ENTS 288: Abrupt Climate Change

Instructor: Trish Ferrett
Environmental Studies
Fall 2009, Fall 2011
Map of the North Woods
Course Description
The field of abrupt climate change seeks to understand very fast changes, or "tipping points," in historical climate records. Course topics will include interpretation of historical climate data, methods of measuring abrupt changes in ancient climates, theories for abrupt change, the role of complex earth systems, and the connection to current trends in global climate change. The course will also directly address our future vulnerability to abrupt climate change through cases studies of past human civilizations (Mayans, Anasazi).



Climate Change Project

Introduction

The goal of this project was to find a way to move my students past the more abstract learning of the science of abrupt climate change "to action". In the first version of this course, a first-year seminar in fall 2005, I felt I left the students hanging at the end. They were disturbed about what they had learned, felt it was compelling, but also felt powerless to act and make change. This is NOT where I wanted to leave them.

Learning Goals

To create a multimedia web site, at the intersection of abrupt climate change and some other context, that:
  • is created by students with a common interest who work successfully together as a team over an entire term on a very demanding collaborative project (teamwork)
  • includes scientific content and data about abrupt climate change in accurate and compelling ways (science, communication with public)
  • is driven by the personal interests and passions of the students (motivation, ownership, self-authorship)
  • connects the science of climate change in a variety of compelling ways to the web site context/topic (integrative thinking)
  • includes identification and development of salient perspectives - culture, economics, land use... - that relate to the project context (interdisciplinary)
  • serves a community partner organization and perhaps a broader public audience (from knowledge to application and action)
In my case, I feel like the visuals serve these learning goals.

Assessment

So far, I have evaluated them during the drafting process and at the end of the project on:
  • the quality and integrity of the scientific content, including the effective use of images and data to explain
  • the effectiveness of the story or narrative they create across their web site, and how this appears in the overall structure and navigation of the site and in links
  • the accessibility of their language for their audience (voice, audience)
  • how well the text and visuals integrate and work together to explain, convey a message, or work toward a larger purpose
  • their understanding that multiple perspectives are contributing to the understanding of a complex real-world problem
  • the extent to which they functioned well as a team

Resources

For myself and my students, I would like some help in thinking about how to be more sophisticated in how the text works with the visuals on the web sites. My students are using visuals created by others to explain, persuade, exemplify and more. They use visuals to draw in the "scanning reader" and for fully aesthetic functions. I need help in sorting out these functions, how they interact, and how I can better coach students in their choice of visuals to support the web site purpose. This project is progressive and complex- using visual materials in multiple ways and in multiple roles.

Software

I used Google Sites in fall 2009, but would consider other options. I want a web site creation tool that gives a lot of format/layout flexibility to my students - to maximize the opportunity to be creative in their expression. I also want a comment feature on the web site, and the ability for the instructor and other students to view and edit each others' work before it goes fully public. I also need full revision history capability.

I may in the future use the KEEP Toolkit at Merlot, a tool I used to learn when it was housed at the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.

I could also use some help in locating a digital resource that will help my student keep an electronic bibliography of web pages and images as they do online research - so that dealing with citation issues is much easier and naturally embedded into the research and project process.

Abrupt Climate Change in the Boundary Waters