Assessing Climate Change Education Past, Present, and Future: Localizing Data to Shift Institutional Priorities and Policies

• In Event: Roundtable Session 3
  In Refereed Roundtable Session: Diverse challenges facing education: case studies on climate change, edu-tourism, inclusive education and Kyrgyzstan

Proposal

As climate change becomes more intense, the need for education focused on how to understand and navigate the challenges is necessary. However, climate change education in the United States remains relatively new and underdeveloped compared to other academic fields. Research highlights significant limitations in current climate change education in K-12 schools (e.g., Cutter-Mckenzie & Rousell, 2019; Plutzer et al., 2016) as well as in institutions of higher education (e.g., Filho, 2023). Climate change education is crucial for preparing youth to grasp local and global consequences and to identify steps necessary to take action (Trott, 2021).

Young people are becoming more vocal, emphasizing the urgency for bold action (Reid, 2019; Trott, 2024). Protests by teenagers in various cities – Fridays 4 Future – have highlighted the need for change (Martiskaninen, 2020). The effects of young activists on educational policies, however, remains limited (O’Brien et al. 2018). Research shows that climate change education often lacks a holistic approach and fails to connect to pro-environmental behavior (Höhle & Benngston, 2023; Maijala, 2023). There is also limited focus on advocacy and no national standards to mandate climate change education in the United States, leading to minimal classroom time devoted to the topic (Plutzer et al., 2016).

Recent research reveals that few climate change education programs integrate social as well as scientific disciplines effectively (Eilam, 2022). There is a call for more participatory, interdisciplinary, and creative approaches that involve young people in addressing climate change (Monroe et al., 2019; Rousell & Cutter-McKenzie-Knowles, 2019). Adolescents (ages 13 to 25) are at a pivotal age for understanding global issues and making informed decisions (Huoponen, 2023). Yet, climate change education in high schools and institutions of higher education often neglect systematic changes and solely focus on specific disciplines (Hess & Collins, 2018; Karahan & Roehig, 2015). Thus, there is a need for more dynamic and interdisciplinary climate change education that connects scientific knowledge with political and systematic understanding (Harker-Schuch & Bugge-Henriksen, 2013; Monroe et al., 2019).

We are currently conducting a study at an institution of higher education in the southeast United States to understand the perspectives and experiences of undergraduates related to climate change education. We developed a 22-question survey that includes questions about their past climate education in K-12 schools as well as their current institution; we also ask about what the future of climate change education they would want. We also developed similar surveys for alumni and instructors. The goal is to not only generate localized data that can inform institutional priorities, policies, and curricular changes, but to also share this process with others to replicate.

With this presentation, we will share the survey design and preliminary findings. Given the theme of the conference, we will also address an intriguing paradox – the existence of a digital society increasingly relies upon a computing and data storage infrastructure that is warming the planet (Gonzalez Monserrate, 2022). Thus, climate change education must wrestle with the sustainability of a digitized future.

Authors

• Scott Morrison, Elon University

• Peyton Shetler