Using Authentic Ocean Data in Science Instruction

• In Event: Studying Ocean Literacy From Diverse Perspectives: Current Studies and Future Directions

Abstract

Purpose
To truly engage in science, students must obtain, analyze, and interpret data. Freely available oceanic data sets include sea surface temperature (SST), bathymetry, chlorophyll, pollution, sea ice, salinity, and tracks of animals. Utilizing these and other data sets can make learning experiences more powerful for learners, giving students the opportunity to gain contextual understandings of the applications of science and potentially improve their ocean literacy. This study examines middle and high school student and teacher perspectives on incorporation of authentic data into science instruction in middle and high school classrooms.

Theoretical Framework
This study used the framework of contextual learning, specifically using the oceanic environment as an integrating context (EIC) for learning (Lieberman & Hoody, 1998). Specifically, teachers were using authentic data to teach a wide variety of scientific topics. Studies show that using EIC can improve student engagement, performance and understanding of the Nature of Science (Gaylie, 2011; Khishfe & Lederman, 2006; Lieberman & Hoody, 1998; Royal Horticultural Society, 2010).

Methods & Data Sources
This qualitative case study (Merriam, 1998) examined the “bounded system” of middle and high school teachers enrolled in an online, graduate-level course focused on marine science pedagogy. The case study brings together a variety of data sources, including teacher discussion posts, reflections, lesson plans, and presentations, student work, and teacher and student interview transcripts. Data sources were analyzed through an iterative process of constant comparison, going through data sources line-by-line and comparing them to other data. Through open and axial coding, themes observed across data sources emerged.

Results
Two major themes have emerged from the data analysis. First, both students and teachers reported increased student engagement. Students became more willing to do further research, to make their own decisions around science learning, and demonstrated strong interest in the subject matter. In interviews, students noted that they were very excited, for instance, about the actual path of a marine animal tracked by satellite, and using ocean data (e.g., SST, sea ice) to explain its movements. Other students and teachers remarked that accessing and working with online data gave students more independence and opportunity to study things that interested them.

The second theme was students “doing science” (Hodson, 1998; 2006). Through the use of authentic data, students were able to act as researchers as they analyzed and interpreted data, constructed explanations, and argued from evidence. Students and teachers explained that when they analyze real data, there is not one correct answer, and that the process in which they were engaging was much more similar to how scientists work than by the typical textbook-based science instruction they had experienced before. Teachers said that students were more participatory in discussions and were better able to support their ideas with evidence.

Scholarly Significance
Based on these findings, and given the current emphasis in science education on engaging students in authentic opportunities to study phenomena by employing science and engineering practices (NGSS Lead States, 2013), using real ocean data as a way to study science content may represent a promising avenue for science instruction.

Author

• Meghan E. Marrero, Mercy College