Page 9 - Cultural Studies of Science Education

viii Foreword

science education instead needs to speciate, to adapt itself to the vast array of
unique students, problems, and opportunities that present themselves. Many new
teachers confront a sea of faces diverse in color, culture, and language ability. How
can these new teachers instill the wonder of the biosphere in all of their students,
especially those who are marginalized? How will they teach Eduardo, for instance,
who just went through a harrowing experience illegally immigrating into the USA,
about the Periodic Table of the Elements? And, more importantly, why is that
important? Do Eduardo, and Monique, and Abdul really care about the periodic
table, or would it be more appropriate to lure them into science by measuring air
quality in front of the school when the school buses are idling, or through looking
at how traditional methods of agriculture preserve the integrity of the soil? These
approaches might actually eventually get them intrigued with understanding what
that periodic table is all about.
While you are browsing for unique flavors at that farmers market, you also wind
up in a wide variety of intriguing conversations. Your fellow shoppers are talking
about genetic engineering, sustainable agriculture, the rivers that run through their
lives, the many uses of coconuts. “I didn’t realize there were so many innovative
wonderful thinkers working in my community,” you muse to yourself. The ideas are
so refreshing, so unique, and so important that you feel tickled to be included. The
editors and authors of this book make you feel the same way. They stray from the
mainstream of annual yearly performance and “teaching to the test” discourse and
instead pick up the side conversations, the ones outside the box, that view science
education through the widest possible lens. One great achievement here is that the
book offers not only new theory but also what-do-I- do-on-Monday ideas so educa-
tors can spice up their curriculum and pique their students’ interests. These meth-
ods will help students find their own voice, make meaningful connections with their
abiotic and biotic environments, and share their narratives with each other and the
global commons. These passionate writers view science not as fast-food curricu-
lum, but as a global banquet grown out of deep cultural traditions.
Cultural Studies and Environmentalism is organized into three sections: Ecojustice,
Place-based Education, and Indigenous Knowledge Systems – each posing incisive
questions about the state of education today. In the first section, one of the authors
asks: “Why teach mathematics and science in schools if what students learn is not
used or unusable in the everyday life?” Instead of teaching denatured water chemistry
out of the textbook, this author engages British Columbian students in a place-based
study of well-water degradation in their region that unfairly impacts low-income resi-
dents. The students become active participants in their education and what starts as
math and science curriculum evolves into civic activism. Science becomes relevant to
righting social wrongs while also teaching good chemistry. This curriculum teaches
students how to become democratic citizens participating in community service
through the vehicle of making strong connections to the local landscape. They do not
just earn a grade on a piece of paper; they can physically see the outcome of their
work and feel good about helping their neighbors.
The second section explores the intersections between place-based education,
indigenous knowledge, and ecojustice education asking questions such as: “What