Experiential Learning for Enhancing Environmental Literacy Regarding Energy: A Professional Development Program for Inservice Science Teachers

Abstract

This article describes results of a professional development (PD) program for inservice science teachers. The PD integrated experiential learning to enhance participants' literacy regarding energy production and associated environmental costs. The PD focused on six energy sources and environmental politics that must be navigated to make decisions about their sustainability. Participants toured energy extraction/production sites including coal mines, hydroelectric dams, wind farms, and nuclear power plants. At each site, participants encountered differing perspectives on the environmental costs and benefits of the energy sources. Group discussions allowed for sharing participants' thoughts on each perspective and mathematical modeling was used as a tool for evaluating each energy source. Data included pre-and post-content assessments and PD evaluation surveys. Analysis revealed the role that experiential learning played in changed perspectives on energy production, content knowledge growth, and impacts on the participants' own classroom teaching.

Using the project method in the mathematical education of students – future ecologists

“…The value of mathematical modeling in higher environmental education is also emphasized by M. Bloom and S. Q. Fuentes [19]. The authors point out that one of the most important components of modern environmental literacy is energy production and related environmental consequences.…”

Environmental Literacy Profile of Students in Natural Science Learning-Based Experiential

“…Learning greatly contributes to developing environmental literacy (Bloom & Fuentes, 2019). Strengthening environmental literacy and optimizing the implementation of learning are carried out using relevant models and methods (Ulfah et al, 2020).…”

“…Experiential learning is used by students to build environmental literacy, for example by active learning in the classroom; on the school grounds; in residential outdoor science programs, in local communities, in the wilderness, museums, aquariums, farms, and science centers (Force, 2015). There is more to experiential learning than simply visiting a site or witnessing a process, learning oortunities from experience should be diverse (field trips, videos, textual resources, expert lectures, simulations, and reflective dialogue) and carefully designed to expose students to the complexity of the phenomenon under study (Bloom & Fuentes, 2019)…”

Investigating energy literacy and its structural model for citizens of Mashhad

“…Most studies have examined energy literacy among students, While households consume more than 30% of energy ( Cotton et al., 2021 ). Citizens consume energy in various sectors, and their skills, perceptions, and attitudes towards energy are directly related to reducing or increasing their energy footprint ( Bloom and Quebec Fuentes, 2019 ). Based on the research, citizens consider energy saving the most crucial strategy to reduce environmental impacts.…”