Science, Technology, and Society

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Why is biodiversity important? Is plastic still the material of the future? How do we feed 10 billion humans? How do we maintain and improve our own physical and mental health? How do we ensure potable water for the generations to come?

Science, technology, and society (STS) is designed to provide a general education and does not focus on acquiring subject-specific competencies. Instead, the focus is more global and focuses on science literacy and to educate the students to make informed decisions and to act as responsible citizens, as well as to gain an appreciation of science as a method to gain reliable knowledge.

STS is a 2p/week subject (90 minutes/week) and can be chosen in S6 and S7. It counts as a natural science in students’ subject packages.

Teaching

During the two years of teaching, five different topics will be covered chosen from the ones listed below.

Brains, minds, intelligences, and learning – Human understanding of understanding – our own, other organisms, machine-based.

Climate Change and Biodiversity – How our planet’s climate is changing, and what it means for us and all living things on Earth.

Developing technologies – Thinking through our increasing power to manipulate and control ourselves and the world around us.

Energy – How everything happens: energy sources, transformation, use, and conservation

Food, Nutrition, and Health – What we eat: exploring food production, distribution, consumption, processing, politics, nutrition sciences, marketing, and personal health.

Personal and Public Health – Health for individuals and groups: infectious, systemic, and environmental diseases, and how we protect ourselves and each other.

Water – The most abundant natural resource for us and all living things on Earth.