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This design case details the design process of a multiple-choice assessment of socio-scientific systems thinking. This assessment is situated within a larger project that aims to understand the ways students use multiple scientific models to understand complex socio-scientific issues. In addition to the research component, this project entails developing curriculum and assessment resources that support science teaching and learning. We begin this paper by framing the needs that motivated the design of this assessment and introducing the design team. We then present a narrative outlining the design process, focusing on key challenges that arose and the ways these challenges influenced our final design. We conclude this paper with a discussion of the compromises that had to be made in the process of designing this instrument. 

Research on socio-scientific issues (SSI) has revealed that it is critical for learners to develop a systematic understanding of the underlying issue. In this paper, we explore how modeling can facilitate students’ systems thinking in the context of SSI. Building on evidence from prior research in promoting systems thinking skills through modeling in scientific contexts, we hypothesize that a similar modeling approach could effectively foster students’ systematic understanding of complex societal issues. In particular, we investigate the affordances of socio-scientific models in promoting students’ systems thinking in the context of COVID-19. We examine learners’ experiences and reflections concerning three unique epistemic features of socio-scientific models, (1) knowledge representation, (2) knowledge justification, and (3) systems thinking. The findings of this study demonstrate that, due to the epistemic differences from traditional scientific modeling approach, engaging learners in developing socio-scientific models presents unique opportunities and challenges for SSI teaching and learning. It provides evidence that, socio-scientific models can serve as not only an effective but also an equitable tool for addressing this issue. 

Justice-centred science pedagogy has been suggested as an effective framework for supporting teachers in bringing in culturally relevant pedagogy to their science classrooms; however, limited instructional tools exist that introduce social dimensions of science in ways teachers feel confident navigating. In this article, we add to the justice-centred science pedagogy framework by offering tools to make sense of science and social factors and introduce socioscientific modelling as an instructional strategy for attending to social dimensions of science in ways that align with justice-centred science pedagogy. Socioscientific modelling offers an inclusive, culturally responsive approach to education in science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics through welcoming students’ diverse repertoires of personal and community knowledge and linking disciplinary knowledge with social dimensions. In this way, students can come to view content knowledge as a tool for making sense of inequitable systems and societal injustices. Using data from an exploratory study conducted in summer 2022, we present emerging evidence of how this type of modelling has shown students to demonstrate profound insight into social justice science issues, construct understandings that are personally meaningful and engage in sophisticated reasoning. We conclude with future considerations for the field. 

Abstract COVID-19 creates an opportunity for science classrooms to relate content about viruses to students’ personal experiences with the pandemic. Previous researchers have shown that students are interested in crisis situations like disease outbreaks; however, they primarily acquire information about these events through internet sources which are often biased. We argue that it is important to understand student interest, concerns, and information-seeking behaviors related to COVID-19 to support science classroom learning and engagement about the virus and other potential outbreaks. We surveyed 224 high school students and analyzed their responses to six open-ended questions. We found that students expressed the most interest in topics related to the origin of COVID-19 and vaccines. Their greatest concerns included contracting the virus or someone they know contracting the virus and vaccine distribution. Of our sample, only 6.7% reported using their teachers as their source of COVID-19 information. Science classrooms have the potential to pique students’ situational interest by discussing COVID-19 topics that are important to students, which can increase their academic performance, content knowledge, attention, and engagement in learning about viruses. Moreover, classroom instruction about COVID-19 by teachers has shown to alleviate students’ stress and anxiety. We provide key areas of student interest about COVID-19 to help educators address students’ questions and improve curricular resources on viral pandemics.