Using Assessment to Evaluate and Improve Inquiry-Based Geoenvironmental Science Activities: Case Study of a Middle School Watershed E. coli Investigation

Journal of Geoscience Education, Mar 2005 by Patterson, Lauren A, Harbor, Jon

ABSTRACT

Geosciences are an integral part of the middle school National Science Education Standards (NSES), and there is increasing interest in activities that combine geoscience content with inquiry skills. Refining and improving these activities is important, and can be based on approaches that are integrated into the activities themselves as a means to assess student learning. Local environmental problems provide excellent opportunities to create interactive, interdisciplinary lessons that meet science standards and motivate students to learn through their interest in relevant local issues.

A well-publicized local environmental issue, E. coli pollution of streams and lakes, was used as the basis for middle school activities designed to enhance student inquiry skills and content knowledge. Several interactive activities were developed and incorporated into local middle school curriculums to increase student understanding of E. coli pollution, and to involve students in using scientific approaches to help solve environmental issues. Analyses of student pretest-posttest results for open-ended and guided tasks, as a form of assessment, provided valuable insight into student learning. Greatest student improvement (> 35%) occurred in understanding the watershed concept and in open-ended interpretation of graphical representations of E. coli data. These assessments were used to guide modifications of the materials to maximize their effectiveness and address common misconceptions.

INTRODUCTION

Geoscience education is now an integral part of the National Science Education Standards (NSES), and the breadth and depth of content and skills expected of students has risen significantly (Shea, 1995). In order to meet new and more sophisticated education standards without overwhelming students, teaching methods have been evolving to focus on engaging and effective ways to address several standards in each educational activity (e.g. Luenberger et al., 2001; Klagges et al., 2002). This evolution of teaching strategies encourages the use of inquiry-based student-centered activities to increase student engagement and higher levels of achievement (Harbor, 20Ο?; National Research Council, 1996), and has been endorsed in the NSES (Byers and Fitzgerald, 2002; Newmann et al., 1996; Von seeker and Lissitz, 1999). The benefits for students participating in inquiry- and problem-based science learning include an increase in their understanding of how science subject matter is investigated, how scientists study the natural world, and how to conduct investigations (Byers and Fitzgerald, 2002; Margetson, 1991; Stepien et al., 1993; Wee et al., in press). The presence of relevant problems that directly impact student lives provides a unique opportunity for teachers to utilize an inquiry based learning style that will develop students' science skills (Bell et al., 2003).

Local environmental issues provide relevant problems and unique opportunities to raise the interest of students in learning through interactive lessons and projects pertaining to local community problems that can be tailored to meet NSES standards. Such lessons and projects often meet standards outside of science, including disciplines such as math, English, politics, and economics. The integration of these subjects result in further integration of student-teacher, teacher-teacher, and school-community relationships, which are vital to creating the most productive learning environment for the students. Furthermore, teacher concern, knowledge, and involvement with the environment all serve as a model for students at an impressionable age (Harbor, 2000; Shepardson et al., 2003). By taking an active role to protect the environment at a young age, students' environmental attitudes and behaviors may develop as they mature into community leaders.

As the trend towards curriculum reform of the geosciences continues, there has also developed a national need for determining effective learning strategies (Huntoon et al., 2001). It is no longer enough for interactive lessons to be developed and taught to students, but it is also necessary to assess the amount of learning associated with these experiences. This concept is known as assessment for learning; whereby teachers use classroom assessment to advance student learning (Stiggins, 2002). Such assessment can be valuable in encouraging the teacher to modify the activity or lesson to better acnieve teaching goals and enhance student learning (Cooper et al., 2002; Stiggins, 2002). Despite the need for assessment, there are relatively few cases in which the effectiveness of geoscience education activities or initiatives have been analyzed and presented to the geoscience community (Cooper et al., 2002) and there is an established need to document the effectiveness of activities in actual classrooms (Huntoon et al., 2001).

One example of a local geoscience-related topic in many areas is the issue of watersheds' sources of surface water pollution. As a fundamental starting point for such a theme it is necessary to know what a watershed is. Middle school students in the United States are expected to understand the watershed concept under the NSES (the concept is covered in Standards D (water cycle) and F (natural hazards)); however, the definition of a watershed is often a difficult concept for both students and teachers to grasp (Shepardson et al., 2002). Understanding the precise meaning of the term, and being able to use the underlying physical concept in a range of contexts is significant in terms of important environmental concerns, including water quality, flood management, and non-point source pollution. The US Environmental Protection Agency has placed a lot of effort in educating the general population about watersheds and its importance with respect to water quality and quantity (U.S. EPA, 2003). A populace that understands the concept of a watershed is far more likely to understand that an upstream source of contaminants affects water quality downstream in a watershed, and thus might take local actions at the source to reduce environmental problems at other locations.