science education gone wilde: creating science references that work

John Rennie, editorial director

AccessScienceMcGraw-Hill Education

Charleston ConferenceNov. 6, 2014

Science Education Gone

Wilde Science references that

work

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“Triviality” vs. “the vital Importance of

being Earnest”

4Source: National Math + Science Initiative

U.S education is not keeping up with the need for STEM proficiency

5Source: CDC

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“Fortunately, in England, at any rate,

education produces no effect whatsoever.”

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Excellence in science communications

CorrectnessAccuracyAuthorityCurrencyClarity

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“If I am occasionally a little over-dressed, I

make up for it by being always immensely over-

educated.”

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The big challenges for all science communications

Boredom Confusion Other Priorities

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Nature, Vol. 356, 30 April 1992

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“The truth is rarely pure and never

simple.”

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“The broad consequences are that ideas flow less freely across and within the sciences, and the public’s access to (and maybe trust in) science is diminished.”

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1950 1960 1970 1980 1990

1950 1960 1970 1980 1990

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Excellence in science communications

CorrectnessAccuracyAuthorityCurrencyClarity

GOOD BUT NOT ENOUGH

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Emphasize the dynamic of learning…

… not the static display of information

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Know Your Audience

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Anticipate users’ needs and expectations

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ContextRelevance

Clarity

AccuracyCompleteness

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Adaptive learning

Testing students’

knowledge, skill & confidence

Recognizing areas of

weakness

Reviews content strategically

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Adaptive heatmaps

Provide an overlay of learning

analytics on texts

Provide data on student

performance at paragraph &

sentence level

Allows targeted revisions

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“Perception paves

progress.”

Danielle N. Lee

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