Discovery Magazine says that 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.
It is clear from posts by today's celebrities on social media, that many Americans are not literate in science.
This needs to change. What better way than to introduce the seriousness of a true story of a woman whose cells were taken with vague permission, began to natural grow on their own outside of their owner's body, and launched many medical and scientific advances we know today.
The non-fiction book "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" follows both Henrietta's story, the story of the famous HeLa cells, the ethical debate regarding the vague consent form signed by David Lacks and the effects it had on his family in later years, even tying in cross-curricular topics such as Civil Rights. This book by Rebecca Skloot is a fantastic introduction for young high school students of all learning types to begin to develop stronger reading skills (teacher-led, whole group learning), and learn to develop their own opinions and draw their own conclusions regarding choices made by the scientific community as a whole and the impacts of these decisions and new discoveries on society.
About my class
Discovery Magazine says that 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.
It is clear from posts by today's celebrities on social media, that many Americans are not literate in science.
This needs to change. What better way than to introduce the seriousness of a true story of a woman whose cells were taken with vague permission, began to natural grow on their own outside of their owner's body, and launched many medical and scientific advances we know today.
The non-fiction book "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" follows both Henrietta's story, the story of the famous HeLa cells, the ethical debate regarding the vague consent form signed by David Lacks and the effects it had on his family in later years, even tying in cross-curricular topics such as Civil Rights. This book by Rebecca Skloot is a fantastic introduction for young high school students of all learning types to begin to develop stronger reading skills (teacher-led, whole group learning), and learn to develop their own opinions and draw their own conclusions regarding choices made by the scientific community as a whole and the impacts of these decisions and new discoveries on society.