Get real on science, say world experts

For generations of students, science lessons have meant memorising formulae and rote learning facts such as the periodic table and laws of physics. Now, at a time when the world is facing serious environmental problems, scientists and educators are concerned that there is a declining interest in the subject. At an international conference at the University of Hong Kong this week, they argued there was an urgent need to reassess the way the subject is taught. The delegates, from France, the US, Canada, Japan, Hong Kong and the mainland, produced the Hong Kong Accord for Global Science Education, a document which lays out guiding principles designed to help attract students back to the subject, boost science literacy and give the next generation of scientists the tools to solve global problems. The network has promised to produce the 'world's best' science curriculum and teacher-training materials over the next five years. It also hopes to create 'real science' systems meaning students would use real data, such as data from remote robotic telescopes. Such a network is the dream of Carl Pennypacker, a research astronomer at the Space Sciences Laboratory at the University of California, Berkeley. Dr Pennypacker said people now realised that we must act globally to find solutions to problems such as global warming and resource sharing. 'Success will depend on many good scientists and engineers being produced by our education systems and on the population at large having some understanding of key aspects of science.' Dr Pennypacker said instead of nations 'competing' for the best science education system, the world needed to build one great science education system for all children, teachers and parents. 'Arguably no current educational system anywhere is producing copious numbers of inspired, effective children who eagerly want to become scientists and engineers,' he said. 'Nor is any system producing a general population that is scientifically literate, a population that can understand data and graphs - people who can become leaders and are competent to make wise decisions about all of our fates.' But, with growing awareness of the need to solve problems on a global scale combined with decades of educational research and the power of the internet, society had the capability to make a 'significant and profound change for the 1.5 billion students on our planet', he said. Hsingchi von Bergmann, associate professor of science education at the University of Calgary's education faculty, said the Hong Kong accord included the idea that curricula should focus on the themes and concepts underlying all science and the need for teachers around the world to collaborate. 'If teachers continue to be trained independently ... it's impossible for them to visualise and enact such a global science education,' she said. Dr von Bergmann said there was a need to move from an era in which countries competed against each other to one where they took a collaborative approach towards science education. 'Up until now there's still a lot of cold war mentality in maths and science education, trying to compare one country against other countries,' she said. Competition between countries had been encouraged and consequently teaching in many countries had focused on how to pass exams. 'They are putting off a lot of students because science learning becomes learning to the test. It's no longer about creativity. It's no longer about doing science, understanding science. It's more about doing well in science exams,' Dr von Bergmann said. She said students needed to have good science literacy and the world needed people to enter the fields of science, engineering and technology. The older generation would retire soon, leaving a large gap. Dr von Bergmann said teaching to the test was a pervasive practice in Asia, especially among top economic players such as Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, mainland China and Hong Kong. 'Among all these cultures a lot of getting into college is trying to pass different kinds of examinations. Their learning is so dominated by trying to do well in exams,' she said. 'Assessment dictates learning. In many ways if you wanted to have a different kind of system, dream big. You have to rethink your assessment system in all these countries.' Dr von Bergmann said once a country changed its assessment system it would begin to see different kinds of incoming university students who knew how to solve problems and conduct research independently. Dr Pennypacker said memorising for exams, which he calls 'drill-and-kill national education systems', 'kills their innate curiosity and love of science'. It was not in the best interests of students or society. He said it was more important for scientists to be able to think creatively and carry a project through to the end. Nevertheless, he acknowledged that some teachers had little choice. 'If you have 60 children in a class it might be the only way you can teach,' he said. Dr von Bergmann said teachers needed opportunities to interact with scientific laboratories so that they could continue to develop their own science literacy and inspire students. 'If teachers themselves experience the excitement of science it's inevitable they will become passionate towards science, and when they are passionate towards science there's no way that they will be able to hide that passion in front of students,' she said. 'That kind of passion is so contagious the students will pick it up and really want to learn more about science.' As debate continues over the clash between teaching intelligent design and the theory of evolution, Dr von Bergmann said it was a concern when religious groups wielded power over a school's curriculum. There were many resources available to help teachers teach science in a way that did not impose on religious beliefs. Meanwhile, Dr Pennypacker has witnessed how getting children involved in real science can stimulate their interest. He founded the Hands-On Universe educational programme that enables students to investigate the universe by applying tools and concepts from science, maths and technology. Using the internet, students are able to request observations from an automated telescope. To date, students around the world have discovered 75 new asteroids. 'That's such an amazing thing. The steps are small but then it's a big leap, it blows their minds,' he said.