TOWARDS A GEOSCIENCE PEDAGOGY: A SOCIO-COGNITIVE MODEL

Students attending schools in impoverished communities lack access to curricula that combines both relevant science content and science practices—components the National Research Council (2012) has identified as necessary for effective science learning. Children attending schools in impoverished communities are also more likely to be exposed to poorer air quality and to attend schools located in areas adversely impacted by environmental hazards, but are less likely to have educational opportunities that demonstrate the relevance of science content to their lived experiences. Lack of curricular relevance undermines student engagement with geoscience content. In this presentation, I propose a model for geoscience instruction designed to address this need for educational access. The model is theoretically grounded in the socio-cognitive constructs of interest development, self-efficacy, and knowledge retention, with each construct embedded within a place-based transformative learning experience around the topic of water resources. I further propose a mixed methods research design to test the idea that a transformative learning experience supportive of student interest would result in knowledge construction and retention and increased student perception of competence. This presentation will highlight the theoretical foundation of the model while reviewing findings from empirical studies.