My freshman year, I sat in a linguistics class filled with enthusiastic Harvey Mudd College students, deeply engaged in a discussion about the nature of language. 10 minutes later I found myself in an oceanography class, having a starkly different experience. When I asked my friend, a non-science major, about her thoughts on the oceanography class, she described it as just another class to get over with.
To my friend, science classes were merely chores to fulfill a requirement — a sentiment that I believe resonates with many students. Having served as a teaching assistant for Introductory Geology and Astronomy and taken introductory courses in physics, chemistry, biology and geology, I’ve witnessed this attitude firsthand. I’ve also observed that non-science majors often choose “easier” science classes — like oceanography, geology and astronomy — to satisfy their requirements.
That’s not to say non-science majors lack interest in science. One cognitive science student enrolled in Oceanography this semester told me that they chose the class partly out of a genuine desire to learn the subject, not only to fulfill their science requirement. This curiosity reflects a genuine desire to engage with science.
However, it also raises an important question: Is the sole science class that all students are required to take — which is often their first and last science course — doing enough to teach non-science-major students scientific literacy, especially when this skill is becoming increasingly critical?
Developing a robust understanding of scientific principles is essential for addressing global challenges, as illustrated during the COVID-19 pandemic, where confidence in scientific expertise was vital for effective public health responses and vaccine uptake.
“…fostering true scientific literacy must be our primary objective, bridging the gap between curiosity and the comprehensive understanding necessary for informed citizenship.”
But scientific literacy is often lacking in the general public, according to the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Study. A Pew Research Center study shows a decline in the percentage of U.S. adults who view science positively since 2020, highlighting challenges in tackling pressing societal issues like climate change, energy use and water scarcity — issues that require a fundamental understanding of scientific processes.
As we consider the goals of the Area 4 requirement (Pomona’s science requirement), it becomes clear that fostering true scientific literacy must be our primary objective, bridging the gap between curiosity and the comprehensive understanding necessary for informed citizenship.
For scientists, introductory science classes — the ones often taken to fulfill a science requirement — are an important opportunity to foster a positive attitude toward science. However, many courses focus more on delivering content than on instilling the critical thinking skills necessary for students to navigate scientific discussions.
I spoke with a student in an oceanography course this semester who expressed how they wished the class would focus more on the scientific processes and practices that characterize geology, rather than centering around the history of the discipline.
Teaching Introductory Paleontology, geology professor Robert Gaines acknowledged that many students may not pursue further studies in science after his class, and emphasized the importance of scientific literacy as a critical thinking tool.
“I want non-science majors to understand that they shouldn’t trust everything they read, and to feel confident assessing what constitutes quality information,” Gaines said. He begins Introductory Paleontology’s curriculum with the scientific method and fundamentals of data interpretation.
However, Gaines also acknowledged another challenge: unlike classes such as Introductory Astronomy, which are tailored specifically for non-science majors, introductory geology classes like his also serve as foundational courses for geology majors.
He expressed a dual goal: “I hope that science students develop confidence in digesting and synthesizing technical literature and are capable of constructing novel approaches to solving problems via the scientific method.”
A study titled “Finding Out What They Really Think: Assessing Non-Science Majors Views of the Nature of Science” suggested that “teaching science content and engaging students in inquiry alone does not result in a deep understanding of the nature of science.” This problem underscores the complexity of achieving scientific literacy through a single class.
In higher education, the gap in scientific literacy is evident in the differing approaches to science requirements across institutions. At Columbia University, for example, students are required to take three science courses. Conversations I had with professors and administrators at Pomona revealed that Columbia is frequently seen as a benchmark for science education among non-science majors.
While Columbia’s rigorous curriculum is commendable, it prompts questions about whether sheer quantity of required courses alone is sufficient for developing scientific proficiency.
Columbia’s requirements have not eliminated the challenge of teaching non-science majors scientific literacy. In 2012, a student wrote in the Columbia Daily Spectator that “while math and science students are challenged by the humanities core, reading and writing students don’t get a comparable challenge with the science requirement … Since Columbia College’s entire philosophy is that there are certain things any student should study, serious science should be one of those.”
A more recent article in the Columbia Daily Spectator, titled “Best Classes to Fulfill Columbia College and General Studies Science Requirements,” reflected a similar trend also observed at the Claremont Colleges, where non-science students often opt for easier science classes.
This reality became clear to me in my role as an oceanography teaching assistant this semester — the same class my friend and I took two years ago. One student in the course told me that they were no more interested in science than they had been before the class, echoing my friend’s earlier attitude towards Oceanography as simply a requirement to fulfill.
This isn’t just a missed opportunity — it’s a wake-up call. We must elevate scientific literacy beyond mere requirements. If we don’t, we risk leaving students ill-equipped for the challenges ahead.
Gabriel Brenner PO ’26 loves exploring the human aspects of science.
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