1. CCE for Me: Students Demand High-Quality Climate Change Course Offerings
- Author
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Muhich, Timothy E. and Rood, Richard B.
- Abstract
Large numbers of Americans of all ages are interested in learning more about climate change education (CCE) (Perkins et al. 2017) and high schools have the opportunity to contribute to that learning. The "Next Generation Science Standards" (NGSS Lead States 2013) attempt to address climate change for high school students across disciplines. Despite the presence of climate change in NGSS, most high schools do not dedicate a class specifically to climate change or even to Earth Science. This leaves the burden of CCE to physics, chemistry, and biology classes, which often make space for it by mentioning the topic in ancillary form. To leave students with applicable knowledge, CCE must be interdisciplinary. This allows students to address the most important questions--ones left out when CCE is just taught from an Earth Science perspective--such as "How might farmers adapt to changing climatic conditions? How might such adaptations affect the price of staple foods, such as corn or wheat?" (Monroe, Oxarart, and Plate 2013). Many articles reference what CCE should do (Chang and Pascua 2017; Monroe, Oxarart, and Plate 2013; Monroe et al. 2017; Reid 2019; Schreiner, Henriksen, and Kirkeby Hansen 2005; Stapleton 2019). None of these lists can be accomplished in passing. A stand-alone climate change course provides time for students to develop needed synthesis and skills and allows teachers in other classes to address climate change as it naturally comes up. In this case study, the authors provide evidence of that demand and propose a path for schools to deliver on it.
- Published
- 2022