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Science Education

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Context-embedded learning
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Scientific Literacy
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Health Literacy
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Critical Thinking
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Problem Solving
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Cross-curricula learning
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Critically Engaged Citizenship

Critically Engaged Citizenship

Empowering the next generation to question, investigate, and take action is a vital contribution to a better future.

Adolescence (age 10-19) is a period of transformation and development. During this transition to adulthood, formal education plays a critical role in promoting positive growth. Alongside numeracy and literacy development, science, social science, technology, health, physical education, and the arts play a vital role in developing general and subject-specific capabilities that collectively promote critical thinking and problem-solving.
Our context-embedded learning approach uses the exploration of contexts of relevance to students, their families, and communities to support core learning in individual subject or cross-curricula models. Alongside learning of core knowledge and skills, students explore issues from multiple perspectives by investigating local, traditional, cultural, scientific, and social evidence.
We specialise in transforming complex evidence into narrative-based learning resources. These learning resources enable young people to explore and make sense of evidence. Additionally, our resources promote capabilities associated with scientific and health literacies and critical thinking. Once people understand evidence, they are much more likely to act on it.

Critically engaged citizenship is a way of being that is associated with questioning, seeking evidence and understanding, assessing multiple perspectives and taking considered actions that are mindful of the complexity of the challenges and opportunities facing modern societies.

(Bay, Yaqona & Oyamada, 2019)

Bay, J., Yaqona, D., Oyamada, M. (2019). DOHaD Interventions: Opportunities During Adolescence and the Periconceptional Period. In: Sata, F., Fukuoka, H., Hanson, M. (eds) Pre-emptive Medicine: Public Health Aspects of Developmental Origins of Health and Disease. Current Topics in Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-2194-8_3

Sharing stories is central to being human, and to learning

Sharing stories helps us to think about and unpack our own experiences, ideas and perspectives. When we listen to stories from other people, places or cultures, we learn about new ideas and develop a deeper understanding of our perspectives and those of others. To progress local and global challenges, we need to explore different ideas, facts and values. This involves exploring issues by looking at local, traditional, faith, Indigenous, technological and scientific knowledge, including the natural, social and behavioural sciences and the humanities.

Using Appreciative Inquiry, students share stories about issues from their own experience before exploring evidence and narratives from others (local and international) and considering what is working well and how that can be expanded. Sharing experiences and learning about different perspectives can be transformational when learning includes opportunities to envision change and test out new actions.

My Health Profile - Toku Ora'anga Kōpapa

Exploring Metabolic Health

This Cook Islands example of a health profile record is used in education-health partnerships to support understanding of metabolic health. It does not sit alone but is integrated into the learning module Ko Au e Toku Aorangi: Kai no te Oraanga Meitaki (Me, Myself, My Environment: Nutrition).
Contextually relevant resources in this series are also available for Tonga and New Zealand and are available for adaptation to other settings.

Exploring Type 2 Diabetes

The Te Maki Toto Vene resources explore local and scientific evidence about the importance of our social, nutritional, and physical environment for lifelong learning, health, and wellbeing. They support capability development that allows adolescents to participate as critical, informed, and responsible citizens concerning current and future challenges such as the NCD epidemic. These resources contain local data but can be adapted for different contexts.

Exploring Lifestyles & Health

Past, Present and Future Lifestyles in the Cook Islands is an example of a resource that explores issues across time, using multiple case studies. It is aligned to the Cook Island Social Science Curriculum and written for use in Year 9 but is used variably in schools from Years 7 to 10. Cross-curricula learning is supported when this resource is linked to the use of Me, Myself, My Environment: Kai no te Oraanga Meitaki. Content within the resource has been found to be useful at other levels and learning areas.

Exploring Nutrition & Health

The Me, Myself, My Environment series for the Cook Islands was developed and tested in Rarotonga, evolving from a Liggins Institute programme that was also adapted by the University of Southampton. Used across the Cook Islands, the resource is aligned with the science and health curricula, focusing on capabilities that support science and health literacy alongside core nutrition education. Evidence from NZ and the Cook Islands has shown that these resources promote health behaviour change and educational attainment.

Exploring Lifecourse Health

To make sense of, interpret, and use scientific evidence, young people need opportunities to explore and debate it. My First 1000 Days was developed in response to the LENScience team's experience of exploring the science from which Developmental Origins emerged with over 5000 young people. Using the stories of people whose work sits behind the science, the resource engages young people in considering what the evidence is and how it evolved. The resource was tested in NZ, UK, Tonga and the Cook Islands before being finalised. A Japanese edition is in development.

About Us

Find out more about our work and how we foster connections between science and society.

Our Work

We examine challenges and opportunities associated with engaging in transdisciplinary partnerships; science communication, knowledge translation, science education, health promotion and the relationship between science and society.