Since the mid-1800s dinosaurs have
been a source of fascination and inspiration — from children’s coloring books
to Hollywood blockbusters, these extinct animals hold a unique place in the American
psyche. The immense popularity of dinosaurs also makes them an excellent
conduit for teaching the critical thinking skills needed in basic science and
engineering literacy.
Darrin Pagnac, Ph.D., is a South Dakota School of Mines
& Technology associate professor of geology specializing in
paleontology. His latest work, “Dinosaurs:
A Catalyst for Critical Thought,” published by Cambridge University Press, shows that passion for
dinosaurs, when properly directed, can trigger interest in science and be used
to develop critical thinking skills.
Each
spring Pagnac teaches a course called “Dinosaurs,”
which attracts a wide range of students from various fields of study. “We have
a number of students who get fired up emotionally about dinosaurs,” he says. In
this class, Pagnac helps students confront preconceived notions that he calls
“Jurassic Park Syndrome.” This is where student’s views of paleontology and
sciences are shaped by misconceptions and inaccuracies in pop-culture. Pagnac helps
students challenge their own beliefs about dinosaurs and in the process he helps
them build critical thinking skills useful in consumption of media across the
board.
Pagnac points out that the actual
stories behind scientific discovery are often every bit as inspiring as the
misconceptions reinforced by pop-culture and science-fiction.“We now know what
color some dinosaurs were,” he says. “I never in my lifetime thought we could
have discovered this,” says Pagnac. “The way we came about this knowledge, through
the rigorous science of exploring and identifying microstructures in dinosaur
feathers to discern color, is amazing. It’s better than anything Jurassic Park
could present.”
Pagnac encourages other science and
engineering teachers to employ critical thinking skills to deconstruct
preconceived notions that are reinforced by pop-culture in their own fields.
He
says critical thinking skills make students better citizens, writing , “A citizen possessing acute
critical thinking skills is best equipped to appreciate the value of science to
society, can recognize false or manipulative claims, and will attune their
information assessment ability not just to an interest in dinosaurs but also to
the important societal issues we all face.”
Update:
Pagnac presented his work at STEAM Café
on Tuesday, Jan. 15, 2019 at the
Hay Camp Brewing company in downtown Rapid City. You can view the talk on SD Mines' YouTube page here.