Affiliation:
1. University of Wisconsin Madison Wisconsin USA
Abstract
AbstractIt has been widely accepted in the science education research community that scientific literacy as a concept and phrase was introduced by Paul deHart Hurd in 1958. Recent research into the origins of the phrase, however, has shown this to be incorrect. Its first published use can be traced back, in fact, to 1945, and the phrase was frequently invoked in popular and research publications throughout the 1940s and 1950s. Exploring the historical circumstances of the phrase's introduction into popular discourse, it is argued, reveals that despite the rhetorical power and widespread adoption of the idea, scientific literacy (as others have pointed out) has proven to be little more than an empty slogan that offers no substantive guidance for thinking about the goals of science education. This essay argues that rather than continue to cling to the idea, the field of science education can more productively consider the most relevant and appropriate goals of science teaching by dispensing with the concept altogether.
Reference83 articles.
1. 3 Rs for 1‐As. (1944 June 12).Time.
2. 10 000 000 Adults Found Illiterate. (1946 May 29).New York Times.
3. 3 Million Seen Idle in War as U.S. Illiterates. (1942 July 2).New York Herald Tribune.
Cited by
9 articles.
订阅此论文施引文献
订阅此论文施引文献，注册后可以免费订阅5篇论文的施引文献，订阅后可以查看论文全部施引文献