PARENT SESSION
Symposium 6: Pathways to scientific teaching in ecology education
Organized by: C D'Avanzo and M Mappin
Tuesday, August 9, 8:00 AM - 11:30 AM, Meeting Room 517 C, Level 5, Palais des congrès de Montréal
What learning research suggests about achieving deep understanding of causal patterns in ecology: Teaching with the challenges in mind.
Grotzer, Tina*,1, Mittlefehldt, Sarah *,2, 1 Project Zero, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA2 University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI
ABSTRACT- Research shows that students tend to reduce complexity to simpler patterns and that this results in difficulty achieving deep understanding of fundamental ecosystems concepts. The Understandings of Consequence Project, funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), has investigated differences in how students at a range of grade levels and scientists think about the nature of causality and illustrative examples of these differences will be offered. The project has investigated students′ reasoning and mined the extant literature on students′ reasoning about patterns of causality (cyclic, mutual, relational), obvious vs. non-obvious causes, and time delays and spatial gaps between causes and appearance of effects. Through a series of intervention studies, the project found that helping students learn to broaden their understanding of the nature of causality through explicit reflection on causal dimensions during the course of subject specific learning significantly improves their ability to achieve deep understanding of the science concepts. Third grade students showed progress in understanding and differentiating the causality involved in the domino-like aspects of energy transfer in contrast to the cyclic form of matter recycling. They also showed greater understanding that some causes are non-obvious—such as that of microbes in the process of decomposition. The findings hold implications for teaching about everyday ecology concepts that depart from the simplest causal forms as well as those that engage students in the science of complexity. Implications for teaching about a range of ecological concepts from food web patterns to global warming will be explored. The project has developed a website and curriculum materials dedicated to helping teachers investigate and teach with their students′ conceptions of causality as these interact with deep understanding of the ecology concepts in mind.
Key words: causality, ecosystems, patterns, curriculum