Genetics Testing and Science Ethics

This chapter presents the teacher background information and student reading and reflection questions about screening humans for genetic disorders. The author assumes the audience has some b... See More

This chapter presents the teacher background information and student reading and reflection questions about screening humans for genetic disorders. The author assumes the audience has some background with genetic disorders or the means to research them. The article is somewhat dated (which is hard not to be in this topic, the field changes so quickly) but is still an excellent discussion starter and not only deals with scientific ethics but societal consequences (political, economic) of scientific testing. I think this could be used in middle school at one level and in lower or higher levels of high school with increasing levels of reflection and discussion. A chapter in the Teacher as Researcher book "Evolving Ethical Perspectives in an Eighth-Grade Science Classroom" would provide a teacher with additional support materials for developing this lesson.