INVESTIGATING THE MOTIVATIONS AND PRACTICES OF MIDDLE SCHOOL CLIMATE CHANGE EDUCATORS

The adoption and implementation of science content standards that include climate literacy and anthropogenic climate change have prompted widespread instruction in climate change for the first time. Typically, standards addressing climate change begin with the middle school curriculum. In addition to the potentially controversial nature of the topic, misconceptions held by middle school teachers can undermine the science and result in a weak treatment of climate change in classrooms. However, numerous middle school teachers have embraced the topic and are providing illustrations of passionate climate change education. In this study we sought to investigate the motivations of these teachers and discern best practices. We conducted three online focus groups with sixteen middle school science teachers from across the country who are currently teaching climate change. Throughout the focus group conversations, the teachers collaboratively articulated their reasons for teaching climate change, shared classroom practices and expressed their optimism about the future in the hands of their students’ generation. Our findings suggest that these teachers have a personal interest in climate change advocacy that motivates an enthusiastic treatment of the topic. They practice authentic scientific research with their students and identify as scientists. Our findings also suggest that through teaching climate change, these teachers feel that they are impacting the future through their students and this provides them with a sense of hope. The focus group conversations generated practical recommendations for climate change education including the use of authentic, student-collected data for discovery-driven learning. The teachers in our focus groups advocate connecting students to local climate impacts to personalize climate change and make it relevant. Their mutual experiences suggest that relationships between teachers, students and researching scientists are important. These relationships foster identity as a scientist and strengthen climate change education. This study contrasts with skepticism over the state of climate change education and contributes to understanding how to best motivate and sustain commitment to teaching climate change in middle schools.