Environmental Education in the Secondary Science Classroom: How Teachers’ Beliefs Influence Their Instruction of Climate Change

ABSTRACT

Climate change is complex and controversial in nature, yet seen by educators and policymakers as an important topic to be taught within secondary science education. Teachers’ beliefs about the instruction of climate change are unclear. The presence of controversy can influence teachers’ instructional decisions causing confusion about the science of climate change. Therefore, the role of teachers’ beliefs must be considered when examining their instruction. This study examined the complex nature of science teacher beliefs about climate change instruction, their practice, and the impact on student outcomes within four marine science classrooms over the course of one semester. Findings suggest teachers have strong beliefs about the anthropogenic causes and implications of climate change, high levels of concern for future generations, and value climate change education. Yet, the controversial nature of the topic, current political climate, and resistance from stakeholders inhibited teachers from espousing these beliefs within their instruction.

KEYWORDS:

• Climate change education
• teacher beliefs
• classroom practices
• student outcomes

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Data availability statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available on request from the corresponding author. The data are not publicly available due to restrictions as information could compromise the privacy of research participants.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Science Foundation [DRL-1316782].