Developing Quantitative Measures of Middle Grades Students Understanding of Climate Data and Perceptions of Local Climate Impacts

To understand climate, learners need to make sense of data concepts such as scale, variability, and trends in order to reconcile what seem to be contradictions. However, much current climate education and assessment focuses on understanding global earth systems or the differences between weather and climate, often leaving out the complexities or failing to integrate the data behind the current science. Furthermore, measures of students understandings of data and local climate impacts are needed to inform instruction, curriculum, teacher support, as well as research. This paper will describe some of the results from a five-year, multi-faceted project that involved scientists, classroom teachers, and informal educators to engage middle school youth with NASA Earth Systems data and local data sets to explore changes in local ecosystems. The team developed and tested a 2.5 hour field trip experience and associated classroom curricula that extended the learning experience. Assessments were designed, pilot tested, and then used to describe: students 1) understandings of relevant climate data; 2) understanding of the impact of changing climate on local ecosystems; 3) dispositions to explore or analyze data; and 4) use of data to communicate about phenomena. The first two constructs were measured through multiple choice and open-ended questions. The third and fourth constructs were measured through a novel approach using virtual and interactive choice-based assessments. This presentation will describe the process for developing each instrument, the data collected and evidence of validity, and how they were used to document project outcomes.