Transcript Poster - Environmental Literacy

The Development of an Environmental Literacy Learning Progression:
Biological Diversity in Environmental Systems
Josephine Zesaguli, Blakely K. Tsurusaki, Brook Wilke, Edna Tan, Laurel Hartley
and Charles W. Anderson
ENVIRONMENTAL LITERACY
Environmental Science Literacy
Methodology
Environmental Science Literacy is the capacity of people, in their different citizenship roles to understand
and participate in evidence-based discussions of the effects of human actions on environmental systems, and
the feedback from those systems on human societies.
Assessment Tests. Items were formulated for each of the four cells in the framework (Table 1) based on three socio-ecological scenarios (a Farm, a Park and a
Forest). Three test were made by combining different scenario pairs to form the Park and Farm, Farm and Forest, and Park and Forest Tests (See Website:
http://edr1.educ.msu.edu/EnvironmentalLit/index.htm).
Sample. Samples of students at urban, sub-urban and rural elementary, middle and high schools, in Michigan participated in the study. All three tests were
administered by the teachers in each class.
Analysis. For each assessment item, we sampled student responses until a range of proficiency was thought to have been obtained (the data were revisited if
we later found this to not be the case); transcribed these responses into a spreadsheet; ranked the responses from the most to least sophisticated; identified
patterns in responses with respect to the various frameworks; grouped responses in accordance with these patterns; and identified levels of mastery reflected in
these patterns.
Results. Very few students are giving the Level 5 responses.
Domain: The focus is on phylogenetic and ecological connections at both smaller (mechanism) and larger
(context) scales.
Table 1. Types of Connections at Large and Small Scales
Type of Connection
Phylogenetic
Ecological
Mechanism or Smaller Scale
Traits of organisms associated with
heredity, environment, and stage of life
cycle; Genetics; Genetic engineering.
Adaptations to environmental
conditions;
Relations with other organisms:
ecological niche
Context or Larger Scale
Life cycles; Pedigrees; Populations: size
and genetic variability; Population change
due to natural or human selection
The upper anchor for the Biodiversity Strand: Goals for environmentally literate high school
graduates. One way that we represent our upper anchor is with a loop diagram that shows the relationships
between environmental systems and human social and economic systems.
Human Actions
•Habitat fragmentation
• Agricultural practices
• Development
• Sustainable Development
• Access to food, shelter, water
• Endangered Species Protection
• Domestication
Level
Community structure: trophic levels, niches,
habitats; Relationships among populations:
predation, competition, symbiosis
(parasitism, mutualism, commensalisms);
Species diversity in ecosystems; Changes
in ecosystems due to succession,
disturbances, human settlement and
management practices.
UPPER ANCHOR: The Biodiversity Loop
Socio-economic Systems
Learning Progression: Exemplars of Students’ Reasoning at Each Level
•Create
•Sustain
•Reduce
Biodiversity
Environmental Systems
• Phylogenetic Interactions
o Reproduction
o Life Cycles
o Pedigrees
• Ecological Interactions
o Adaptation
o Competition
5: Qualitative Model-based Reasoning
Traces information through short and long term
processes at both the population and
ecosystem level.
Considers multiple sources of variation,
processes than maintain variation, reduce, or
increase variation in natural and humancontrolled systems.
No response was given at this
level.
4: “School Science” Narratives
Recognizes many of the appropriate systems
and processes that explain change over time in
natural and human-controlled systems, but fails
to connect the systems and/or processes in a
manner constrained by scientific principles.
The picture number I is twins.
They are alike by their DNA, hair
color, eye color, etc. They have
the same parents too, both
females. [Different] The
only way they are different is
[their] personalities.
3: Hidden mechanisms explained by cultural
models and experience
Recognizes connections between micro and
macro, and macro and large scale systems, but
the mechanisms connecting those systems are
explained by cultural narratives or embodied
experience. Diversity in systems not considered
in explanations of processes or change.
They are alike because they
dress, thre [their] color of there
[their] eyes and hair color which
they get fmor [from] there[their]
parents. They are different
because one can be
taller and the other can have
more stuff from ther [their] mom
and dad.
Picture I shows twins because
they have the same shirts and
curly hair.
One's taller than the other.
Ecosystem Services
• Materials (e.g., food, fiber,
medicine)
• Aesthetics (e.g., nature)
• Habitat
Center for Curriculum Materials in Science (CCMS)
This research is supported in part by three grants from the National Science Foundation: Developing a research-based learning progression
for the role of carbon in environmental systems (REC 0529636), the Center for Curriculum Materials in Science (ESI-0227557) and Longterm Ecological Research in Row-crop Agriculture (DEB 0423627. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in
this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.
Phylogenetic
Organism Scale: Three pictures
are shown depicting a set of
identical twins, a pair of sisters,
and a trio of friends. Students are
asked to identify which picture
[Picture 1] shows twins and to
explain how they are alike and
different.
1 & 2: Sequences of Events, Narrative
descriptions at the macroscopic scale,
Anthropomorphic and natural tendency
narratives
Recognizes variation in systems where it is
visible at the macroscopic scale. No
connections made between small scale
systems such as genes and large scale
phenomena such as phenotypic variation.
Explain what happens to organisms, species or
ecosystems in terms of humans needs or
natural tendency.
Picture 1 shows twins. There
alike because [they're] twins.
[There are different] because one
on the right is taller.
Ecosystem Scale: Squirrels have
claws that they use to help them
climb the bark of trees and jump
from branch to branch. They had
ancestors that did not have good
claws, so they were not as good at
climbing and jumping. Explain how
modern day squirrels have claws
that are good for climbing and
jumping even though their
ancestors did not.
Evolution! A while ago a little baby
squirrel had a mutation that gave
him claws on the backs of his feet
and he was probably made fun of
then he could climb trees really
well. Then he had babies and they
all had the mutation and then
slowly all the squirrels that didn't
have claws died out and now all
squirrels have claws.
Ecological
Organism Scale: Farmers till
the soil (stir it up with machines)
to get rid of weeds. Why are
weeds bad for crops?
Weeds can kill the crops. They
can grow over them and then
they have to compete for
nutrients, energy and sunlight.
The weeds can over populate
the crops.
Because they take up the crops'
water/ space / sun.
They have evolved and developed
better claws by reproducing with
squirrels who get by better
producing more squirrels who get
by better with their sharper, better
claws.
Ecosystem Scale: Look at
picture A [park with forest in the
background]. What do you
think will happen to the lawn
and to the forested area if
humans abandoned this park
completely?
No response was given at this
level.
Because they take up room and
use the crops' water and
nutrients.
Because they can become
dominant and take over the crop,
choking it out. They use up all
the water and minerals and the
weaker plant dies.
Even though the squirrel's
Because they suck the water
ancestors didn't have claws they
that the crops need to grow for
probably developed claws because themselves.
they climbed trees so much.
They suck up all the water.
Lawn: The lawn would turn
yellow because they over grow,
and trees would start to come
back, the grass would be gone
because no sun.
Forest: It would spread
throughout the field.
Squirrels now have claws for good
climbing because their ancestors,
seeing their problem, developed
better claws over the years.
Lawn: Then everything would
just die.
Forest: They would just keep
growing because all it needs to
grow is natural things.
When crops are young they are
very vonerble [vulnerable] so the
weeds chock [choke] them.
Weeds are bad for the crops
because thy stop the growth of
crops or they get in the way of
growth.
Lawn: More plant life would
grow on the lawn because
there is nothing in the way.
Forest: The forested area
would stay the same because
humans don’t affect it.