Scientific Literacy Education Outside the Classroom: A Study in Acquisition of Knowledge and Skills About Science in Public Libraries in Croatia

The importance of science to the future of society is likely to increase as it will offer solutions to many problems society is confronting today. To become fluent in matters of science, one needs to participate in some type of science education. Education in science usually is related to the formal education institutions. The outcome of science education is science literacy, the capacity to understand and apply scientific knowledge in personal and professional life. Science can be also taught outside classrooms in many places including public libraries. The results of the research study presented in this paper show that public libraries in Croatia organize versatile science related activities which attract library user of all ages. Public libraries lack resources to be able to achieve even better results from those presently achieved. They also need a greater recognition for their role in science learning.