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Marginalized discourses and scientific literacy
Author(s) -
Norman Obed
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
journal of research in science teaching
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.067
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1098-2736
pISSN - 0022-4308
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1098-2736(199804)35:4<365::aid-tea6>3.0.co;2-o
Subject(s) - mainstream , scientific literacy , literacy , sociology , racism , institutionalisation , science education , reciprocal , pedagogy , social science , gender studies , political science , law , linguistics , philosophy
The central position of this article is that an important component of scientific literacy is an understanding of the reciprocal impact of science and the general culture on each other. The article focuses on the marginalized discourses that have arisen to oppose the racism, sexism, and classism espoused and advocated by mainstream science since its institutionalization until the first half of the 20th century. The article explores the pedagogical value of studying these oppositional discourses to demonstrate the permeability of the boundaries between science and the general culture. It also discusses how the issues raised by these discourses can be used to enhance the scientific literacy of students. J Res Sci Teach 35: 365–374, 1998.