Situated in education policy analysis, this book is at the cutting edge of major debates across the social sciences regarding the nature of science, qualitative/quantitative tensions, post-foundational possibilities, and the research/policy nexus. Located between «the aftermath of poststructuralism» and the «new scientism» afoot in neoliberal audit culture, the book posits an engaged social science that is accountable to complexity and the political value of not being so sure. Its insistence is to put deconstruction to work in the midst of messiness, contingency, and ambiguity. The book will be useful in courses on education, feminist policy analysis, and qualitative research across disciplines.
The role of science in policymaking has gained unprecedented stature in the United States, raising questions about the place of science and scientific expertise in the democratic process. Some scientists have been given considerable epistemic authority in shaping policy on issues of great moral and cultural significance, and the politicizing of these issues has become highly contentious. Since World War II, most philosophers of science have purported the concept that science should be "value-free." In Science, Policy and the Value-Free Ideal, Heather E. Douglas argues that such an ideal is neither adequate nor desirable for science. She contends that the moral responsibilities of scientists require the consideration of values even at the heart of science. She lobbies for a new ideal in which values serve an essential function throughout scientific inquiry, but where the role values play is constrained at key points, thus protecting the integrity and objectivity of science. In this vein, Douglas outlines a system for the application of values to guide scientists through points of uncertainty fraught with moral valence.Following a philosophical analysis of the historical background of science advising and the value-free ideal, Douglas defines how values should-and should not-function in science. She discusses the distinctive direct and indirect roles for values in reasoning, and outlines seven senses of objectivity, showing how each can be employed to determine the reliability of scientific claims. Douglas then uses these philosophical insights to clarify the distinction between junk science and sound science to be used in policymaking. In conclusion, she calls for greater openness on the values utilized in policymaking, and more public participation in the policymaking process, by suggesting various models for effective use of both the public and experts in key risk assessments.
Science for Policy Handbook provides advice on how to bring science to the attention of policymakers. This resource is dedicated to researchers and research organizations aiming to achieve policy impacts. The book includes lessons learned along the way, advice on new skills, practices for individual researchers, elements necessary for institutional change, and knowledge areas and processes in which to invest. It puts co-creation at the centre of Science for Policy 2.0, a more integrated model of knowledge-policy relationship. Covers the vital area of science for policymaking Includes contributions from leading practitioners from the Joint Research Centre/European Commission Provides key skills based on the science-policy interface needed for effective evidence-informed policymaking Presents processes of knowledge production relevant for a more holistic science-policy relationship, along with the types of knowledge that are useful in policymaking
Summarizing this century's major debates over realism and the rationality of scientific knowledge, Joseph Rouse believes that these disputes oversimplify the political and cultural significance of the sciences. He provides an alternative understanding of science that focuses on practices rather than knowledge. Rouse first outlines the shared assumptions by ostensibly opposed interpretive stances toward science: scientific realism, social constructivism, empiricism, and postempiricist historical rationalism. He then advances cultural studies as an alternative approach, one that understands the sciences as ongoing patterns of situated activity whose material setting is part of practice. Cultural studies of science, the author suggests, take seriously their own participation in and engagement with the culture of science, rejecting the purported detachment of earlier philosophical or sociological standpoints. Rather, such studies offer specific, critical discussions of how and why science matters, and to whom, and how opportunites for meaningful understanding and action are transformed by scientific practices.
"The innovative approach of this book will stimulate students to play the role of detective in eliciting data, providing evidence, explaining the significance of their observations, and reporting on the ramifications of the study. The dozen chapters in this manual provide guidelines for promoting the journalistic approach, including teacher comments on their success with SciJourn (science journalism). The SciJourn standards are clearly defined, emphasizing the features essential in choosing a topic, to its organization, voice, word choice, language usage, grammatical rules, and the final presentation of the article. Research strategies such as interviews and surveys are reviewed. By giving students the independence they so strive for during the difficult years, trusting them with the freedom to ferret out and filter the myriad prevailing profuse factoids into a coherent understanding, this is a technique that should be exploited."--Publisher's website.
Citizen science, the active participation of the public in scientific research projects, is a rapidly expanding field in open science and open innovation. It provides an integrated model of public knowledge production and engagement with science. As a growing worldwide phenomenon, it is invigorated by evolving new technologies that connect people easily and effectively with the scientific community. Catalysed by citizens’ wishes to be actively involved in scientific processes, as a result of recent societal trends, it also offers contributions to the rise in tertiary education. In addition, citizen science provides a valuable tool for citizens to play a more active role in sustainable development. This book identifies and explains the role of citizen science within innovation in science and society, and as a vibrant and productive science-policy interface. The scope of this volume is global, geared towards identifying solutions and lessons to be applied across science, practice and policy. The chapters consider the role of citizen science in the context of the wider agenda of open science and open innovation, and discuss progress towards responsible research and innovation, two of the most critical aspects of science today.
Available Open Access under CC-BY-NC licence. Engagement with non-academic groups and actors – such as policy-makers, industry, charities and activist groups, communities, and the public – in the co-production of knowledge and real-world impact is increasingly important in academic research. Drawing on empirical research, interdisciplinary methodologies, and broad international perspectives, this collection offers a critical examination of the liminal space of interactions between policy and research as spaces of difference and engagement, showing them to be far from apolitical. The authors consider what, and who, are present in these encounter spaces and examine how pre-existing perceptions about differences in social identity, positionality and knowledge can affect engagement, equity and research outcomes.
Increasingly, academics are finding that engaging with external stakeholders can be both fruitful in undertaking research and an effective way to impact policy. With insightful and practical advice from a diverse range of contributors, including academics, policy makers, civil servants and knowledge exchange professionals, this accessible book explores How to Engage Policy Makers with Your Research. With a practical focus, this book combines an array of real-life experiences and insights from the perspectives of both academics and policy makers who are experienced in informing and impacting policy. The book comprehensively illustrates how academics can more effectively engage with policy makers through a range of interdisciplinary insights and case studies. The book explores the value of research for policy, as well as modes of engagement with policy for researchers across the various stages of their career. Providing practical insights to seize the opportunity of engaging policy makers in research, this innovative book will be an excellent resource for social science academics as well as policy makers looking to benefit from academic research insights. The book provides a better understanding of how the worlds of academics and policy makers can come together to realise greater policy impact from research expertise.
Engaging Students in Science Investigation Using GRC: Science Instruction Consistent with the Framework and NGSS Teachers can create a learning environment that piques student curiosity and engages learners in science investigations to make sense of phenomena. The Gather, Reason, Communicate Reasoning (GRC) method provides an effective instructional sequence consistent with the research on how students learn science. This book provides teachers of science with specific guidance and examples for how to improve science teaching and learning consistent with the vision for science education presented in the Framework, NGSS, and three-dimensional state standards.
Cities are considered “engines of economic growth,” yet many cities in the global South struggle to increase productivity and provide significant economic opportunities for their growing populations. There is a need to deepen the knowledge on the links between public goods and services and equitable economic growth and how to support such processes, in policy and strategic terms, locally and globally. Against this background, this publication developed in the collaboration between Cities Alliance’s Equitable Economic Growth Cities Campaign initiative and three international research networks N-AERUS, AURI, REDEUS_LAC. The research explores how the interface between urban research and policymaking can be redefined to ensure that public goods and services foster equitable growth. It reveals a richness of practices that provide a broad and lasting positive impact in terms of equitable economic growth in urban development. One of them shows that collaborative efforts between academia, policy makers, communities, and practitioners can play a crucial role in enriching these debates and processes. Städte gelten als „Motoren des Wirtschaftswachstums“. Im globalen Süden kämpfen viele Städte darum, die ansässige Produktivität zu steigern um der wachsenden Stadtbevölkerung bessere wirtschaftliche Möglichkeiten zu bieten. Deshalb ist es erforderlich, Wissen über die Verbindungen zwischen öffentlichen Gütern und Dienstleistungen und gerechten Wirtschaftswachstum zu vertiefen, um Prozesse auf politischer und strategischer Hinsicht und lokaler und globaler Ebene zu unterstützen. Diese Publikation als Ergebnis der Zusammenarbeit zwischen Cities Alliance, über das Equitable Economic Growth Cities Programm und der internationalen Forschungsnetzwerke N-AERUS, AURI, REDEUS_LAC, untersucht wie die Schnittstelle zwischen Stadtforschung und Politikgestaltung neu definiert werden kann, so dass öffentliche Güter und Dienstleistungen gerechtes Wachstum fördern können. Die Forschung weist auf Praktiken, die einen breiten und dauerhaften positiven Einfluss auf ein gerechtes Wirtschaftswachstum in der Stadtentwicklung haben hin. Sie zeigt u.a., wie gemeinsame Bemühungen zwischen Hochschulen, politische Akteure, Gemeinden und Praktikern eine entscheidende Rolle bei der Bereicherung dieser Debatten und den laufenden Prozessen spielen können.
