1. 5/12/2016 Science Fiction: Making the link from STEM to humanities | NC New Schools/Breakthrough Learning
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SCIENCE FICTION: MAKING THE LINK FROM STEM TO
HUMANITIES
BY LESLIE EAVES, DIRECTOR, PROFESSIONAL LEARNING, NC NEW SCHOOLS/BREAKTHROUGH LEARNING
JANUARY 19, 2016
Most people think of sci-᯿贄 and fantasy as a “boys’ thing.”
I did not. Growing up I was a shy, southern girl who
didn’t quite ᯿贄t in. Reading and watching Star Wars, Star
Trek, The Flash, and Dr. Who inspired me to be braver
and ᯿贄ercer than I thought I could be.
Beyond the obvious appeal (heroes and heroines,
battles, and of course Klingons), sci-᯿贄 and fantasy pulls
us into an alternate world. By default, it pushes us to
use critical thinking skills. In wondering what is possible,
we are actually transforming how we look at complex
problems.
Sci-᯿贄 has always been a few steps ahead in imagining the possibilities and pitfalls of technology. “Six
Prophetic Sci-Fi Novels That Predicted our Strange Future,” details sci-᯿贄 books that predicted (sometimes
100 years prior) inventions and events like the world wide web, space ᯿贄ight and moon landing, and the
European union.
My senior year marked the ᯿贄rst time I had a teacher who actually used sci-᯿贄 and fantasy to engage
students. Before this class, I was like a lot of would be engineering students. I hated and struggled in
English. We read mostly classics that did not inspire my imagination. I struggled to make a connection to
me and my life or the things I cared about.
My senior English teacher, Mrs. Reilly, was di᯿అerent. She designed the year-long class around the theme of
time travel (especially the later part of the year). We studied the 5 act play structure used in Macbeth and
compared it to the movies “Back to the Future” and “Peggy Sue Got Married.” We also read Dean Koontz’s,
Lightning, about a time traveling Nazi which completed our investigation of time travel in ᯿贄ction and the
di᯿అerent methods authors used to convince readers time travel was possible.
The class culminated in a ᯿贄ctional research piece. We had to write a time travel story on a time period of
our choosing with the caveat that it had to be at least 10 years prior to our birth. We couldn’t rely too
heavily on suspension of disbelief. Like the movies and literature we read, our theories had to be well
reasoned and explained in relation to core principals of science.
For the ᯿贄rst time in my educational career, I thoroughly enjoyed a research project. We still had to
use note cards and Modern Language Association (MLA), but Wow! I got to work with the information. I got

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use note cards and Modern Language Association (MLA), but Wow! I got to work with the information. I got
to tap into my imagination and creativity. I was enthralled with my ideas and could not wait to write them
down. For the ᯿贄rst time ever I would go to her classroom over lunch to write and talk to the teacher about
my story. I threw myself into this project because the teacher ᯿贄nally used something that interested me.
In re᯿贄ecting on the resurgence of science ᯿贄ction and fantasy in our culture with the release of the new
Star Wars movie, I wonder how we can use this excitement to hook students and drive their
learning forward.
Beyond the example from my senior English teacher below are several ideas:
• Students writing a futuristic sci-᯿贄 piece that showcases the next technology based on their
understanding of a science topic.
• Students write a ᯿贄ctional piece that serves as a dystopian cautionary tale should a foreseeable problem
not be resolved such as climate change, imbalance of poverty, or terrorism.
• Students produce a short sci-᯿贄 or fantasy ᯿贄lm that informs and advocates for a cause.
• Students design a fantasy world that uses elements of science and history to build that world (think of
JRR Tolkien’s Lord of the Rinds, JK Rowling’s Harry Potter series, or George RR Martin’s Game of Throne
series)
What might you do? Please feel free to share your ideas by commenting so that we can all learn
from each other.
Leslie Eaves is a Director of Professional Learning for NC New Schools/Breakthrough Learning.