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Larry Bencze, OISE, U. Toronto Steve Alsop, York U, Toronto

Towards … Communitarian Science Education. Larry Bencze, OISE, U. Toronto Steve Alsop, York U, Toronto. IHPST 2009. Who Owns ‘Science’?. Jonas Salk - Developer of first safe & effective vaccine for Polio.

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Larry Bencze, OISE, U. Toronto Steve Alsop, York U, Toronto

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  1. Towards … Communitarian Science Education Larry Bencze, OISE, U. Toronto Steve Alsop, York U, Toronto IHPST 2009

  2. Who Owns ‘Science’? Jonas Salk - Developer of first safe & effective vaccine for Polio "Shortly after a large-scale clinical trial in 1955, the first inactivated polio vaccine was being injected into tens of millions of people around the world - possibly the most successful pharmaceutical product launch in history. Asked why he had not obtained a patent on the phenomenally successful vaccine, Jonas Salk reportedly replied, 'That would be like patenting the sun.' A few decades later, this view seemed laughably quaint."

  3. Business-Science Partnerships • ‘Communalism’: • e.g., Dr. Nancy Olivieri, Hospital for Sick Children; deferiprone, drug for thalassemia major; Company suppressed negative results. • ‘Universal’: • e.g., restricted access to software by companies. • ‘Disinterestedness’: • e.g., prevent research into uncommon diseases (e.g., schistosomiasis) - since they are unprofitable. • ‘Originality’: • e.g., ‘Me-too’ drugs! • ‘Skepticism’: • e.g., Ghost Writers! Profit & Merton’s Norms Craig Venter

  4. Why is this happening?! • Global Economization • Neoliberalism • Neoconservatism

  5. How is School Science Involved? • Neoconservativismworks to preserve traditional forms of privilege and marginalize authentic democratic and social justice agendas … (Carter, 2005, p. 571). • Competition for scarce ‘capital’ • Selection via decontextualization and intensification • Overall • ‘Survival of the Richest!’

  6. How is School Science Involved? • Neoliberals aim to condition students in ways conducive to often-irresponsible for-profit production and consumption of goods and services. Students’ conceptions of self vs. others … e.g., Possessive individualism via individualized assessments of ‘finished’ science

  7. How is School Science Involved? Students’ conceptions of science … • Rational & Real • Privately Owned • e.g. knowledge = marks • e.g., critical experiments • e.g., heroes!

  8. How is School Science Involved? Students’ lack of capital … • De-skilled • Confused • Isolated • Homogenized

  9. Towards Communitarian Science Education • Equity & Diversity • Holism & Breadth • Empowerment & Depth • Critical Literacy • Self-determination • Responsibility

  10. STEPWISE In Action

  11. Thanks! • The paper is at: • http://fcis.oise.utoronto.ca/~lbencze/IHPST2009_Bencze-Alsop.pdf • You can write to me at: • larry.bencze@utoronto.ca • The Project for Activist Science & Technology Education (PASTE) (with the journal, JASTE, is at: • http://www.wepaste.org

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