understanding what students know about global climate change: conceptual understanding evaluation...

Understanding What Students Know about Global Climate Change:

Conceptual Understanding Evaluation using Concept Maps

Based on Stacy Rebich Master’s thesis under direction of Catherine Gautier

• What they are– Concept: mental representation of an object (or

class of objects) or process– Structured diagram of a body of knowledge– Proposition = concept-link-concept

– Focus on relationships between concepts– Example (instructor’s map about GCC)

Concept Maps

Carbon dioxide Greenhouse gas

Coastal populationsSea level rise

is a type of

can be a threat to

Validity and Reliability

• Provide detail and quality of information similar to structured interview data

• Comparable to assessment through writing, but offer advantage of non-linearity

• Facilitate self-monitoring

value

• A number of studies show high inter-rater reliability for concept map evaluation.

• Our evaluation based on methods used in these studies; inter-rater reliability not addressed in our study

pre-course

post-course

Questions:

What is GCC? What is/are the:

•evidence? •mechanisms? •causes? •consequences?

evidencecauses

predictedconsequences

mechanisms

evidence

mech

anism

s

predicted consequences

causes

mitigation & adaptation

geography

aerosol emissions

fossil fuelburning

industrialactivities

pollution

atmospherictemperatureincrease

glaciersmelting

ocean heatcontentincrease

sea levelrise

biosphere

agriculture

droughts

extremes

surface SWreflection& absorption

SW & LW radiativeprocesses

mitigation& adaptation

global climatechange

Pre

useful links-examplesuseful links

weak linksmisconceptions

evidence

mech

anism

s


causes


GHG emission

methane

aerosol emissions

fossil fuelburning

volcanicaerosols

changes intemperature

glaciersmelting

ice capsmelting

sea levelrise

biosphere

human health

coastal regions

displacement

floods

fresh wateravailability

trapping

alternative& renewableenergies


alternativetransportation

cooperation

global climatechange


Post



economics

geographycomplexity

models

carbon dioxide

GHG emission

methane

aerosol emissions

automobileuse

biomass burning

causes

deforestation

energy uses

fossil fuelburning

human activities


land usechange

natural processes

ozone layer

pollution

populationincrease

sun variability

urbanization

volcanicaerosols



evidence

glaciersmelting

ice capsmelting

observations


sea ice melting

sea levelrise

snow melting

biosphere

human health

agriculture

changes inhydrologicalcycle

weather

coastal regions

displacement

droughts El Nino

evaporation

extremes

fisheries

floods

forests

frequency& intensityofevents


habitability& usability

hurricanes

hydrologicalcycle

ocean circulation

impacts

precipitation


seasons

war/conflict

wetlands storm tracks

albedo

atmosphere

blanket/insulation

clouds

greenhouseeffect

LW trapping

mechanisms



trapping

water vapor

feedbacks




cooperation

economicdevelopment

GlobalClimateChange

evidence

mech

anism

s


causes


Pre

economics

geographycomplexity

models

carbon dioxide

GHG emission

methane

aerosol emissions

automobileuse

biomass burning

causes

deforestation

energy uses

fossil fuelburning

human activities


land usechange

natural processes

ozone layer

pollution

populationincrease

sun variability

urbanization

volcanicaerosols



evidence

glaciersmelting

ice capsmelting

observations


sea ice melting

sea levelrise

snow melting

biosphere

human health

agriculture


weather

coastal regions

displacement

droughts El Nino

evaporation

extremes

fisheries

floods

forests

frequency& intensityofevents



hurricanes

hydrologicalcycle

ocean circulation

impacts

precipitation


seasons

war/conflict

wetlands storm tracks

albedo

atmosphere

blanket/insulation

clouds

greenhouseeffect

LW trapping

mechanisms



trapping

water vapor

feedbacks




cooperation

economicdevelopment

GlobalClimateChange

evidence

mech

anism

s


causes


Post

GlobalClimateChange

economics

geographycomplexity

models

carbon dioxide

GHG emission

methane

aerosol emissions

automobileuse

biomass burning

causes

deforestation

energy uses

fossil fuelburning

human activities


land usechange

natural processes

ozone layer

pollution

populationincrease

sun variability

urbanization

volcanicaerosols



evidence

glaciersmelting

ice capsmelting

observations


sea ice melting

sea levelrise

snow melting

biosphere

human health

agriculture


weather

coastal regions

displacement

droughtsEl Nino

evaporation

extremes

fisheries

floods

forests

frequency& intensityof events



hurricanes

hydrologicalcycle

ocean circulation

impacts

precipitation


seasons

war/conflict

wetlandsstorm tracks

albedo

atmosphere

blanket/insulation

clouds

greenhouseeffect

LW trapping

mechanisms



trapping

water vapor

feedbacks




cooperation

economicdevelopment

evidence

mech

anism

s


causes


Post - pre

used exact or nearly exact concept

used similar or example of concept

total concepts on post-course map

concepts from instructor map

concepts from student maps that were not on instructor map

concepts from instructor map that were not on student maps



Width of this line = 1 proposition

Pre Post

Pre- and post-course proposition quality and distribution (class average)

Common areas of misconception• Shortwave and longwave radiative processes

and the greenhouse effectX Global temperature increase is due to

increased solar input through ozone holeX Greenhouse gases or clouds trap reflected solar

energy, causing the greenhouse effect X Greenhouse effect is the trapping of (warm)

greenhouse gases in the atmosphereX Longwave radiation not mentioned

Common areas of misconception• AerosolsX ‘CFC’ and ‘aerosol’ are synonymsX Aerosols are a type of greenhouse gas

• Pollution, greenhouse gases, greenhouse gas emissionsX Greenhouse gases are “bad”X Reducing pollution will reduce greenhouse

warmingX Reducing greenhouse gas emissions will

reduce all types of pollution-related illness

understanding what students know about global climate change: conceptual understanding evaluation...

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