December 7, 1941 a day that if you mention it to most students they will not know its relevance. September 11, 2001 has become a date more relevant to most of our students. It is important for students to understand and analyze the past to recognize and interpret future events that will impact their lives. How do we make connections between past and present, tragedy and progress, beliefs and consequences while remaining focused on our curriculum? Most teachers will say, "I am not a History teacher, that is not relevant to my curriculum." I am a science teacher and I believe that it is critical to touch on these events and how they are related to where we are today, technologically, socially, and emotionally.
Pearl Harbor, how can this be related to a Life Science classroom? As with any tragedy, what comes from the ashes of sorrow is innovation and design to make what happened never happen again. Also out of necessity comes advancements in medicine, engineering and technology. For example, the use of plasma to treat wounded soldiers came about during WWII, radar, microwaves and new communication devices were improved upon and implemented during the second world war. Science is all around us, we can make connections with science in every topic imaginable. This is what I share with my students, look around you, everything you see is science. Science changes the world. Let students choose topics and have them discover the advancements and progress that they created. Let them see that tragedy often spawns ingenuity: Titanic-life boats and safer ship travel.
Relevance and interest are key to a students engagement. Use the news and world events to help students recognize the importance of creativity, design, collaboration and ingenuity and how together they shape the world around us.
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