful learning is active –learners actively use the concept and relate it to other ideas; promotes the development of skills which are useful and can be applied in real life (Global Competencies); the learning persists –meaning that because relevancy, the information is easily retained; and the knowledge is transferable to other contexts, problems, or situations.
Progress in human well-being is closely connected to the state of the natural environment, and vice versa[1]. The United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals (2015), also known as the Global Goals or the 2030 Agenda, provide 169 on-ramps for learners to see where in their communities and the larger world, they can apply their scientific knowledge and understandings in authentic ways.
How can educators use the UN Sustainable Development Goals to transform teaching and learning?
Science lies at the heart of sustainable development. It establishes what we know to be true about how the world works, anticipates future consequences, and contributes to finding pathways to sustainable transformations that will benefit all humanity. Using the Global Goals framework as a vehicle for science teaching and learning creates opportunities for middle and high school students, in particular to become agents of change in their communities. Approaching their learning with the 2030 Agenda goals and targets in mind, students realize that local challenges such as clean water, quality education, food scarcity, social inequality, and climate change, are not unique to Canada and experienced by communities globally. They can then be presented with opportunities to problem-find and innovate local solutions that may have global applications. Although not all technological innovations originate in scientific fields, many scientific advances are key to producing novel and sustainable technologies. Further to this point, science should be considered as a practice or process; the systematic application of evidence-informed knowledge and understanding of the natural, constructed and social worlds following a systematic methodology that will continue to serve students wells into the future.
Sustainability science is not environmental science. Sustainability science recognizes that conducting any science outside of an environmental context is not remotely conceivable nor is it appropriate.
Murray, J.J., 2016: p. 29.
Science and technology are powerful agents of change for better or worse, depending on how they are applied. Encouraging students to innovate for themselves and their communities, speaks to the contentious issue of education’s role in facilitating the development of a scientifically literate public for democratic participation in matters relating to science and technology. To operationalise aspects of democratic participation, teachers must make explicit the role of scientific knowledge and decision-making within the context of the framework. Again, the Global Goals have an important role to play here because they provide evidence of the interlinkages, trade-offs, and resultant co-benefits between Science, Technology, Society and Environment (STSE).
The frontiers of science should be pushed to enable equitable transformation and progress towards the “five Ps” of the 2030 Agenda: people, planet, peace, prosperity, and partnership[2]. Students today need more than simply “science education”. They must be equipped to address the uncertainty of the future and sustainability science can support this aim. Sustainability science is not environment science. It is a new, more engaged academic field of studies that sheds light on complex, often contentious and value-laden, nature-society interactions, while generating usable scientific knowledge for sustainability transformations to current and far term challenges. Presenting science in this way will require teachers and students to deal with risks, uncertainty, and ethical issues, and involves working with affected groups –accessing the wisdom of crowds[3], to recognize problems and goals, and identify key trade-offs. Pedagogy cannot get more real-world and authentic than this!
The frontiers of science should be pushed to enable equitable transformation and progress towards the “five Ps” of the 2030 Agenda: people, planet, peace, prosperity, and partnership.
Pg. 119. Global Sustainable Development Report 2019.
How can learners mobilize science, technology and innovation to improve their lives?
The 2030 Agenda calls for eradicating poverty and other deprivations, enhancing human capabilities, reducing inequalities, fostering peace, reversing the degradation of the planet, and strengthening the global partnership for sustainable development [4]. Education for sustainable development empowers everyone –teachers and students, to make informed decisions in favour of environmental integrity, economic viability and a just society for present and future generations. It aims to provide the knowledge, skills, attitudes and values necessary to address challenges of the modern world. The United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals represents a significant step forward in the recognition of the contribution of Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) to sustainable development. Success in every goal requires education to empower people with the knowledge, skills and values to live in dignity, build their lives and contribute to their societies.
[1] Pg. 24. Global Sustainable Development Report 2019.
[2]Pg. 119. Global Sustainable Development Report 2019.
[3] A collective of individuals – all having different experiences, wisdom, access to information, and experiences – can come together and create intelligent solutions to complex problems.
[4] Independent Group of Scientists. (2019). The transformative power of sustainable development. The Future is Now: Science for Achieving Sustainable Development, United Nations, New York, New York.
A list of references can be found here.
Education on Point 