Renee Andrews
P. K. Yonge Developmental Research School
Abstract
Teacher inquiry was completed to determine how Advanced Placement (AP) Environmental Science student participation in citizen science projects would influence students’ perception of relevance of my course. I collected baseline data through a questionnaire that surveyed student interest, course relevance, and views regarding their contributions to the scientific community. Students selected a project that allowed them to engage in citizen science. They completed journal entries about the process and their attitude toward their citizen science study. I provided guided questions for the journaling process. I also kept a journal that included possible evolution of student attitudes. After the students completed their projects, they took the same questionnaire to see if there had been an attitude shift. Results indicated that most students found the work to be interesting and relevant, and that citizen science projects encouraged a belief that students can and should think of themselves as valuable contributors to the body of scientific knowledge.
Citation
Andrews, R. (2019). Using citizen science projects to increase student interest and perceptions of relevance in AP Environmental Science: An inquiry study. Florida Journal of Educational Research, 57(2), 39-48.
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