To:

Dr. Diane Carter

From:

April Greene

Subject:

Portfolio Project Subject Proposal

Date:

02/10/2015

For my portfolio project, I wish to focus my information around the importance of restructuring the
science curriculum in high schools across the nation.
I chose this topic for my portfolio work because every week, one can read stories by journalists, see
examples on news programs, or even view messages on social media sites that are laced with
pseudoscience that is presented as fact. Some of these topics are so basic, that one would assume that
most people should have learned about this in high school, but since science evolves so rapidly, science
classrooms have not kept up with the times. One example of this is the recent measles outbreak that
occurred because a significant number of people choose not to vaccinate their children. Their reasons,
although many, often seem to come back to fears about some of the chemicals that are in the vaccines
themselves, which would be something they would understand if basic toxicology principles were
understood.
My interest in this topic stems from various facets of my life. My parents graduated from high school in
the 1960s, and never earned college degrees. Science has been a huge mystery to them, so much so that
they started to subscribe to magazines to learn more about the subject after I decided to major in science
in college. Their education stops at approximately an 8th grade level in regards to science. When my son
was diagnosed with Autism, they looked at sites on the internet to learn more, which is where they found
misinformation suggesting that vaccines are the cause of Autism. I explained to them why this was not the
case, and after teaching them a bit of biochemistry, they finally understood. But my parents are not the
only ones who suffer from a lack of scientific literacy. The media, teachers, and a large number of
government employees have a poor understanding of basic scientific concepts which leads them to spout
misconceptions about science and fight those who wish to educate them. This is a problem because these
influential individuals pass misinformation on to the general public, to future generations, and even
through our laws without grasping or realizing the repercussions of their ignorance (or in some cases,
stubbornness).
The biggest issue that this country would face because of the shortfalls in our basic education system is
that our country would be left behind in scientific advancements, with other countries paving the way

with new technologies. This would not only hurt our country from an intelligence standpoint, but also
from an economic standpoint. Thus, this issue is one that affects everyone, rich or poor, male or female,
young or old.
Science curriculum is not really a topic many people think about on a daily basis. So thus, their exposure
to this topic is limited, if any, because of the trust they have in the education system to prepare their child
for their future. But once informed, the correct changes can be made to ensure a quality education which
grows as scientists discover new facts and information.

References:
Cairns, J. (n.d.). Communicating the processes of science to the news media, politicians, and the public.
Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management, 783-784.
Public's Knowledge of Science and Technology. (2013, April 22). Retrieved February 10, 2015, from
http://www.people-press.org/2013/04/22/publics-knowledge-of-science-and-technology/

Science and Technology: Public Attitudes and Understanding. (2004). In Science & engineering
indicators 2004 (Vol. 1, pp. 7-1-7-34). Arlington, Va.: National Science Foundation. Retrieved
February 10, 2015 from http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/seind04/pdf/c07.pdf
Tyson, N. D. (2014). Reporting on Science, Parts 1 & 2 [Radio series episode]. In Star Talk Radio. New
York: Neil DeGrasse Tyson.