EE21: Cross-cu-ng outcomes for Evalua7ng Environmental Educa7on in - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

EE21: Cross-cu-ng outcomes for Evalua7ng Environmental Educa7on in the 21st Century

Robert B. Powell, Professor, Clemson University Marc J. Stern, Professor, Virginia Tech Troy Frensley, Asst. Prof., UNC-Wilmington Tori Kleinbort, Ph.D. Candidate, Clemson University

Is there a consistent set of

• utcomes to which all EE programs

for youth should aspire? If so, what are they?

Environmental Literacy

• Knowledge
• Disposi7ons
• Skills
• Behaviors

* Influenced by Tbilisi Declara7on, Hungerford, Volk, McBeth, NELA, and many others

Educa7onal Standards

Next Genera7on Common Core State Standards

21st Century Skills

Literacies:

• Environmental
• Scien7fic
• Civic
• Cultural
• Historical
• Health

Youth/Character Development

• Emo7onal/Social

Intelligence

• 5 C’s (Competence,

confidence, connec7on, character, caring, contribu7on)

• 12 Student Strengths-

– Mind (Curiosity, Self- control, Zest) – Heart (Purpose, Social/ emo7onal Intelligence, Gra7tude) – Will (Grit, Growth, Op7mism)

Crosscu-ng Outcomes for EE: The poten7al to be transforma7onal

What leads to be,er outcomes in environmental educa4on?

Marc J. Stern, Professor, Virginia Tech Robert B. Powell, Professor, Clemson University

Best Prac7ces

Big Challenges

• 1. Defining “Success” (Outcomes)
• 2. Measuring Outcomes:
• Lack of variability and sensi7vity
• Posi7vely skewed
• Social Desirability Bias

Challenge: Defining and Measuring “Success”

Develop outcomes that are:

• Relevant
• Sensi7ve
• Cross-cu-ng
• Aaributable
• Aspira7onal

So we can identify which program characteristics lead to better outcomes!

Defining Success: Literature Review

Defining “Success”

• NPS Advisory Board Educa7on Commiaee
• NAAEE Advisory Group
• Clark, Heimlich, Ardoin, & Braus Delphi Study
• Na7onal Park Founda7on Learning Alliance
• ANCA: Assoc of Nature Center Administrators

Enjoyment/ Sa4sfac4on Interest in Learning Connec4on/Place A,achment 21st Century Skills Ac4on-Orienta4on Inten7ons Ac4ons: Stewardship Collabora7on Academic

What are the cross-cu-ng outcomes?

Learning

• Env. AItudes

Self Efficacy Meaning/Iden4ty

Defining Success: Crosscu-ng Outcomes

• Enjoyment/Sa4sfac4on: Posi7ve emo7ons

and favorable assessments of the quality of the program.

• Interest/mo4va4on to learn: Enhanced

curiosity and interest in learning more about science, the environment, civic engagement,

• r other subjects relevant to the program.
• Learning: An awareness of the

interconnectedness and interdependence between human and environmental systems.

Defining Success: Crosscu-ng Outcomes

• Connec4on/Place A,achment: The

development of cogni7ve and/or emo7onal connec7ons to the site or other natural environments.

• Meaning: Personal relevance and

development and refinement of individual purpose.

Crosscu-ng Outcomes

• Self-efficacy: A belief in one’s ability to solve

problems, make a difference in one’s community, and address environmental issues.

• 21st century skills: Enhanced skills in cri7cal

thinking and problem-solving; communica7on; collabora7on; and crea7vity and innova7on.

• Environmental aItudes: Enhanced sensi7vity,

concern, and disposi7on towards the environment.

Crosscu-ng Outcomes

• Inten4ons/Ac4on orienta4on: Inten7on to

perform a specific posi7ve behavior

• Ac4ons:

– Environmental: Posi7ve ac7ons including enhancing communi7es, protec7ng environments. – Academic: School behaviors that improve individual academic achievement – CooperaJon/CollaboraJon: Working with classmates and others, etc.

Measuring Outcomes: Developing a Pilot Survey

Overcoming Measurement Challenges: Survey Development

• Peer and Stakeholder Review
• Pre-post vs. Retrospec7ve-post only design.
• Adapta7on of exis7ng scales where possible
• Stems wriaen to reduce posi7ve skew and elicit

assessment of influence of program

• Likert Scales—11 point scales to enhance sensi7vity
• Anchors: Not at all--A fair amount--A huge amount

Pilot Survey

• Focused on 5-9th grades
• 68 items, 4-7 items per construct
• 15+ minutes to complete
• Pre-post and Post only retrospec7ve versions

Pilot Studies

Everglades NP USFS River Snorkeling Great Smoky Mtns Cuyahoga NP Glen Helen, OH NorthBay, MD OR Outdoor Schls NC Natural Science

Results: Environmental Educa7on Outcomes for the 21st Century (EE21)

• Pre/Post: problems with administra7on
• CFA: Consistent 10 factor model for each sample

(34 items)

• Measurement Invariance: Configural and Metric
• Moderate skew (M=6-7) on 11 point scales!

Environmental Educa7on Outcomes for the 21st Century (EE21)

• Interest in Learning

Science. How to research things I am curious about. Learning new subjects in school.

• Learning/Knowledge

How different parts of the environment interact with each other. How people can change the environment. How changes in the environment can impact my life. How my ac7ons affect the environment.

• Connec4on/ Place A,achment

Knowing this place exists makes me feel good. I want to visit this place again. I care about this place.

• Meaning

Taught me something that will be useful to me in my future. Really made me think. Made me realize something I never imagined before. Made me think differently about the choices I make in my life. Made me curious about something.

• Self-Efficacy

I believe in myself. I feel confident that I can achieve my goals. I can make a difference in my community.

21st Century Skills

Solving problems. Using science to answer a question. Listening to other people’s points of view. Knowing how to do research.

Environmental AItudes

I feel it is important to take good care of the environment. Humans are a part of nature, not separate from it. I have the power to protect the environment.

Ac4ons-Environmental Behaviors

Help protect the environment. Spend more 7me outside. Make a posi7ve difference in my community.

Ac4ons-School Behaviors

Work harder in school. Pay more aaen7on in class.

Ac4ons-Coopera4on/Collabora4on

Listen more to other people’s point of view. Cooperate with my classmates. Work together with other people to solve problems.

Enjoyment:

How would you rate this field trip on a scale from 0 to 10?

Overall Learning

How much do you feel you learned from this field trip, on a scale from 0 to 10?

Behavioral Inten4on

As a result of this field trip, do you intend to do anything differently in your life?

Is there a consistent set of outcomes to which all EE programs for youth should aspire? EE21

• Reflect roots of our field and future direc7ons
• Supports aspira7ons of field--All programs can

achieve these outcomes

• Can be used for Programma7c and Collec7ve

Evalua7on

EE21: Conclusions and what’s next?

Collec7ve Evalua7on EE21: Oregon Outdoor Schools

4pm Friday! What leads to be,er outcomes in environmental educa4on?

Marc J. Stern, Professor, Virginia Tech Robert B. Powell, Professor, Clemson University

EE21: Available for your use

• Retrospec7ve for shorter programs
• Pre-Post for longer programs

QUESTIONS