Abstract

This article argues that science literacy should explicitly include a history of science literacy component. Drawing on recent work in History and Philosophy of Science (HPS), the claim is that understanding current science requires the ability to assess the epistemic standing of scientific claims by considering historical patterns of theory change, stabilization, failure, and continuity. This proposal fits well with contemporary conceptions of science literacy and Nature of Science education, both of which increasingly emphasize evaluation, orientation, and evidence-based judgment. Starting from broad HPS consensus claims, the focus is on one particularly prominent HPS lesson: the relationship between scientific success and truth. On this basis, the article develops a simple classroom tool and illustrates it with a case study on the transition from the Old Quantum Theory to modern Quantum Mechanics. The proposal aims to help students avoid both uncritical endorsement of scientific claims and unwarranted skepticism in scientific reliability, and may thus contribute to a form of science literacy that is philosophically and historically informed.

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