Science of You

I woke up this morning with teaching on my mind. In particular, I was thinking about science education.

In the past, I've often wondered if the state of science education in the US couldn't be improved by making science more accessible to ordinary, non-science types. When I think of science classes, I think of math because in many cases, solving math problems is all that one does. Thinking back to chemistry and physics classes that I took in high school, that was certainly the case. And it was certainly the case when I took an astronomy class in college.

Math obviously has its place in science, but the excessive math can also squash the layman's interest in science as well. A lot of people (I count myself among them) are interested in, and curious about, science, but we aren't necessarily interested in solving lists of math problems.

When I took astronomy class in college, the professor had a lecture-hall full of students eager to learn about the subject on the first day of the semester, but by the end of the course, we just wanted it to be over with, and the reason is because all we did was solve math problems. Nothing sucks the wonder and the grandeur out of the universe faster or more effectively than math.

What I would have liked to have seen in college--and perhaps some schools do this, but mine did not--is the science equivalent of a music appreciation class or a Shakespeare for non-English majors. Music appreciation is designed to expose students to great works of classical music and to teach them how to listen to such music and what to listen for, but without getting to far into the technical details of music composition. Shakespeare for non-English majors does the same thing: it introduces students to Shakespeare without going too in depth into literary criticism and analysis.

Why can't there be science classes for non-science majors? A physics for non-majors or biology for non-majors. In such classes, professors can introduce and teach the major concepts of these fields without dumping a lot of math into one's laps (solving math problems could be offered for extra credit). And if someone really likes the class and wants to go on to major or minor in, say, physics, then they can take the courses that are designed for majors and that have all of the math.

In America, science really suffers from negative public relations. A lot of people treat science, and scientists, with suspicion. Special courses that present science in an accessible way, designed for people who aren't going to be scientists but who may someday be in positions of authority regarding science (such as on school boards or in state legislatures) would go a long way to restoring science to a place of importance and respect in American society.