The Effect of a Climate Change Learning Cycle on Pre-Service Teachers’ Perceived Knowledge, Beliefs, Concerns, and Sense of Environmental Responsibility

Background: Climate change is recognized as one of the world’s most pressing challenges. As domestic and global environmental events become more frequent and severe devastating multifaceted consequences ensue for humans and the environment. In order to reduce the implications of climate change, positive environmental actions are required by human societies. Pre-service science teachers play an important role in educating students about climate change concepts, their behaviors and empowering them as future citizens to adopt pro-environmental behaviors that may reduce implications of climate change. Teachers’ environmental knowledge, beliefs, and concerns about climate change have been found to significantly impact their personal pro-environmental behaviors which may then be adopted by their students. Purpose: This research study investigated pre-service teachers’ perceived environmental knowledge, beliefs, concerns, and sense of responsibility about domestic and global catastrophic environmental events before and after a pre-service climate change learning cycle. Findings may inform climate change pedagogical approaches and content in elementary science education programs. The research questions were as follows: (1) What was the effect of climate change instruction on pre-service teachers’ perceived environmental knowledge? (2) What was the effect of climate change instruction on pre-service teachers’ level of environmental concerns? (3) What was the effect of climate change instruction on pre-service teachers’ sense of environmental responsibility? (4) What was the effect of climate change instruction on pre-service teachers’ pro-environmental beliefs? Methods: This intervention study used a single-group pretest and posttest design to collect and analyze quantitative data regarding pre-service teachers’ perceived environmental knowledge, level of environmental concerns, pro-environmental beliefs, and sense of environmental responsibility before and after a climate change learning cycle. The study was part of a science content unit taught using online modes of instruction to 47 pre-service teachers by an experienced science educator in their science methods course. Archival survey data obtained before and after the climate change lesson were used for data interpretation. Paired sample t-tests were used to compare the pretest and posttest scores to determine the treatment effects on pre-service teachers’ environmental knowledge, concerns, beliefs, and sense of environmental responsibility. Results: The findings indicated that the intervention climate change learning cycle significantly improved pre-service teachers’ perceived environmental knowledge, level of concerns, and sense of environmental responsibility. No significant pre-post gains were found for pre-service teachers’ level of pro-environmental beliefs. Conclusion: The findings indicate that a short-term online intervention using an online climate change learning cycle can positively affect future science educators’ perceived knowledge, levels of concern about climate change, and sense of responsibility regarding the environment. These teachers may, in turn, pass these beliefs on to students. Follow-up studies are needed to assess participants’ implementation of climate science education in their elementary school classrooms and examine the status of their elementary students’ environmental beliefs, attitude, concerns, and sense of responsibility regarding environmental and climate topics.