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College science courses aim to teach students both disciplinary knowledge and scientific literacy skills. Several instruments have been developed to assess students’ scientific literacy skills, but few studies have reported how demographic differences may play a role. The goal of this study was to determine whether demographic factors differentially impact students’ scientific literacy skills. We assessed more than 700 students using the Test of Scientific Literacy Skills (TOSLS), a validated instrument developed to assess scientific literacy in college science courses. Interestingly, we found that Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) reading score was the strongest predictor of TOSLS performance, suggesting that fundamental literacy (reading comprehension) is a critical component of scientific literacy skills. Additionally, we found significant differences in raw scientific literacy skills on the basis of ethnicity (underrepresented minority [URM] vs. non-URM), major (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics [STEM] vs. non-STEM), year of college (e.g., senior vs. freshman), grade point average (GPA), and SAT math scores. However, when using multivariate regression models, we found no difference based on ethnicity. These data suggest that students’ aptitude and level of training (based on GPA, SAT scores, STEM or non–STEM major, and year of college) are significantly correlated with scientific literacy skills and thus could be used as predictors for student success in courses that assess scientific literacy skills.

Use of the Test of Scientific Literacy Skills Reveals That Fundamental Literacy Is an Important Contributor to Scientific Literacy