Stanford Engineering
31 January 2025
With the tremendous amount of information available to us today, the ability to discern what’s reliable from what’s not is crucial to combating the spread of misinformation. In 2023, we sat down with Jonathan Osborne, an expert in science education to talk about the tools our students (and really all of us!) need to critically evaluate science news and information. We hope you’ll tune into this episode again to hear about the three valuable skills Osborne says we should be teaching our students so they can debunk scientific misinformation. Have a question for Russ? Send it our way in writing or via voice memo, and it might be featured on an upcoming episode. Please introduce yourself, let us know where you're listening from, and share your quest. You can send questions to thefutureofeverything@stanford.edu. Episode Reference Links: Stanford Profile: Jonathan OsborneConnect With Us: Episode Transcripts >>> The Future of Everything WebsiteConnect with Russ >>> Threads / Bluesky / MastodonConnect with School of Engineering >>> Twitter/X / Instagram / LinkedIn / FacebookChapters: (00:00:00) Introduction Russ Altman introduces Jonathan Osborne, a professor of education at Stanford University. (00:01:50) State of Science Education Current education's failure to prepare students for misinformation. (00:03:46) Internet-Age Challenges Why younger generations struggle with evaluating credibility online. (00:05:07) Tools for Evaluating Claims Three key questions to assess scientific credibility. (00:08:10) Teaching Credibility Using interactive challenges to teach critical thinking. (00:10:46) Attitudes Toward Science Flaws in the way science education is currently taught to youth. (00:14:28) Barriers to Reform Resistance to curriculum changes and systemic challenges. (00:19:02) Scientific Argumentation The importance of teaching reasoning behind scientific discoveries. (00:24:03) Modes of Scientific Argumentation Deductive, abductive, and inductive reasoning as key scientific methods. (00:25:45) Inspiring Curiosity in Science Framing science as imaginative, evidence-backed ideas to engage students. (00:28:06) Adapting Science Standards The need for flexible standards to address evolving education challenges. (00:29:57) Conclusion Connect With Us: Episode Transcripts >>> The Future of Everything Website Connect with Russ >>> Threads / Bluesky / Mastodon Connect with School of Engineering >>>Twitter/X / Instagram / LinkedIn / Facebook Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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