Type of Presentation
Individual paper/presentation
Target Audience
Higher Education
Location
Session Two Breakouts
Abstract
We think of people of antiquity as leaning on superstition and traditions when it came to making decisions large and small. Even as long ago as the Roman empire, however, there were precursors to modern professionals such as civil engineers, and these people needed real solutions to vexing problems. Somehow, society slowly—very slowly—began leaning more toward the methodical thinking and working styles of these early scientists. In this program, science teacher Heather Darling-Cortes of M.S. 577 in Brooklyn, New York, will look at how the world at large and individuals became willing to move from reliance on familiar beliefs and practices to instead take advice from remote experts—a shift that you want your students to make. Librarian Henrietta Verma of Infobase will look at how steps in the historical acceptance of science can be leveraged to tackle misinformation today. She will discuss how to convince students that, just as ancient Romans discovered, facts are a way to get ahead. Attendees will come away from this program ready to take an advanced step in the struggle against misinformation: make students care that what they find is true.
Presentation Description
In this program, biology teacher Heather Darling-Cortes will look at how the world moved from reliance on familiar beliefs and practices to instead take advice from remote experts—a shift your students should make. Librarian Henrietta Verma will look at how steps in the historical acceptance of science can be leveraged to tackle misinformation. Attendees will come away from this program ready to take an advanced step against misinformation: make students care that what they find is true.
Keywords
History of science, misinformation, student motivation
Publication Type and Release Option
Presentation (Open Access)
Recommended Citation
Verma, Henrietta and Darling-Cortes, Heather, "What’s in it for Me? Use Science History to Make the Truth Compelling" (2021). Georgia International Conference on Information Literacy. 11.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/gaintlit/2021/2021/11
What’s in it for Me? Use Science History to Make the Truth Compelling
Session Two Breakouts
We think of people of antiquity as leaning on superstition and traditions when it came to making decisions large and small. Even as long ago as the Roman empire, however, there were precursors to modern professionals such as civil engineers, and these people needed real solutions to vexing problems. Somehow, society slowly—very slowly—began leaning more toward the methodical thinking and working styles of these early scientists. In this program, science teacher Heather Darling-Cortes of M.S. 577 in Brooklyn, New York, will look at how the world at large and individuals became willing to move from reliance on familiar beliefs and practices to instead take advice from remote experts—a shift that you want your students to make. Librarian Henrietta Verma of Infobase will look at how steps in the historical acceptance of science can be leveraged to tackle misinformation today. She will discuss how to convince students that, just as ancient Romans discovered, facts are a way to get ahead. Attendees will come away from this program ready to take an advanced step in the struggle against misinformation: make students care that what they find is true.
