Science Teachers’ Grasp of Climate Change is Found Lacking
In the article, Science Teachers’ Grasp of Climate Change is Found Lacking, John Schwartz talks about how many science teachers in the United States touch briefly on the subject of climate change, but do not have a sufficient grasp on the topic or political factors related to climate change in order to teach the material effectively to students. A survey taken in the journal of science also found that 30% of 1500 teachers surveyed emphasized the climate change had to do with “natural causes”, while 12% did not emphasize global warming had to do with human causes. Half of the 12% did not talk about any causes to recent global warming. The survey was done by climate scientists, a research team, and the National Center for Science Education. To address the reason why some teachers do not touch on climate change enough or at all, Bertha Vasquez, a teacher in Miami, states, “if you’re not as confident in the subject area, you’re going to avoid it”. Professor Plutzer, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania went on to explain why many teachers were hazy in the area of climate change stating, “very few current teachers had much exposure to climate science when they were in college”. However, these percentages might change in the next few years due to the fact that 26 states have developed a Next Generation Science Standards which have been adopted by 16 states so far. Many school districts have also independently adopted these standards.
This article is very important in this day and age, especially because our world is being deeply affected by global warming. An article like this could alarm the public and notify people in that their children are not being taught about the human causes of climate change and the ramifications that our actions are going to cause. One of the first steps in solving a problem as big as global warming is educating people, something that won’t happen without teachers incorporating a greater aspect of environmental science into their curriculum.
This article was very well written and included many good statistics. The author presented the information in a way that was easy to understand. However, I think there could have been a greater amount of information about the human causes of climate change and what possible consequences are already and what they could be in a few years. The article was mainly about a lack of teacher knowledge on the subject, but touching briefly on fossil fuels, sea levels, pollution, and the declining population of many animal populations would have rounded out the article. Overall, this was a very interesting article, informing me on how there are many teachers not educated on the growing issue of climate change.
Schwartz, John. "Science Teachers’ Grasp of Climate Change Is Found Lacking." The New York Times. The New York Times, 11 Feb. 2016. Web. 13 Feb. 2016. <http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/12/science/science-teachers-grasp-of-climate-change-is-found-lacking.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fscience&action=click&contentCollection=science®ion=rank&module=package&version=highlights&contentPlacement=2&pgtype=sectionfront&_r=0>.
Schwartz, John. "Science Teachers’ Grasp of Climate Change Is Found Lacking." The New York Times. The New York Times, 11 Feb. 2016. Web. 13 Feb. 2016. .
ReplyDeleteEmily,
I thought your review of “Science Teachers’ Grasp of Climate Change is Found Lacking” was really interesting and had sufficient data to better understand this situation. The quote from Bertha Vasquez about “if you’re not as confident in the subject area, you’re going to avoid it” also enhanced your article, and since it’s from a teacher, the quote gives it credibility. The review in general was easy to understand, and I liked how you included in the last part of the first paragraph the solution that they have come up for this problem, and hopefully, students and teachers will be better informed about climate change now. Lastly, your review of the article’s weakness - about how it should have discussed the problem with fossil fuels, sea levels, pollution, etc. - was excellent, and I was going to ask you about it, but it seems it was actually the article which was lacking the information.
I thought your summary was good, but it didn’t have much detail or outside information, which would have improved your review. Though there were a lot of statistics, I’m curious as to how they collected the data, and where the teachers were from, and information like that because I’m wondering if this representation from 1500 teachers is accurate. It’s not really a weakness to your review, but adding on to the part where they were explaining why teachers don’t know much about climate change, I was wondering if there’s any correlation between that and the fact that many people are skeptical about global warming and if it even is real.
I was first drawn to your review because the title was interesting and slightly shocking. Climate change is very relevant today, especially as observed from the weird weather we’ve been having. As you said, the first step to fixing any problem is to be educated on the issue, so it’s important for teachers to learn and teach about global warming. Before, teachers weren’t exposed to climate science in college, but now that this is a new decade, it is time for us to change the way we view our environment, so hopefully, the Next Generation Science Standards will be the solution to this problem.
Great job Emily! I loved your summary of the article and was able to learn a lot through your description. It was very interesting to read as well, especially with all of the statistics you included. I also think that your third paragraph, where you talked about the author’s writing overall, was well done. It was clear to me that you closely focused in on what the author did nicely. Finally, I think that the review flowed very nicely and illustrated a great outline of the article. The separation of these thoughts into paragraphs allowed me to clearly understand your review.
ReplyDeleteAs your review was written beautifully and was well organized, there are a few things I suggest including in your next current event. In your second paragraph, the one that described the importance of the discovery on science, I feel that you could have been more descriptive. Though I was able to understand your ideas, it could’ve included more information. I also think that in your summary paragraph, an explanation of the quote can be added, to give a better background of the article to the reader.
It is interesting and also scary to see that global warming is evolving into a greater risk for future generations. This article review informed me more of the challenges I will face in my lifetime regarding the environment.
Schwartz, John. "Science Teachers’ Grasp of Climate Change Is Found Lacking." The New York Times. The New York Times, 11 Feb. 2016. Web. 13 Feb. 2016. .
ReplyDeleteI thought that Emily chose a very interesting article to review, which is relevant in schools today. First, I thought that Emily did a good job of summarizing the article. She included important information as well as statistics that help give the reader a better idea of the failure of teachers to educate the students about global warming. I also thought that by quoting a professor, she gave more credibility to what was being stated. I also thought that Emily did a good job of explaining the importance of this article. The issue of climate change continues to change over time and more studies have come out, however, many teachers don’t focus on this topic which continues to change. Emily accurately described that if changes are to be made, we need to understand the “human causes” and “ramifications that our actions are going to cause.” Lastly I thought that Emily’s critique was well done. I too think that the article lacked information on what the teachers should be teaching. There should be more information about the causes and consequences.
Although this review was very well done, I think there are improvements that could have been made. I think that overall the statistics were helpful, but there could have been more information on the data collection. I think it is important to know who was being surveyed and where the teachers are. Additionally, there lacked specific information on what teachers were doing wrong in their teaching of global warming. I think this would add to the review because it could clear up any misconceptions that may be circulating and being taught in schools. I also thought that there could have been more information on how people can act to change this, such as setting teaching guidelines for topics such as global warming.
Overall, I thought that this review presented a surprising realization about what is being taught in schools. I think that it is very important to continue to incorporate the newest research and findings into the curriculum to make sure that the information being taught is recent. I chose to read this review, because I was intrigued to see in what was the information was lacking. I think that this teaches the importance of making sure the information being taught is credible and still relevant.
Emily’s review of the article Science Teachers’ Grasp of Climate Change is Found Lacking was interesting and informative, and introduced me to an issue that I had not considered. She presented her information clearly, incorporating quotes and statistics that helped solidify her argument. For example, she stated that “a survery taken in the journal of science … found that 30% of 1500 teachers surveyed emphasized the climate change had to do with ‘natural causes’, while 12% did not emphasize [this],” clearly showing the problem of science teachers’ lack of knowledge on climate change. She did a good job of pointing out parts of the study that she thought were relevant today, and voiced her opinion multiple times throughout her review; because we are so strongly affected by global warming today, it is necessary that students learn about its causes and solutions accurately. The quote included in the first paragraph made the review more interesting, and offered firsthand information from the source of the study.
ReplyDeleteThough Emily’s summary of this article was clear, some areas could have been explained more thoroughly. It would have been helpful to include background information on geographic locations of the areas that it seems science teachers have different understandings of climate change, as this could be a factor leading to differentials in opinion. Also, I think that it would have been helpful if Emily had included a more in-depth reflection on her experience with the article.
Before reading this article, I did not think the problem of teachers not conveying information accurately to students was this prevalent. Because climate change is an issue that affects all of us, it is necessary that we are taught about it accurately. This is a very interesting topic, and I am glad to have read about it through Emily’s review.
For my current event comment, I read Emily’s review of The New York Times article “Science Teachers’ Grasp of Climate Change is Found Lacking” by John Schwartz. After reading the article and her review, I have a couple thoughts. First, I thought there were several things she did very well. In the summary paragraph, she included a lot of background information that contributed to my understanding of the review. Specifically, she did a good job including statistical data that was concise and useful. I enjoyed her elaboration on the study the article itself focuses on. Next, I thought she did a wonderful job incorporating quotes into the summary paragraph. These quotes, specifically the one from the University of Pennsylvania professor, added reputable backing and insightful knowledge to the points she was making. Finally, I thought her connection paragraph was excellent. I understood going into the article that teachers not understanding the prospective consequences of not educating the young populace about such a monstrous, looming problem like global warming would have disastrous ramifications, but she phrased her analysis in such a stunning fashion, it motivated me to do more about global warming. Probably the most important scientific, economic, and demographic problem of the 21st century, global warming is something we must confront.
ReplyDeleteWhile this review was solid, there are a couple things I would suggest as constructive criticism. First, I thought her summary paragraph could have included some outside information; this would have catalyzed the arguments she was putting forward. Specifically, information on how the experiment was conducted and the standards by which the experimenters determined if a teacher did not grasp a firm understanding of “global warming” would be helpful. Second, a further explanation of the quotes utilized in the summary paragraph would contribute to the flow of the review as a whole.
While I felt like I knew a lot of the background associated with this article already, I had no idea that the science of global warming and the teaching that comes with it had gone so wayward. If we are to hold together as a nation and a planet, we need to educate the coming generations and supply them with sufficient information so they can actually fix (if possible) the problems on the table. Without serious education and effort, this is impossible. Overall, great job Emily!
I liked how there was enough background information and the reader is not left unclear about any topics discussed. It explained the relevance in detail and all the specific reasons and pieces of evidence for the findings were included in a very easy to understand manner. I thought that the report was great. The report flows very smoothly. The order makes logical sense and it is very easy to read.The topic choice was also a good choice because it is very relevant and its importance is made very clear. It also provided the scientific reasoning and importance of the threat of global climate change. I also did not see anything that could be changed other than stylistic personal choices that vary from person to person.
ReplyDeleteThis article was a good choice because it is a very relevant issue in the modern world. Global Climate Change is always a major discussion topic amongst many people and influences the way we live and the things we use in our everyday lives. It also affects our future as human beings. This growing threat may be somewhat contained at the moment, but it is important to fight against making the wound worse than it already is by educating the populous.
I thought that Emily’s review of the article Science Teachers’ Grasp of Climate Change is Found Lacking was very interesting and it flowed very nicely. One specific aspect that was good was including the information and statistics from the survey. Another part of the review that I liked was that the first paragraph included a quote, it is always good to directly cite the article. Then a third aspect that was done well was in the second paragraph Emily included and was able to relate why climate change is so important.
ReplyDeleteAlthough, the review was very informative and well written, I have a few suggestions to further improve this or future current events. One suggestion would be to add more background information or additional information, in order to strengthening the review. This information could go into the second paragraph to lengthen. Even though the statistics and numbers are important to include to make the point. I think it would improve the review to include which schools specifically the information is from.
The article title grabbed my attention because I never realized that teachers were not spending enough time on climate change. It’s not something I think about too frequently so it was shocking to me and I was interested to learn more. I was able to learn specific numbers and statistics that really shocked me. Overall, this review really opened my eyes to a possible issue in the curriculum.