The contribution of free-choice learning to public understanding of science

There is no single right way to learn things, and no single place or even moment in which we learn. All learning happens continuously, from many different sources, and in many different ways. There are three main educational sectors, the formal education sector of schools and universities, the workplace, and the free-choice learning sector. Of the three, the most frequently over-looked is the free-choice learning sector. The free-choice learning sector includes museums, television, radio, the Internet, magazines, newspapers, books, parks, community organizations of all types: youth, adult, religious, environmental, health, sports and recreation. It is a vast educational infrastructure that helps to support the on-going and continuous learning of all citizens. Recent research suggests that nearly half of the public’s science understanding and learning derives from the free-choice learning sector. Hence it is incumbent on science educational policy makers and practitioners to recognize the fundamental role that free-choice learning makes in public understanding of science.

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