1. Development of a grades 6-12 learning progression for biodiversity: an overview of approach, framework and key findings
LAUREL HARTLEY1, ANDY ANDERSON2, ALAN BERKOWITZ4, JENNIFER DOHERTY2, SHAWNA MCMAHON3, JOHN MOORE3, CORNELIA HARRIS4, JONATHON SCHRAMM2, BROOK WILKE2
UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO DENVER1, MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY2, COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY3, CARY INSTITUTE of ECOSYSTEM STUDIES4

2. Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Who we are
Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Ecologists + Science Education Researchers + Teachers + Grades 6-12 Students

3. John Moore, Pathways to Environmental Science Literacy Project
Beth Covitt,
Univ. of MT
Andy Anderson, Brook Wilke, Jennifer Doherty, Jon Schramm et al. MSU
Bob Mayes,
Sylvia Parker,
et al. Univ. of Wyoming
Karen Draney, UC Berkeley
Lia Harris, Eric Keeling, et al. Cary Institute, NY
John Moore,
Kim Melville-Smith, Ray Tschillard, Bill Hoyt, Laurel Hartley NREL, CSU, UC Denver, UNC
Alan Berkowitz, Bess Caplan, Sarah Haines, et al. Cary and Towson University
Ali Whitmer, Scott Simon, et al. UCSB and Georgetown Univ.
Kristen Gunckel, Univ. of AZ
Bob Waide, LNO
Many others:

4. Why do we need biodiversity literacy?
Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Biodiversity is rapidly declining
Could put TE at the end if at all,.
Add in something about item develepment and refinement.

5. Why do we need biodiversity literacy?
Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Species perform vital ecosystem functions/services.
Could put TE at the end if at all,.
Add in something about item develepment and refinement.

6. Why do we need biodiversity literacy?
Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
The more diverse a population or community is, the more resistant it might be to perturbations like disease
Could put TE at the end if at all,.
Add in something about item develepment and refinement.

7. Why do we need biodiversity literacy?
How can a reader decide whether to trust claims, especially when reports are contested in popular press?
How much do citizens need to know to make sense of the information in popular media and policy?
Should we expect citizens to make or accept changes in policies that affect them on the basis of simplified popular media, leaving “technical details” to the experts?

8. Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Goal of our Work
Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Develop a grades 6-12 learning progression for biodiversity
The first objective of this paper is to explain the framework, principles and progress variables that form the foundation of our research.  The second objective is to share findings that emerged from a detailed analysis of student responses to both written and interview items.  

9. Our working definition of a learning progression
Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Learning progressions are descriptions of increasingly sophisticated ways of thinking about a subject.
Conceptual coherence: “make sense”/ tell a reasonable story
Empirical validation: grounded in empirical data about real students
Compatibility with current research: built on findings of the best research about both student learning and scientific thought

10. Informed by, builds upon, corroborates
Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Anderson
Catley, Lehrer, and Resler
Duncan
Furtak
Metz
Nehm
Schauble and Lehrer
Songer and Gotwals
and others

11. Upper Anchor Framework
Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Scale
Processes
Principles

12. Upper Anchor Framework
Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Scale
Processes
Principles
Individual
Life cycles
Seasonal cycles
1. An organism’s physical traits and behaviors are the result of genes being expressed within a determined range, moderated by the environment
2. Matter and energy are necessary for life cycle processes
3. Matter and energy are transformed as they are used by biota for life processes

13. Upper Anchor Framework
Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Scale
Processes
Principles
Individual
Life cycles
Seasonal cycles
1. An organism’s physical traits and behaviors are the result of genes being expressed within a determined range, moderated by the environment
2. Matter and energy are necessary for life cycle processes
3. Matter and energy are transformed as they are used by biota for life processes
Population
Evolution
1. There is phenotypic and genotypic variability among individuals in and between populations
2. Matter and energy are finite and limit the growth of populations
3. There is differential survival and reproduction in populations based on fitness of traits and chance
4. Dispersal of individuals into and out of a population can change the populations size and/or gene frequencies

14. Upper Anchor Framework
Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Scale
Processes
Principles
Individual
Life cycles
Seasonal cycles
1. An organism’s physical traits and behaviors are the result of genes being expressed within a determined range, moderated by the environment
2. Matter and energy are necessary for life cycle processes
3. Matter and energy are transformed as they are used by biota for life processes
Population
Evolution
1. There is phenotypic and genotypic variability among individuals in and between populations
2. Matter and energy are finite and limit the growth of populations
3. There is differential survival and reproduction in populations based on fitness of traits and chance
4. Dispersal of individuals into and out of a population can change the populations size and/or gene frequencies
Community/Ecosystem
Succession
Community Assembly
Food Webs
1. Dispersal
2. Abiotic conditions/resources
3. Interactions with other organisms
4. How organisms interact with one another affects how they change themselves and the environment in ways that then change the nature of the interactions between those organisms

15. Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Methods
Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Observe patterns in student thinking (literature search and pilot studies)
Define Content Area
Construct a model about we how think students progress
Revise the model
teaching experiments
assessments
Test the model

16. Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Methods
Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Written Assessments
(MD, NY, CO, MI, CA)
Could put TE at the end if at all,.
Add in something about item develepment and refinement.
School Level
Tests
(2010)
Interviews (2010)
Middle School
698 58
High School
672 47
Teachers 38

17. Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Methods
Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Clinical Interviews
(MD, NY, CO, MI, CA)
Written Assessments
(MD, NY, CO, MI, CA)
Could put TE at the end if at all,.
Add in something about item develepment and refinement.
School Level
Tests
(2010)
Interviews (2010)
Middle School
698 58
High School
672 47
Teachers 38

18. Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Methods
Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Created rubrics for each item with 10 student answers
Attempted rubrics with 30 student answers, refined rubrics
Used rubrics to code interview data
Refined rubrics
Eliminated unreliable questions
Coded all student answers with refined rubrics
10% of answers were coded by multiple coders
Less than 80% reliability led to another round of developmental coding
IRT analysis is on-going
Could put TE at the end if at all,.
Add in something about item develepment and refinement.

19. Basic Learning Progression
Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Upper Anchor
Level
General Description 4
Model-Based Reasoning 3
School-Science Narrative 2
Force-Dynamic with Hidden Mechanisms 1
Force-Dynamic Reasoning
Lower Anchor

20. Outline
Paper 1: Development of a Grade 6-12 Learning Progression for Biodiversity:  an Overview of the Approach, Framework, and Key Findings, Laurel Hartley
Paper 2: The Role of Heredity and Environment in Students’ Accounts of Adaptation by Selection and Phenotypic Plasticity, Jennifer Doherty
Paper 3: Endangered Species Conservation as a Context for Understanding Student Thinking about Genetic Diversity, Shawna McMahon
Paper 4: Student understanding of species diversity in ecosystems, Jonathon Schramm, Brook Wilke
Paper 5: Using complexity in food webs to teach biodiversity, Cornelia Harris
What I will do today is

21. Characteristics of Levels: Individual Scale
Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
See individuals as static life forms  recognize change in individuals over life cycles and seasons
Type I survivorship curves  Type II and III survivorship curves
Recognize traits of individuals  connect trait with function and environment
This may not be an efficient way to contrast levels. I could contrast them based on certain progress variables.

22. Characteristics of Levels: Population Scale
Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
Recognize Individuals/families  recognize populations within communities
Traits of individuals shaped by free will  traits shaped by genetics moderated by environment
All survive  survival in face of strong selection pressures  recognize reproduction as important, recognize weak as well as strong selection
Phenotypic plasticity as rationale for “free will” explanation  as rationale for genetic explanation
Change within generation  long-time  generational time
This may not be an efficient way to contrast levels. I could contrast them based on certain progress variables.

23. Characteristics of Levels: Community Scale
Learning Progressions for Environmental Literacy
See direct biotic interactions  also see indirect, resource-mediated interactions, see time lags from action to response
Simplistic view of connections  recognition of variable strengths of connections, recognition of functional redundancy
Change only from catastrophic events or human intervention  change as constant and mediated by interplay among biota and abiotic environment
Isolated landscapeslandscape mosaics
don’t invoke dispersal see dispersal as important and moderated by traits
This may not be an efficient way to contrast levels. I could contrast them based on certain progress variables.

24. Future Directions Teaching Experiment (N=1200)
Revisions of 2010 Assessments and Framework
Plasticity
Importance of weaker selection pressures
Socio-ecological contexts
Differences among students
Demographics
Schools and teaching practices
Incorporating learning progression teaching strategies into our teacher professional development
What I will do today is

25. Questions?