Page 356 - Cultural Studies of Science Education

Chapter 28
One Hundred Ways to Use a Coconut

Jennifer D. Adams

A seed floats for hundreds of miles and finally germinates and grows when it
reaches dry land, often in nutrient-poor sands and soils. The coconut has been a
source of sustenance and raw materials for many cultures around the globe. It is
a plant that I connect with on many levels. Not only was I called a “coconut” in
school, because of my Caribbean heritage, but the coconut is also a staple ingredi-
ent for several dishes that are commonly consumed in my home today. I remember
my instructions on picking out a good coconut from my mother: “To pick out a
good coconut, look at the eyes, make sure they are dry. Shake the coconut; it should
sound hollow yet juicy.” Whenever I travel and have to pick out a good coconut, I
recall these instructions and I seem to always manage to get the perfect nut.
I bring up this resilient plant in this section introduction on indigenous knowl-
edge because for me, the coconut represents scientific and technological knowledge
developed and used by indigenous and traditional ecological knowledge partici-
pants worldwide. I also recall the coconut because a display of this plant helps me
to rethink my notions of indigenous knowledge in science teaching and learning, in
relation to my experiences as a museum educator some years past.
The natural history museum is a place where there are “people halls,” namely,
halls that display cultural artifacts from different regions of the world. The museum
selectively displays particular aspects of people, but deemphasizes or ignores other
important or significant characteristics (Adams 2007). For example, there are notions
of primitivism and exoticism culturally reinforced in several of the exhibits. However,
thinking deeper, one recognizes that the halls are developed during specific historical
periods and reflective of the scientific and anthropological ideals endorsed at that
time. As a science educator, I now use these halls and exhibits to demonstrate the
ingenuity of indigenous peoples, that is, how they apply complex levels of knowl-
edge to use resources in their environments and to create the tools and other creative
elements on display.

J.D. Adams
City University of New York

D.J. Tippins et al. (eds.), Cultural Studies and Environmentalism, 331
Cultural Studies of Science Education, Vol. 3, DOI 10.1007/978-90-481-3929-3_28,
© Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2010