Science Curriculum and Teaching for the 21st Century

Abstract

The challenges of an increasingly science-driven 21st century require a society of teachers and learners who participate actively and jointly across a broad range of problem areas, scientific disciplines, processes and methodologies. A widening gap currently exists between science education and mainstream science—a gap which must be narrowed to prepare the next generation of well-educated and well-trained scientists and science-literate citizens. The nature of major scientific problem-solving in the next 50 years will be accomplished through the effective mobilization of uniquely multidimensional, science-proficient men and women capable of interdisciplinary thought, action and cooperation, as well as individual specialization, To meet these challenges, educators of the gifted will be compelled to discover innovative strategies that focus on the whole student, not merely the identified gifted parts, and cultivate all aspects of the talented student—developmental, intellectual and psycho-social. Two scientific models have been selected for presentation in this paper, each representing a global problem of significant complexity. The models are: 1) Biotechnology applied to world hunger and famine, and 2) Genetic engineering applied to birth defects. Discussion of each model includes an overview of the specific problem area, approaches to solutions using a collaborative problem-solving process, and suggestions for classroom application.