Scientific literacy and the social constructivist perspective

Abstract

The term scientific literacy is already common in our educational rhetoric. Although the term is widely used, there are no papers that analyse the definition of the term and the rangeitencompasses in Serbia. If scientific literacy is a necessary outcome of education, this analysis is an important base for designing the teaching/learning process which is intended to develop such an outcome. Therefore, this paper provides an analysis of the concept of scientific literacy (SL), the different viewpoints on SL and the nature of the concept. Furthermore, five key lines as courses of action in the teaching/learning process, necessary for the development of these competencies, are defined: appreciation ofstudents' previous knowledge, encouragement of students' basic functional literacy and reading comprehension skills, the development of students' understanding of the socio-cultural perspective on the origin and use of scientific knowledge and technological products, and practicing of scientific research, either through school science or science applied in the context of cooperation between school and the local community, i.e. in the socio-cultural background where students live.

Termin naučna pismenost se već odomaćio u obrazovnoj retorici kod nas. Iako se termin uveliko koristi, kod nas nema radova koji se bave preispitivanjem njegovog određenja, šta on uključuje i na šta se tačno odnosi. Ova vrsta analize je neophodna, ako naučnu pismenost vidimo kao jedan od potrebnih ishoda obrazovanja, da bismo mogli kreirati nastavu/učenje koja omogućava realizaciju takvog ishoda. Zbog toga, u ovom radu se analizira konstrukt naučna pismenost, prikazuju različita gledišta o njemu i njegovoj prirodi, i definiše se pet ključnih linija, pravaca delovanja u nastavi/učenju, neophodnih za razvoj ove kompetencije: uvažavanje predznanja učenika; podsticanje bazične funkcionalne pismenosti učenika i veštine razumevanja pročitanog; podrška razvoju mišljenja učenika; razvoj razumevanja socio-kulturne perspektive nastanka i upotrebe naučnih znanja i tehnoloških produkata; i, posebno, praktikovanje naučno-istraživačkog rada, bilo kroz školsku nauku, ili nauku primenjenu u kontekstu saradnje škole i lokalne zajednice, dakle u socio-kulturnom miljeu u kome učenici žive.