Tag Archives: high school science

One of an Infinite Means to Approach Science, Education, and the Universe: Part 4 – Science Education

08 Sunday Apr 2018

Posted by in Science Education

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What does all of this mean for science education (see Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3)? Is this a depth and understanding all educators should have – all students should have? How does it look to teach this in a classroom? What about the barriers and divides that exist between the practice of education in classrooms and the achievement of these learnings for all members of society? What of the shortfalls of the Western education system? Why do we sit in desks? Is it the best way we learn? Do we all learn different?

Despite it being paradoxical, if everyone was capable of embracing and recognizing these issues through lenses of kinship with nature, pluralism, multiple perspectives, and subjectivity this may allow us all to proceed towards a collective “good” as a mosaic of individuals belonging to different cultures and places. We could critically analyze oppressive structures that are a fundamental part of our society today and see how they influence our perspectives and worldviews.

If you’ve been reading these posts or watching the videos up until now, you should see the passion I have for science education – how it looks for me – what I value – my perspectives and worldviews. It’d be short-sighted of me to think this is the way, but as I’ve hopefully conveyed, it is one of infinite potential ways of approaching science education and nature. One interpretation of an “infinite” universe based on a finite, limited experience, and who knows I may watch this video years from now and not agree with things I’ve said in it – and I asked questions in the videos and throughout their production. In creating these videos, I considered not having my face in it – simply doing a voice-over, yet then, instead, felt it would humanize me more, allow us to connect more by making me appear more real or “mortal”. Yet the fact that this video now is found on a system and network of electrical wires and code perhaps makes me immortal, despite my finite existence as a remixed compilation of atoms, cells, and experiences. The human you observe here may be long gone, yet continues to be a part of our new, natural world that includes the digital realm.

These thoughts in these blog posts and all of these videos – the nature of science, perspectives, kinship… they’re all parts of what I think science education should be and make you feel inside or outside of a classroom (wherever you learn, which should be everywhere). It’s why science shouldn’t be something you feel you aren’t good at, it’s why science should make you feel that kinship with nature and the universe, it’s why you shouldn’t just like science and nature, you should love science and nature. I believe as science educators and students, this is how it happens, you model what loving the universe feels like and what questioning everything looks like. What you do with that feeling, whether it is support environmental policies or simply find your place in this universe, is up to you.

Thanks,

Logan Petlak.

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Developing a high school science digital citizenship resource

13 Tuesday Feb 2018

Posted by in ECI 832, Education Blog, Science Education

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In my first post, I highlighted my desire to create a resource for digital literacy, I clashed with making a series of vlogs to educate my peers or making a document to assist science educators in delivering digital literacy in their science classrooms that corresponded with the curriculum. I decided to pursue the latter as I feel it may be a more realistic venture with the resources I have available to me (I reflected on my previous attempts to make a video series in the distance learning course I took, and concluded that it takes a lot of resources and time for only one person to put together – not that this won’t also take time, the resources may be less).

In my brainstorming for this assignment I had many ideas come to mind when considering the philosophy and approach that educators should have when implementing a document associated with digital citizenship in a high school science course. Some of my initial considerations to include in the completed document were:

  • Considerations of applicability to general Saskatchewan curriculum focuses like broad areas of learning, specifically how science and digital citizenship coincide to promote lifelong learning, engaged citizens, and a sense of self and community. The same can be said of cross-curricular competencies in science like thinking, literacies, identity, and social responsibility.
  • The creation of digital citizenship resources associated with different senior science courses (including learning outcomes) – ideally in an area where many can access this information and try to make it applicable for curriculum across Canada. This would likely begin with courses I am familiar with: Environmental Science 20, Health Science 20, and Biology 30.
  • Overlap between digital citizenship pieces and an “effective science education program” including attitudes, skills, knowledge and STSE. Ultimately using scientific literacy for digital citizenship, or digital citizenship as a form of scientific literacy. Informed through some guidance associated with 21st century learning.

    Scientific Literacy Framework

    Scientific Literacy Framework via screenshot of Saskatchewan Curriculum

  • Guidelines to equip educators to model online behaviours for students, specifically centered around Ribble’s nine elements of digital citizenship (dominantly on access, communication and literacy – more below). These guidelines would try to provide suggestions to approaches while bearing in mind the diversity of educators existing on a spectrum of digital visitors and residents. The suggestions would be rooted in delivery of digital citizenship through the lens of Respect, Educate and Protect – as all are essential to “ideal” digital consumption.

Access (allowing for access) – as part of a pre-read to the document, or philosophy to approach the guide with, there will a piece for educators on access and attempting to overcome barriers to students’ device-usage, including information that they may want to share with parents regarding the benefits of having their students exposed to and participating in the usage of devices/the online world. I thought this was innovative, then I saw Alec and Katia had included this in their DC Guide, through BYOD practices.

Communication/etiquette/rights and responsibilities – establishing an emphasis on productive communication in text-format existing through social media and other forms of digital writing. This would provide education on being hyper-aware of the implications of word-choice, phrasing, and delivery of ideas.

Literacy – critical analysis of “scientific articles” as well as the utilization of digital technology to enhance understandings and concepts in science as an industry through forms of content curation.

 

As I begin to put this document together the main ideas should act as a framework to begin approaching organizing these ideas together. The reality is the landscape of the digital realm is constantly shifting so it needs to be designed with adaptability in mind as well as inclusive to the variety of learners and educators interpreting the material.

Any feedback or things you feel are necessary to be included in a high school science digital citizenship document, please share!

– Logan Petlak

 

 

 

Additional considerations:

In my other class I am currently taking, ECI 842, we recently discussed the overlap between Indigenous Science and “Western” science and would consider trying to have a sub-document that provided strategies or suggestions for implementing Indigenous ways of knowing in the classroom effectively while coinciding with digital citizenship as an extension of real experiences, diverse worldviews, community and its practices, and the digital realms’ relationship to land and ecosystems. This would include the idea of identity and the digital identity also simply being a part of our greater identity, as Paul Brown mentioned, and not something that is meant to be separate.