Improving Scientific Literacy Through Enhanced Rigor in the Secondary Science Classroom

ABSTRACT Recent studies have reported a concerning lack of scientific literacy in American students and adults. This intervention study aimed to uncover factors that improve scientific literacy among secondary school students. Data included 74 students (63.5% female; M age = 16.66 years old, SD = 0.49) from one public high school in Western New York. These students were enrolled in two Advanced Placement (AP) Biology and two AP Environmental Science classes, randomly assigned into the intervention ( n = 38; 51.4%) and control conditions ( n = 36; 48.6%). The Test of Scientific Literacy Skills (TOSLS) was used to assess student scientific literacy scores for both pre‐intervention and post‐intervention. Paired samples t ‐test indicated significant pretest and posttest mean score differences for the participants in the intervention group ( t = −4.063, p < 0.001) but not for the control group ( p = 0.334). Multiple regression analysis showed that participants in the intervention group received higher posttest scores ( b = 2.944, p = 0.002), compared to those in the control group. Furthermore, the intervention effect on the posttest outcome did not depend on levels of pretest scores. Implications for science education at the secondary level, particularly in the pursuit of widespread scientific literacy, were discussed.