To appreciate the nature of STS and EE, there is nothing like getting directly involved, just as we want secondary students to participate. Following are several STS and EE activities. Choose one of the actions and carry it out with a partner or a small team.
Materials
The materials you will need will depend on the action you choose.
Procedure
Choose an action and carry it out. Prepare a poster report on you activity, and be prepared to report to the entire class.
Actions
• Science-in-the-News. Select a topic such as water and health, conserving resources, drugs and toxins in the human body, and create a "Science-in-the-News" bulletin board or poster. Assemble from local, regional and national newspapers or magazines articles, editorials, or cartoons that relate to the topic. Use colored highlighters to identify (1) the problem or issue; (2) relevant science facts; (3) proposed solutions; and (4) political/economical implications.
• Bicycles-to-Autos Ratio. Look at the list of countries shown here. Which country do you think has the highest bicycle-to-auto ratio, and which do you think has the lowest ratio? Rank the other countries that fall between the two extremes. Check your results. What do these results imply?
The countries:
• Conservation
Collaborate with a small group of your peers and make a list of environmental actions you have or currently are participating in that are considered a conservation activity. Categorize the actions and suggest how you could use this data and category system to teach high school students one concept about STS.
Minds On Strategies
1. How can these STS actions be turned into science lessons?
2. Should STS be conceptualized as a separate course, or should it be integrated into existing science courses? What is your opinion?