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Session 3661

A Concurrent Approach to STS

Lúcia Helena Martins-Pacheco, Renato Lucas Pacheco

Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina

Introduction The Industrial Revolution has been considered as the new age in History due to the deep social, economical and political transformations that it has caused. On the one hand, the mechanization of the means of production replaced handcrafted labor, greatly increased the availability of goods, and enriched very much the capitalist businessman. On the other hand, it sprang up serious social and environmental problems, such as unemployment, rural exodus, and pollution, which demanded institutional, cultural and political transformations1,2. Nowadays, we are the witnesses of a new revolution. The generalized use of computers and computerized systems have been changing again the means of production, and also, personal relations. Once more, the course of History has been modified, at this time by the so-called “information revolution”, which has been altering lifestyles, educational practices, production relations, etc3. And, the main “engine” of these processes has been the discoveries in science that make possible the development of new technologies, which give support to a massive industrial production and promoting several transformations in social relations. But, this process brings new advances to science itself, generating a vicious circle. At the same time, as consequence, social, environmental, economical, and political problems have come along, bringing up crisis and instability to the social order.

Presently, one of the greatest challenges to researchers in social areas is to understand the complex imbrications/overlaps amongst the variables of this historical process and to find out ways to allow “harmonious solutions”. However, what do “harmonious solutions” mean to each one? Would be there a general consensus about that? The definition of what means a “harmonious solution” will depend on the ideological aspects of the people involved in the analysis of problems.

In the last years, aiming to give some perspectives of solution to these problems, the STS (Science, Technology and Society) approach has developed an educational proposal that intends to teach students and teachers new attitudes to cope with those issues. The focus of STS is to know about the relationship amongst science, technology, and the culture of a society, aiming at some “harmonious solutions”. Also, environmental factors are frequently being taken into account, as well as economical issues. One of the most important aspect in STS educational Proceedings of the 2004 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition Copyright © 2004, American Society for Engineering Education

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Pacheco, R., & Martins-Pacheco, L. H. (2004, June), A Concurrent Approach To Sts Paper presented at 2004 Annual Conference, Salt Lake City, Utah. 10.18260/1-2--14079