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The science‐technology‐society movement in science education: A critique of the reform process
Author(s) -
Hart E. P.,
Robottom I. M.
Publication year - 1990
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/tea.3660270607
Subject(s) - science, technology, society and environment education , science education , curriculum , social science education , engineering ethics , outline of social science , sociology , reform movement , process (computing) , national science education standards , citizen journalism , curriculum development , pedagogy , field (mathematics) , science communication , political science , higher education , education policy , engineering , computer science , politics , law , operating system , mathematics , pure mathematics
Changes in society and in science and technology have forced a rethinking of what is “basic” in science education. A perceived disjuncture between school science and the realities of a scientifically and technologically oriented society has resulted in proposals for new directions in science teaching. It appears that science education is about to undergo another paradigm shift. One particularly visible movement, the “Science‐Technology‐Society” (STS) movement, exemplifies how such directional shifts tend to occur within the field of science education. This article critically examines the program and professional development process that has characterized past and current science curriculum reform effort in an attempt to illustrate fundamental educational reform problems. The need for new directions in science education is uncontested here. The issue is the problematic nature of the reform process itself. The article contends that new methods of reform must be researched— methods that directly involve practitioners in critical reflection, participatory research, and science curriculum development.