Developing scientific
literacy in students has become a central focus in science education. One
component of this literacy is identified by the Illinois State Learning Standards, Goal 13 (Science); students will
"understand the relationship among science, technology and society in
historical and contemporary contexts." This proposal will implement this
goal by using a biotechnology approach in a high school curriculum. Aspects of
biotechnology pertinent to specific subject areas will educate students in the
threefold relationship - science, technology, society. Examples are the
following: in art, students will illustrate a developmental timeline, social
studies classes will debate current issues in biotechnology, health and foods
students will deal with agricultural applications of biotechnology, English
classes will analyze articles appearing in the popular press, and math students
will do data analysis from scientific experiments. Biology classes will provide
the fundamentals of the science involved in biotechnology research. Such
activities as DNA extraction, DNA electrophoresis, and bacterial
transformations will give students hands-on experience with these basic
techniques. The various activities from the participating subject areas will be
compiled and reported on a biotechnology web page which will be made available
to the community-at-large. This broader dissemination will help educate a
public that also must learn to live with this new technology.