What is scientific literacy and why is it important?

Answer 1

Scientific literacy was defined by the council of ministers of education in 1997 as "an evolving combination of the science-related attitudes, skills, and knowledge students need to develop inquiry, problem-solving, and decision-making abilities, to become lifelong learners, and to maintain a sense of wonder about the world around them."[1]
---- [1] Council of Ministers of Education of Canada (1997). Common framework of science learning outcomes, K to 12: Pan-Canadian protocol for collaboration on school curriculum.

Answer 2

Scientific literacy is the knowledge and understanding of scientific concepts and processes. Scientific literacy encompasses written, numerical, and digital literacy as they pertain to understanding science, its methodology, observations, and theories.

Answer 3

Just as with other forms of literacy (eg- writing, mathematics, or computer literacy), scientific literacy means having at least a basic understanding of the underpinning principals, in this case, of scientific experimentation, theory, and explanation.

Someone who is scientifically literate may be confident in the knowledge that the seasons are caused by the Earth's axial tilt, for instance, or that thermal energy makes things hotter, or that water boils at 100 degrees at sea level. They may also be comfortable explaining these phenomena, and could roughly understand a scientific explanation.

One does not have to be a scientist to be scientifically literate, and the benefits of being scientifically literate could include being less likely to run in terror at the sight of a shooting star, or walk off the edge of a building without knowing that gravity, momentum, and sudden deceleration are not always your friend.