European Identity - Individual, Group and Society - HumanitarianNet

MULTICULTURAL AN NON-RACIST SCIENCE EDUCATION. NEW APPROACHES ... 315Considering scientific literacy a major goal for Science educationand also an important tool to build the new citizenship, the NSTAdeclares that:—Schools are to provide Science education programs that nurtureall children both academically and physically, and that help themdevelop a positive self-concept.—Children from all cultures are to have equitable access to qualityScience education experiences that facilitate their academicsuccess and provide the knowledge and opportunities requiredfor them to become successful participants in our democraticsociety.—Curricular contents must incorporate the scientific contributionsof different cultures.—Science teachers have to be aware of the different modes ofScience knowledge building according to the different culturaltraditions.—Teaching strategies must recognise and respect differencesamong students based on their respective cultures.—Science teachers have the responsibility of preparing children insuch a way that they all have the same opportunities in theirfuture studies 4 .Banks puts forward, in a pioneer article 5 , several dimensions formulticultural change that could be applied to the field of Science asfollows:—Content integration: contents from different cultures and newand non-discriminatory scientific contents.—Knowledge construction: being aware of implicit social constructivism.—Prejudice reduction: respect to ethnicity, race, etc.—Equitable pedagogy: adapting teaching strategies to all culturesrepresented in the classroom.—Empowering school culture and social structure to be moreconscious of different cultures and their behaviours.Research in Science Teaching has identified several factors affectingthe multiculturalism of our schools:4National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) (2002). NSTA Position Statement,USA.5Banks, J. (1994). “Transforming the mainstream curriculum”. EducationalLeadership, 51, 8, pp.4-8.