When I have the reigns of the class we will be looking at what I consider to be some of the most important challenges facing humans in the 21st century. These challenges have been “boxed” into three modules entitled “Human Health and Disease”, “Food, Fuel and Water”, and “Climate Change.” All of these challenges have a scientific underpinning, and we will be using the tools of science to probe these problems; however, these problems cannot be solved through scientific inquiry alone.
Therefore, we will take a “two-pronged”, but synthetic, approach to each challenge. Ideally we will grapple with big issues together by reading, talking, visiting with professionals, and performing experiments. The first approach is called “reduction.” That is to boil an issue down to, “what do I know?” We will move past reduction and into the second approach by learning what other people know in order to make sense of the entire picture. Essentially, I want you to see how emergent properties of a system can be resolved through measured, reductive approaches, and through discussions with others.
The first question we are going to ask you is “Why are you here?” As many of you know (and the rest of you will soon learn), I won’t ask you to do anything I won’t do myself. So, why am I here? I want to dig deeper into, and be more focused on, topics that I believe will be major challenges to citizens of the 21st century. These are topics that I am also personally interested in. I want to dig deeper into these issues, and avoid recycling the exact same thing I have taught over the past four years. One of my ulterior motives is to continue honing the teaching tools I have been using for the past two years, including a writing model I call CEER, facilitating discussions between students with different perspectives, and using new technology to teach basic science concepts.
This is a new course, and it is a “thought experiment.” As Mr. Beitleman likes to say, “we will be building the plane in the air.” I predict some turbulence. This class won’t necessarily be easy, and it may be downright uncomfortable some days. Pragmatically, we might not get as deep on an issue as you like. All of these problems are okay. Our goal isn’t to teach you what to think, but to continue developing your critical thinking skills. I want you to walk out of this class capable of interpreting 21st Century challenges, and contributing to potential solutions.
As you might predict, I agree wholeheartedly with these sentiments (wish I'd written them!), and I'd add that the ability to "build the plane in the air" -- and even the capacity to withstand some discomfort and turbulence -- are essential skills in the 21st C. They've always been useful (lest we think we've got the market cornered on historic challenges), but I think they're particularly useful now and into the near future.
ReplyDeleteHow am I going to evaluate you guys. The number one way is class participation. We want you to be here, and, really, be here. Be present. As it stands, you will receive one point/day if you are present, engaged, and contributing to a research project, presentation, or laboratory activity. If you are not engaged, chronically tardy, or disruptive you will not earn the point, and your grade will suffer.
ReplyDeleteIn terms of assignments, you will be doing a variety of short presentations, laboratory activities, and short answer write ups for me. (You will have two opportunities to stretch your ideas about these topics thanks to Mr. Beitleman. The point values for my assignments will depend on the time we spend on a topic in class. For instance, if we spend 5 days on a project, like investigating Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs), then the evaluation will be worth 25 points. If we spend two days on a mini-project, then the assignment will be worth 10 points. This is not set in stone, but it tends to work out.
The bottom line is you will get out of this course what you put into it, and your grade will reflect your efforts.