Beware Charlatan Science

“Science literacy is vaccine against charlatans of the world that would exploit your ignorance of the forces of nature.” —Neil deGrasse Tyson, Astrophysicist

Image credit: Microsoft Clipart

Conscientious scientists do not cherry-pick data to fit their conclusions (that's bias), but allow data and evidence to inform, educate, and guide their research—no matter the unexpected results. Science is challenging and complex; yet we must be cautious of charlatans who seek to infect us with pseudoscience and denialism:

• Beware of charlatan "scientists" who cherry-pick data and selectively name-drop. Unfortunately, many members of US Congress fit into this category, especially those who subscribe to climate change denialism.
• Beware of charlatan "scientists" who do not understand what "uncertainty" means in science. Scientists must always consider, respect, and address the physical and statistical uncertainties in their data, measurements, and models, and they must express their results in terms of mathematical confidence.
• Beware of charlatan "scientists" who misuse the term "theory" (as in, "it's just a theory"). A scientific theory is a well-reasoned explanation based on mountains of evidence—it is not just a guess. An educated guess in science is called a hypothesis, which must be tested for validity before its veracity can be established.
• Beware of "news" organizations that claim to tell "both sides of the story" equitably. One dissenting opinion does not negate thousands of peer-reviewed, published research papers. One loud-mouthed argument does not constitute a fair balance.
• Beware of charlatan "scientists" who short-circuit the quality assurance and rigor built into the peer-review process. Scientists themselves are their own worst critics and very effectively weed out questionable science.

In an age of charlatanism, it is important that science education remain vigilant and true to how science really works. A good science curriculum teaches students about the nature of science and fully engages students in the complexities of scientific thinking, knowing, and doing. For more about How Science Works, visit Understanding Science, an amazing website developed by the University of California Museum of Paleontology.

Summer Unlearning

"At every crossroads on the path that leads to the future, tradition has placed 10,000 men to guard the past." —Maurice Maeterlinck

I've spent the summer reading, gardening, and enjoying the outdoors; now, there are just a few more unstructured days left until the new school year begins. How can I bring the myriad thoughts and ideas I've pondered over the summer back into the classroom? Simple in theory, but challenging in practice: I plan to unlearn.

Image courtesy: MorgueFile

Unlearn... ?

We no longer live in an analog, textbook world; we are digital, we are hyperconnected. Yet, much of our public school system is still structured according to outdated models and traditions, many of which are hopelessly broken. Institutional inertia is powerful, and change is slow and/or unwelcome.

To move forward in the 21st century will require tremendous change, a daunting and downright scary process. A good place to start is by unlearning—rethinking some of our "traditions," questioning their perceived validity ("Why are we doing this *this* way?"), and finally letting go of the past. To move forward it is imperative that we quickly unlearn, lest we become further mired in wasted time and energy.

On my personal list, I would like to unlearn (or continue unlearning) the following:

• Technology restrictions and limitations
• Grades: "Did I get an 'A'?" "Is this for a grade?" "Is this right?"
• Staff meetings
• Teacher-centered conference nights
• 45-minute class periods
• The "scientific method"
• Memorizing and standardized testing
• Homework

Is there anything you would like to unlearn? Will you join me in unlearning?

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I was inspired into thinking more about unlearning after reading two posts on the What Ed Said education blog:

10 Things Teachers Should Unlearn

1. Teachers know all the answers.
2. Teachers have to be in control of the class.
3. Teachers are responsible for the learning.
4. Students are obliged to respect teachers.
5. Learning can be measured by a letter or a number.
6. Teachers should plan activities and then assessments.
7. Learners need to sit quietly and listen.
8. Technology integration is optional.
9. Worksheets support learning.
10. Homework is an essential part of learning.

10 Things Parents Should Unlearn

1. Learning is best measured by a letter or a number.
2. Product is more important than process and progress.
3. Children need to be protected from any kind of failure.
4. The internet is dangerous for children.
5. Parents and teachers should discuss students without the learner present.
6. Homework is an essential part of learning.
7. The school is responsible for the child’s entire education.
8. Your child’s perspective is the only one.
9. Learning looks the same as when you went to school.
10. Focus on (and fix) your child’s shortcomings, rather than their successes.

Summer Break

Pardon me while I take a break and indulge in some gardening and hiking...

Where's My Professional Development?

Like it or not, in an era of never-ending educational budget cuts, the burden of continued professional development now falls squarely on the shoulders of teachers. Formalized, district-sponsored professional development opportunities within the school day and school year are few and far between; yet, the flood of revisions, reforms, and rollouts of new curricula and new initiatives continues at a dizzying pace. Try to keep up with the wave or be swamped by it—an unfair choice either way.

Image courtesy of Microsoft Clipart

The river flow of funds has slowed to a trickle in the drought-stricken desert of district- and school-level professional development—the oases spread further and further apart, the treks between more lonely and arduous. "When will we receive professional development on this?" and "When will we have time to talk about this?" become luxurious questions in a landscape of austerity. Our hero's journey becomes more perilous; the desire to give up and quit is often alluring.

To persist (and survive), we must look for new sources of professional sustenance and take ownership for our own growth. In a rapidly-evolving digital realm, there are endless opportunities to connect with others—we only need actively seek them out. Twitter is a vast oasis of companions and gurus eager to share their knowledge and wisdom: NASA, NOAA, NSTA, ISTE, ASCD, and countless other organizations and individuals serve up a wealth of information and resources via the Twitter stream to quench our professional thirst. Google Reader and Google+ offer an endless buffet of subscriptions to some of the most engaging and intriguing minds on the planet; again, we must seek this nourishment ourselves, but once found our appetite is sated.

In the maelstrom of shifting educational paradigms and draconian budget cuts, it is easy to become lost and disillusioned. As stewards of our children's education, the burden of assuming our own professional development seems overwhelming and unjust to us. But waiting for a miraculous rescue is a fatal mistake; clinging to a halcyon past is a fool's errand. We must assume our own journey, one step at a time, and continue seeking out the professional oases…

To Boldly Go...

A sampling of student-built spacecraft from our Astronomy Research Project...

To Boldly Go...

50 Years of Space Exploration
by National Geographic

Year after year I find that students know very little, if anything, about space exploration (which is personally very troubling). However, this lack of awareness provides a great opportunity to delve into the human exploration of space. Our 50+ years of interplanetary investigation is writ with both stunning discoveries and monumental failures, yet it is imperative that we keep traveling, keep searching, keep asking, keep discovering.

In a traditional "pick a planet" project, students are focused on finding facts about an object in our solar system. I like to turn the process around so that it reflects more of an inquiry-based, process-of-science research project. Our essential research question becomes, "What has human space exploration taught us about our solar system?" The emphasis of the project is placed on how we humans struggle to design, build, launch, navigate, and operate spacecraft to investigate the mysteries of our solar system. Instead of just looking up a bunch of facts, I ask students to create a system of research questions to ask about their chosen spacecraft and its mission target, then embark on their research utilizing a variety of incredible primary resources (mainly from NASA, and for which I create a classroom project web page as a launching area).

An excellent research project includes the following elements:

• Name, date, scientific purpose, and major scientific discoveries of the spacecraft mission
• Realistic, three-dimensional model of the spacecraft (using Earth-friendly materials) 
• Basic information about the scientific instruments on the spacecraft: what they are, what they do, how they work, what they measure, etc. explained in plain language
• Scientific data, information, and details about the solar system object visited: position/location in the solar system, distance from Sun, diameter, mass, composition, rotation/revolution data, atmosphere/temperature data, moons/rings data, etc. explained in plain language and using the metric system
• Other unique, interesting data and information about your object: can include non-scientific things such as stories, folklore, mythology, poetry, artwork, etc.
• A caption and credit next to every image borrowed from the internet as well as a complete list of scientifically diverse references in a bibliography (so that we respect others and their copyrights)

I am rewarded each year by the enthusiasm for this project and the overall depth of learning that occurs. Students gain a much better appreciation about the science and engineering challenges involved when exploring the cosmic frontiers beyond the safety of our tiny planet. And some of them even grow up to become rocket scientists themselves...  :)

Pursuit of Light

"NASA tells stories about big things: big places, big data, big ideas." The Pursuit of Light reminds us why scientific literacy is vital to our future.

Who are we, and what is our place in the universe? These are the really big questions that scientists ask. NASA is one of many science organizations that pursue answers to these fundamental questions. But the pursuit of light, and knowledge, and curiosity, and wonder, and excitement begins much earlier — in our classrooms. Passionate educators, passionate students, and passionate learning today create and nurture the literate citizens of tomorrow.