The immortal life of henrietta lacks chapter 8 summary
One way to meet this goal is through teaching ideological awareness (IA), an understanding of biases, stereotypes, and assumptions that shape contemporary and historical science. If a goal in science education is to develop a scientifically literate population capable of making informed decisions in a democracy, then issues that sit at the intersection of biology and society should be a defining component of any biology curriculum.
#THE IMMORTAL LIFE OF HENRIETTA LACKS CHAPTER 8 SUMMARY DRIVER#
Linking societal issues to biological concepts allows students to formulate their own positions while also advancing their critical-thinking, decision-making, argumentative, reflective judgment, and scientific literacy skills ( Aikenhead, 1985, 2002 Solomon, 1992 Zeidler et al., 1992, 2005 Zeidler, 1997 Sadler and Zeidler, 2004 Sadler et al., 2006 Zohar and Nemet, 2002 Driver et al., 2000 Dawson and Venville, 2010 Eastwood et al., 2012). They have an important role in guiding their students to function as critical citizens ( Lazarowitz and Bloch, 2005). Instructors are the “link” between the world of science and society. Making the connections between science and society is also one of six core competencies in undergraduate biology promoted by the American Association for the Advancement of Science ( AAAS, 2011) in a formative document, Vision and Change in Undergraduate Biology Education: A Call to Action. Through this process, students draw connections with the world around them and understand the impacts of their field on the functionality of society. Instead, critical pedagogy views education as a process of problem-posing and self-discovery, developing one’s power and capacities with an open mind and in cooperation with others, rather than only memorization and recitation ( Freire and Macedo, 2018). However, choosing not to address these topics in the classroom perpetuates the falsity that biology as a field is removed from these social issues.ĭespite the prevalence of the value-free biology curriculum, critical pedagogy theory supports the idea that science and society are not separate entities. Instructors may be hesitant to discuss these issues, preferring instead to stick to the traditional “value-free” biology curriculum, which suggests that social and ethical values should have no influence on the conduct of science and that scientists should have little concern for such values ( Cross and Price, 1996 Douglas, 2009). This is particularly true for potentially controversial issues at the intersection of biology and politics, religion, race, or LGBTQIA+ identity.
Traditional scientific training exclusively prepares students for scientific practice without helping students navigate social concepts. Science has profound impacts on society, yet instructors often teach science as though it is divorced from societal issues. We encourage instructors to incorporate IA materials into their curricula as we move toward more diverse, equitable, and inclusive teaching practices.
Specifically, IA students displayed a 300% increase in the frequency of named scientists from minoritized backgrounds compared with the traditionally taught students. Although we found that the IA curriculum did not result in significant gains in science identity, engagement in biology, or science community values, we did find that students gained awareness of IA topics through a task in which they named as many scientists as possible. Additionally, we discovered a preference for IA materials over a traditional curriculum, with persons excluded because of their ethnicity and race (PEERs) reporting greater approval than non-PEERs. We found students that received the IA curriculum reported relationships between science and society that aligned with the IA activities, such as providing solutions to societal problems and combating misinformation. Using mixed-method analyses, we explore students’ perceptions of the relationship between science and society, as well as their attitudes toward and knowledge of IA in biology.
Here, we address this gap in biology education through the implementation of novel materials that promote ideological awareness (IA). While science has profound social impacts, we often teach biology as removed from societally debated issues.