Environmental Education through Documentaries: Assessing Learning Outcomes of a General Environmental Studies Course

Shu-Chiu Liu

doi:10.29333/ejmste/83653

Full Text (PDF)

Shu-Chiu Liu ¹ ^*

More Detail

¹ Institute of Education, National Chiao Tung University, Hsinchu, TAIWAN^* Corresponding Author

Abstract

The use of film as supplementary materials in the classroom has become common for higher education teachers of environmental studies. It is, however, rare that film is incorporated as the primary instructional medium. This paper reports a case study on a documentary film-based environmental studies course which sought to engage students in exploring and reflecting on a wide range of locally significant environment issues. While film is the focus of the course, post-film reflective discussion is an integral part in order to help students identify and clarity their thoughts and ideas. A pre and post survey and post-instruction interviews were carried out with two cohorts of university students for the purpose of evaluating this course. The results suggest that, using documentaries to repeatedly expose students to real issues, the course proved to be beneficial to developing students’ perspective-taking and critical thinking abilities and sense of relevance, which collectively leads to a more pro-environmental disposition.

Keywords

case study
documentary films
environmental education
higher education
course evaluation

License

This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Article Type: Research Article

EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed, Volume 14, Issue 4, April 2018, 1371-1381

https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/83653

Publication date: 19 Jan 2018

Article Views: 4625

Article Downloads: 4814

Open Access References How to cite this article

References

Athman, J. A., & Monroe, M. C. (2001). Elements of effective environmental education programs: ERIC Reproduction Serv. No. ED 463 936.
Bahk, C. M. (2010). Environmental education through narrative films: Impact of Medicine Man on attitudes toward forest preservation. The Journal of Environmental Education, 42(1), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1080/00958960903479811.
Barbas, T. A., Paraskevopoulos, S., & Stamou, A. G. (2009). The effect of nature documentaries on students’ environmental sensitivity: a case study. Learning, Media and Technology, 34(1), 61-69. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439880902759943.
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77-101. https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa.
Cohen, J. (1988). Statistical Power Analysis for the Behavioral Sciences (2nd Ed.). New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum.
D’sa, B. (2005). Social studies in the dark: Using docudramas to teach history. The Social Studies, 96(1), 9-13. https://doi.org/10.3200/TSSS.96.1.9-13.
Duatepe-Paksu, A., & Ubuz, B. (2009). Effects of Drama-Based Geometry Instruction on Student Achievement, Attitudes, and Thinking Levels. The Journal of Educational Research, 102(4), 272-286. https://doi.org/10.3200/JOER.102.4.272-286.
Fien, J. (1993). Education for the Environment: Critical Curriculum Theorising and Environmental Education. Geelong: Deakin University Press.
Godmilow, J., & Shapiro, A.-L. (1997). How Real Is the Reality in Documentary Film? History and Theory, 36(4), 80-101. https://doi.org/10.1111/0018-2656.00032.
Hake, R. (2002). Lessons from the physics education reform effort. Conservation Ecology, 5(2), 28. Retrieved from http://www.consecol.org/vol5/iss2/art28/ https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-00286-050228.
Hashimoto-Martell, E., McNeill, K., & Hoffman, E. (2012). Connecting urban youth with their environment: The impact of an urban ecology course on student content knowledge, environmental attitudes and responsible behaviors. Research in Science Education, 42(5), 1007-1026. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-011-9233-6.
Hedges, L. V., & Hedberg, E. C. (2007). Intraclass correlation values for planning group-randomized trials in education. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 29, 60-87. https://doi.org/10.3102/0162373707299706.
Hedges, L. V., & Olkin, I. (1985). Statistical Methods for Meta-analysis. New York: Academic Press.
Heimlich, J. E., & Ardoin, N. M. (2008). Understanding behavior to understand behavior change: a literature review. Environmental Education Research, 14(3), 215-237. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504620802148881.
Hollweg, K. S., Taylor, J. R., Bybee, R. W., Marcinkowski, T. J., McBeth, W. C., & Zoido, P. (2011). Developing a framework for assessing environmental literacy. Washington, DC: North American Association for Environmental Education.
Hungerford, H. R., & Volk, T. L. (1990). Changing learner behavior through environmental education. The Journal of Environmental Education, 21(3), 8-21. https://doi.org/10.1080/00958964.1990.10753743.
Jack, B. M., Lin, H.-s., & Yore, L. D. (2014). The synergistic effect of affective factors on student learning outcomes. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 51(8), 1084-1101. https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.21153.
Jacobi, P. R. (2005). Environment education: The challenge of the construction of a critical, complex and reflective thinking. Education and Research, 31(2), 233-250.
Kollmuss, A., & Agyeman, J. (2002). Mind the gap: Why do people act environmentally and what are the barriers to pro-environmental behavior? Environmental Education Research, 8(3), 239-260. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504620220145401.
Kyburz‐Graber, R., Hofer, K., & Wolfensberger, B. (2006). Studies on a socio‐ecological approach to environmental education: A contribution to a critical position in the education for sustainable development discourse. Environmental Education Research, 12(1), 101-114. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504620500527840.
Leet, D., & Houser, S. (2003). Economics goes to Hollywood: Using classic films and documentaries to create an undergraduate economics course. The Journal of Economic Education, 34(4), 326-332. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220480309595226.
Lipsey, M. W., Puzio, K., Yun, C., Hebert, M. A., Steinka-Fry, K., Cole, M. W., . . . Busick, M. D. (2012). Translating the Statistical Representation of the Effects of Education Interventions into More Readily Interpretable Forms. Washington, DC: National Center for Special Education Research, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education.
Liu, S.-C., & Lin, H. (2015). Exploring undergraduate students’ mental models of the environment: Are they related to environmental affect and behavior? Journal of Environmental Education, 46(1), 23-40. https://doi.org/10.1080/00958964.2014.953021.
Marx, J., & Cummings, K. (2007). Normalized change. American Journal of Physics, 75(1), 87-91. https://doi.org/10.1119/1.2372468.
Mayer, F., & Frantz, C. (2004). The connectedness to nature scale: A measure of individuals’ feeling in community with nature. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 24, 503-515. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2004.10.001.
McKenzie, M., Russell, C., Fawcett, L., & Timmerman, N. (2010). Popular media, intersubjective learning and cultural production. In R. B. Stevenson & J. Dillon (Eds.), Engaging Environmental Education: Learning, Culture and Agency (pp. 147-166). Rotterdam, the Netherlands: Sense Publishers.
McMillan, E. E., Wright, T., & Beazley, K. (2004). Impact of a university-level environmental studies class on students’ values. The Journal of Environmental Education, 35(3), 19-27. https://doi.org/10.3200/JOEE.35.3.19-27.
Milfont, T. L., & Duckitt, J. (2010). The environmental attitudes inventory: A valid and reliable measure to assess the structure of environmental attitudes. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 30(1), 80-94. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2009.09.001.
Nielsen-Gammon, J. W. (2007). An Inconvenient truth: the scientific argument. GeoJournal, 70(1), 21-26. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10708-008-9126-z.
Nolan, J. M. (2010). “An Inconvenient Truth” Increases Knowledge, Concern, and Willingness to Reduce Greenhouse Gases. Environment and Behavior, 42(5), 643-658. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013916509357696.
North American Association for Environmental Education. (2004a). Environmental Education Materials: Guidelines for excellence. Washington, DC.
North American Association for Environmental Education. (2004b). Guidelines for the Preparation and Professional Development of Environmental Educators. Washington, DC: Author.
Pearson, E., Dorrian, J., & Litchfield, C. (2011). Harnessing visual media in environmental education: increasing knowledge of orangutan conservation issues and facilitating sustainable behaviour through video presentations. Environmental Education Research, 17(6), 751-767. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2011.624586.
Reid, G. (2012). The television drama-documentary (dramadoc) as a form of science communication. Public Understanding of Science, 21(8), 984-1001. https://doi.org/10.1177/0963662511414982.
Sadler, T. D. (2009). Situated learning in science education: socio‐scientific issues as contexts for practice. Studies in Science Education, 45(1), 1-42. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057260802681839.
Shdaimah, C. (2009). The Power of Perspective: Teaching Social Policy with Documentary Film. Journal of Teaching in Social Work, 29(1), 85-100. https://doi.org/10.1080/08841230802238161.
Sterling, S. (2001). Sustainable Education: Re-visioning Learning and Change. Devon, UK: Green Books.
Stern, M. J., Powell, R. B., & Hill, D. (2014). Environmental education program evaluation in the new millennium: what do we measure and what have we learned? Environmental Education Research, 20(5), 581-611. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2013.838749.
Zelezny, L. C. (1999). Educational interventions that improve environmental behaviors: A meta-analysis. Journal of Environmental Education, 31(1), 5-14. https://doi.org/10.1080/00958969909598627.

How to cite this article

APA

Liu, S.-C. (2018). Environmental Education through Documentaries: Assessing Learning Outcomes of a General Environmental Studies Course. Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 14(4), 1371-1381. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/83653

Vancouver

Liu SC. Environmental Education through Documentaries: Assessing Learning Outcomes of a General Environmental Studies Course. EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed. 2018;14(4):1371-81. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/83653

AMA

Liu SC. Environmental Education through Documentaries: Assessing Learning Outcomes of a General Environmental Studies Course. EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed. 2018;14(4), 1371-1381. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/83653

Chicago

Liu, Shu-Chiu. "Environmental Education through Documentaries: Assessing Learning Outcomes of a General Environmental Studies Course". Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education 2018 14 no. 4 (2018): 1371-1381. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/83653

Harvard

Liu, S.-C. (2018). Environmental Education through Documentaries: Assessing Learning Outcomes of a General Environmental Studies Course. Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 14(4), pp. 1371-1381. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/83653

MLA

Liu, Shu-Chiu "Environmental Education through Documentaries: Assessing Learning Outcomes of a General Environmental Studies Course". Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, vol. 14, no. 4, 2018, pp. 1371-1381. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/83653