Science education in an age of misinformation

Speaker: Em Prof Jonathan Osborne (Stanford University)
Host: Prof Jan van Driel
Moderator: Dr Emily Rochette
What can science education do to improve young people’s ability to evaluate science-related claims? Attempts to educate a scientifically literate population have failed for two major reasons. One is a flawed belief that underlies many of the conceptions of scientific literacy- that it is possible to educate people sufficiently to be intellectually independent. Nothing could be further from the truth as we are all epistemically dependent on the expertise of scientists just as we are on the expertise of a plumber, lawyer or doctor. The issue then is how to make judgements of credibility of those who claim to be scientific experts. Second is the consistent failure to operationalize the knowledge and capabilities that should be the outcomes of any K-12 education. This talk will argue that what is needed is a combination of basic skills of digital media literacy and good understanding of the social practices of science. In particular, the knowledge to evaluate scientific credibility, the significance of consensus and the role of peer review. Moreover, this must be addressed urgently.
Jonathan Osborne is the Kamalachari Chair in Science Education, Emeritus in the Graduate School of Education, Stanford University (2009-). He was President of the US National Association for Research in Science Teaching (2006-7) and was awarded the Distinguished Contribution to Science Education Award in 2018. He was a member of the US National Academies Panel that produced the Framework for K-12 Science Education. He chairs the expert group for science assessments conducted by the OECD PISA Program in 2015 and 2025 when science is the primary focus, and is the lead author of the report Science Education in an Age of Misinformation.