EDUC 454-4?
MEASUREMENT AND EVALUATION IN
1. ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION ?
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Identify explicitly the Quantitative components of the course. S,
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EDUC Outline ?

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http://www.educ.sU*gradprogs/course—listings/Educ454zandvliet...

SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY

SUMMER INTERSESSION 2009

EDUC

454-4?

MEASUREMENT AND EVALUATION IN

ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION ?

(E100)

David Zandvl let ?

604-802-0036?

email: dbz@sfu.ca

Lower Mainland (F/SaJSu, May 8/9/10; 15/16/17; Jun 12/13/14)

Harbour Centre Room 1505

Friday - 4:30-8:20 pm

Saturday - 8:30-4:20

Sunday - 8:30-4:20

PREREQUISITE

EDUC 401/402 (or permission from the instructor)

COURSE DESCRIPTION

The focus will be on integrating mathematical, scientific and socio-cultural methods and processes of

learning across the curriculum and in teaching practice. In keeping with these epistemic roots, students

will experience and apply approaches to environmental education that are situated in the practices of

environmental scientists and social scientists through modelling, simulation and evaluation.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

In this course students will:

- Explore the ways mathematical thinking impacts environmental curriculum and instruction;

- Participate in a stewardship training workshop / authentic environmental assessment which includes

scientific, mathematical and socio-cultural perspectives;

- Develop a variety of cross-curricular environmental education lessons and activities which include

mathematical practice and thinking;

- Identify and critically examine a variety of environmental education programs and resources,

specifically for the extent and quality of their mathematical perspective;

- Critically examine different approaches to environmental education research;

- Design and develop a quantitative/empirical evaluation project that explores an environmental

education practice in context.

REQUIREMENTS

Students will complete the following course assignments and will be graded on a Pass/Fail basis:

- Attend an information session prior to the course start date (to be scheduled April 21, 2009)

- Develop lesson plans for the educational use of EE resources (mathematical reasoning focus)

- Develop a strategy for Environmental Education at the classroom, school or district level

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- Prepare a portfolio of their own design that may include aspects of all of the above plus demonstrates

a mastery of concepts and experiences component to the course

lof2 ?

2/11/09 9:29 AM

EDUC Outline

0 ?

http://www.educ.sl*gradprogs/course—listings/Educ454zandvliet...

COURSE READINGS

•. ?

Readings will be provided from a variety government, on-line sources and current education journals.

There will be no textbook, however there is an

activity fee of

$200 dollars

to cover Fieldtrip and retreat

expenses. Students should also budget a small amount for copying.

NOTE?

A mandator y

information session is scheduled for Tuesda

y A p

ril 21st (time and location TBA)

2of2 ?

2/11/09 9:29 AM

Simon Fraser University

Faculty of Education

Special Topics Proposal Form

Course Number:

? ST 3xx

Credit Hours4

Vector: ?

SEM___________

Semester to be offered:

Summer 2009

Title of Course : Measurement & Evaluation in Environmental Education

NOTE: Maximum length of course title is 34 characters due to

scheduling restrictions.

Measurement and Evaluation

Description of Course:

The focus will be on integrating mathematical, scientific and socio-cultural

methods and processes of learning across the curriculum and in teaching practice. In

keeping with these epistemic roots, students will experience and apply approaches to

environmental education that are situated in the practices of environmental scientists and

social scientists through modelling, simulation and evaluation.

Prerequisite(s) (or special instructions):

60 credit hours, including 6 credits in Education (Students may not

receive credit for both 3xx and 452).

Objectives (including a statement of how the course is embedded in a

theoretical/cognitive/interpretive intellectual

framework):

Objectives

Any examination of ecological phenomena or issues are necessarily inclusive of

scientific, mathematical and socio-cultural dimensions - to separate them reduces them

and denies the meaning and functions which are found in their relationality.

• Identify and explore the ways mathematical thinking impacts environmental

curriculum and instruction;

• Participate in an environmental stewardship training workshop so as to experience an

authentic environmental assessment which includes scientific, mathematical and

socio-cultural perspectives;

• Develop a variety of cross-curricular environmental education lessons and activities

which include mathematical practice and thinking;

• Identify and critically examine a variety of environmental education programs and

resources, specifically for the extent and quality of their mathematical perspective;

• Critically examine the value of quantitative and qualitative approaches to

environmental education research;

• Enable students to design and develop a quantitative/empirical evaluation project that

explores an environmental education practice in context.

•

Rationale for course offering (reason why course is needed):

This course is drawn from ecological and systems thinking literature which

critique the compartmentalisation of knowledge into separate subject areas.

Environmental education informed by a systems thinking epistemology is a cross-

curricular endeavour, as is the practice of environmental science and environmental

activism (Capra, 1982; Orr, 1994). The study of the environment and our relationship

with/in environments will always include scientific, mathematical and socio-cultural

perspectives.

Faculty who were consulted/involved in the development of the

proposal:

David Zandvliet

5. Budgetary and Space Requirements (for information only)

What additional resources will be required in the following areas:

Faculty: Sessional instructors (no additional expense as will be fulfilling

demand / load for

requirement)

Staff: no additional staff required

Library: no additional resources expected

Audio Visual: none required

Space: no additional space required

Equipment: no additional space required

Funds: any additional field expenses to be reimbursed by students

Bibliography: See attached.

If you require more space, please attach additional page(s).

List of student assignments to be completed and any other

expectations of students:

See attached course outline.

8. Description of student assessment and grading procedure:

Grading: Pass/Fail

Please attacha course outline (expecting the course to pass):

Attached.

10.

Please send the instructor's curriculum vitae (if other than tenure

track faculty)

11. Signatures of Approval

Proposed By:

S ?

Supportive Faculty Member:

Date:

UPC, Chairperson:

Synopsis of Plan for Environmental Ed Course with

designation

Course:

Environmental Education: Cross-Curricular by Nature

Under development -

By J. M Young

Rationale

The rationale for the course is drawn from ecoolgical and systems thinking critiques of the compartmentalisation

of knowledge into separate subject areas. Thinkers which inform this thinking include David Bohm, Fritjof

Capra, William Doll and David Orr. The course is intended to allow students to explore and practice the

integration of subject matter through the context of environmental education. ........

Content

The focus will be on integrating curriculum, thus it will be inclusive of mathematical, scientific and

socio-cultural methods of learning about our world. In keeping with these epistemic roots, students will

experience and apply approaches to environmental education which are situated in the practices of

environmental science.

First, students will participate in the first four modules of the Streamkeepers Training Program, which

provides stream assessment and monitoring training. From this, students will develop activities and unit

plans that can be used with K-12 students. They will then develop activities and unit plans based on

different environmental science practices which they will identify and research.

Complementing this focus on the practice of environmental science and teaching, students will

critically analyse environmental education research with a focus on the tools used to conduct that

research and their effectiveness in informing curriculum development and teaching practice. They will

examine particularly how qualitative and quantitative methods are used / misused / unused in

environmental education research. Students will be expected to develop their own mini-action research

project to examine the environmental science activity/unit plan which they are developing (see above).

The intention is that when they have the opportunity to teach the can use the plan they have developed

and concurrently critically reflect on their own practice and/or the impact on students.

Course Requirements

The course will qualify as a

course by including quantitative (numerical, geometric) reasoning. The

course will also meet the standards of the third type of

course which is "designed especially for

students in the Humanities and Fine Arts: to deepen the understanding and appreciation of quantitative

and formal reasoning, their ubiquitous utility, and their creative potential." This course will focus on

the relation between:

• concepts and structures communicated through numbers and other systems of abstract

representation (such as geometries, graphs); and

• fostering students' ability to engage more effectively with pedagogical practices and environmental

science and education

Examples of Q components of course activities.

The Streamkeepers Training Program includes the following mathematical applications:

• estimating the sizes offish barriers and calculating the fish' ability to jump (the height of the jump

should be less than 1.25 times the depth of the plunge pool);

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• calculating stream discharge by measuring rate of water flow at surface (average of

trials) and

multiplying by the area of the wetted cross section and a correction factor of 0.8 (m/sec x m

x 0.8);

• reading charts to determine Q values of dissolved oxygen, pH turbidity and temperature when

assessing water quality;

• calculating ratios of numbers of insects and taxa in samples.

Other environmental education activities will include mathematical applications such as:

• Calculating percentages of types of waste produced by a given community in a period of time,

determining how much landfill waste can be recycled or composted, and calculating the length of

time till the landfill is full with increases in recycling and composting;

• Calculating the environmental costs of driving to school versus taking transit or walking;

• Given the amount of garbage created by a restaurant over 4 days, identifying the pattern,

determining the algebraic equation associated with it and use it to figure out the garbage creation in

one year.

The analysis and creation of research tools and methodologies will require:

• Interpreting empirical / statistical information;

• Evaluating the use of particular quantitative methodologies in environmental education research;

• Creating tools for the collection of empirical data and planning methods for analysis

(Some) Objectives

Any examination of ecological phenomena or issues are necessarily inclusive of scientific,

mathematical and socio-cultural dimensions - to separate them reduces them and denies the meaning

and functions which are found in their relationality.

• Introduce students to the epistemological roots of ecological thinking;

• Identify and explore the ways ecological thinking impacts curriculum and instruction;

• Participate in the Pacific Streamkeeper' s Training Program so as to experience an authentic

environmental assessment which includes science, mathematics and socio-cultural perspectives;

• Develop a variety of cross-curricular environmental education lessons and activities;

• Critically examine the value of quantitative and qualitative approaches to environmental education

research;

• Enable students to design and develop a quantitative/empirical research project that explores an

environmental education practice.

Possible Assignments

Group cross-curricular unit plan development

Cross-curricular unit plan development

Mini-action research proposal

Paper: critique of environmental education research

Paper: rationale for cross-curricular environmental education

Educ4: Measurement and Evaluation in Environmental Education

Rationale

Cross-Curricular

The overall rationale for the course is drawn ecological and systems thinking

literature which critique the compartmentalisation of knowledge into separate subject

areas. Environmental education informed by a systems thinking epistemology is a cross-

curricular endeavour, as is the practice of environmental science and environmental

activism (Capra, 1982; Orr, 1994). The study of the environment and our relationship

with/in environments will always include scientific, mathematical and socio-cultural

perspectives.

Focus on Mathematics

The more specific focus on the mathematical dimensions of environmental

education grows from studies which have described the positive results achieved in

programs that integrated mathematics with other subject areas. Findings have shown

small but positive achievement increases in both mathematics and science for students

participating in programs which integrate these two subject areas (Hurley, 2001). There is

also evidence to suggest that students demonstrate greater enthusiasm, engagement and

enjoyment in classrooms where mathematics and science have been integrated (Austin,

Hirstein & Walen, 1997 as cited in Hurley, 2001; O'Neal, 1995 as cited in Hurley, 2001;

Reeder & Moseley, 2006). Similarly, studies have shown that students' engagement in

the study of mathematics was increased by integrating it with other subject areas such as

dance (Werner, 2001).

Although there is plenty of evidence to suggest that the integration of mathematics

with other subject areas can have a positive impact on student engagement and

achievement across subject boundaries, teachers may not be trying to integrate subject

content in their classrooms. One reason may be that teachers feel they have inadequate

content knowledge to integrate curricula (Lehman, 1994, as cited in Basista & Mathews,

2002). Another possibility, specific to the case of mathematics, is that their ideas about

teaching and learning mathematics may be "deeply rooted" and "largely shaped by their

own experience in mathematics classes that offered traditional instruction": that is,

separate from other subject areas, teacher centred, decontextualised, and without

argument or ambiguity (Schram & Rosaen, 1996, p.26). As Basista and Mathews (2002)

contend

If teachers have not experienced this integration of science and mathematics,

they are unlikely to teach integrated curricula in their classrooms

(p.359).

This course offers pre- and in-service teachers the opportunity to (re)discover

their knowledge of mathematics and practice ways that it can be integrated into

their teaching through the context of environmental education. It is an opportunity

to encourage and prepare new and practicing teachers to make mathematics an

integral language in the discourse of environmental education.

Community Partnerships: Situating Learning in Place

Woodhouse and Knapp (2000) describe place-based education as having the

following characteristics:

• It emerges from the particular attributes of a place

• It is inherently multidisciplinary

• It is inherently experiential

• It is reflective of an educational philosophy that is broader than "learn to earn"

• It connects place with self and community

In keeping with these principles of place-based education, this course will include

a partnership with a local community environmental NGO (non-governmental

organisation) through which students will engage in the practice of environmental

stewardship situated in their local community. Many environmental NGO's offer

workshops in environmental science in order to train volunteers to act as stewards in their

local natural communities. Such workshops will allow student teachers to learn the skills

and practices of environmental science and to apply them in data collection, monitoring

and evaluation. This kind of experiential learning gives students a deeper understanding

of the principles and practices of environmental science which will inform their teaching

practice.

As well as modelling the kind of community partnership possibilities that they

may want to develop in their teaching practice, working with local environmental NGO's

in the course will give pre- and in-service teachers the opportunity to develop

relationships with local groups who are working in the field of environmental

stewardship.

Educ(: Measurement and Evaluation in Environmental Education

Course Outline

Content

The focus will be on integrating mathematical, scientific and socio-cultural

methods and processes of learning across the curriculum and in teaching practice. In

keeping with these epistemic roots, students will experience and apply approaches to

environmental education which are situated in the practices of environmental scientists

and social scientists through modelling, simulation and evaluation.

First, students will participate in a community based environmental stewardship

training program.

British Columbia environmental organisations which offer either professional

development for teachers or stewardship training, and who could act as community

partners, include:

• Pacific Streamkeepers Federation: Streamkeepers Training Program, stream

assessment and monitoring

• British Columbia Wildlife Federation: wetland stewardship workshop, which includes

mapping, conducting plant and bird inventories, and sampling soils

• Georgia Straight Alliance: "Straitkeepers" training, learning to use the Intertidal

Quadrat Studies tool

• Hecate Strait Streamkeepers Society: creek restoration and monitoring

• WILD BC: A variety of workshops for K-12 educators

Following their participation in environmental stewardship training, students will

develop activities and unit plans that can be used with K-12 students. They will then

develop activities and unit plans based on different environmental science practices

which they will identify and research.

Complementing this focus on the practice of environmental science and teaching,

students will critically analyse two areas of environmental education which are key to

their own practice: environmental education programs and resources and environmental

education research. In keeping with the focus on mathematics as enhancing and enriching

the study of the environment, students will examine programs and research in order to

identify and evaluate their use of quantitative tools and mathematical reasoning.

Students will identify and analyse environmental education programs and

resources. Specifically, students will evaluate the extent and quality of mathematical

language and reasoning within the resources. Individually and together, students will

determine ways to modify or add to the resources as necessary, with particular attention

paid to appropriate mathematics curricula (IRPs).

They will also focus on the tools used to conduct environmental research and their

effectiveness in informing curriculum development and teaching practice. They will

examine particularly how qualitative and quantitative methods are used / misused /

unused in environmental education research. Students will be expected to develop their

own mini-action research project to examine the environmental science activity/unit plan

which they are developing (see above). The intention is that when they have the

opportunity to teach they can use the plan they have developed and concurrently critically

reflect on their own practice and/or the impact on students.

Q Course Requirements

The course will qualify as a

course by focusing on quantitative (numerical, geometric)

reasoning within environmental science and education. The course will also meet the

standards of the third type of

course which is "designed especially for students in the

Humanities and Fine Arts: to deepen the understanding and appreciation of quantitative

and formal reasoning, their ubiquitous utility, and their creative potential" (SFU, 2008).

This course will focus on the relation between:

• concepts and structures communicated through numbers and other systems of abstract

representation (such as geometries, graphs); and

• fostering students' ability to engage more effectively with pedagogical practices and

environmental science and education including the use of scientific and mathematical

inquiry as a pedagogical model.

Examples

of Q components

course activities.

In class and stewardship training activities will include mathematical applications such

as:

• estimating the sizes of fish barriers and calculating the fish' ability to jump (the

height of the jump should be less than 1.25 times the depth of the plunge pool);

• calculating stream discharge by measuring rate of water flow at surface (average of

trials) and multiplying by the area of the wetted cross section and a correction factor

of 0.8 (m/sec x m

x 0.8);

• reading gauges and charts to determine

values of dissolved oxygen, pH turbidity

and temperature when assessing water quality;

• calculating ratios of numbers of insects and taxa in samples (measures of

biodiversity).

• calculating percentages of types of waste produced by a given community in a period

of time, determining how much landfill waste can be recycled or composted, and

calculating the length of time till the landfill is full with increases in recycling and

composting;

• calculating the environmental costs of driving to school versus taking transit or

walking;

• given the amount of garbage created by a restaurant over a number of days,

identifying the pattern, determining the algebraic equation associated with it and

using it to figure out the garbage creation in one year.

• calculating individual, family and school eco-footprints. Comparing calculating tools

eg. MEC, Earthday.org

, Redefining Progress, etc.

The analysis and evaluation of environmental education programs and resources will

require:

• identifying mathematical concepts and structures in environmental science and

environmental education;

• evaluating the quality of curricular connections within inter-disciplinary

environmental education programs and resources

• modifying or adding mathematical analysis and/or reasoning to existing programs or

resources

The analysis and creation of research tools and methodologies will require:

• interpreting empirical / statistical information;

• evaluating the use of particular quantitative methodologies in environmental

education research;

• creating tools for the collection of empirical data and planning methods for analysis

Objectives

Any examination of ecological phenomena or issues are necessarily inclusive of

scientific, mathematical and socio-cultural dimensions - to separate them reduces them

and denies the meaning and functions which are found in their relationality.

Identify and explore the ways mathematical thinking impacts environmental

curriculum and instruction;

• Participate in an environmental stewardship training workshop so as to experience an

authentic environmental assessment which includes scientific, mathematical and

socio-cultural perspectives;

• Develop a variety of cross-curricular environmental education lessons and activities

which include mathematical practice and thinking;

• Identify and critically examine a variety of environmental education programs and

resources, specifically for the extent and quality of their mathematical perspective;

• Critically examine the value of quantitative and qualitative approaches to

environmental education research;

• Enable students to design and develop a quantitative/empirical evaluation project that

explores an environmental education practice in context.

Suggested Course Readings and Resources

British Columbia K-12 Integrated Resource Packages (IRPs).

http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/i^/irp.htm

British Columbia Wildlife Federation. http://www.bcwf.be.ca/

Caduto, M.J. & Bruchac, J. (1989).

Keepers of the earth: Native stories and

environmental activities for children.

Saskatoon: Fifth House Publishers.

Correlation between global average temperature and number of pirates.

http://www.venganza.org/

Canadian Journal of Environmental Education

• Environmental Learning And Experience: An interdisciplinary guide for teachers.?

(2007). British Columbia Ministry of Education. Available at:

htty

://www. bced. gov

. bc. ca/environmented/

Environmental Education Research,

Volume 12 Issue 3 & 4. Researching education and

environment: retrospect and prospect.

ESLEI (Environmental Science Learning Environment Inventory). In Henderson, D.G.,

Fisher, D.L. & Fraser, B.J. (1998). Learning Environment, Student Attitudes and

Effects of Students' Sex and Other Science Study in Environmental Science

Classes. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational

Research Association (San Diego, CA, April 13-17, 1998).

Freedman, B. (2007).

Environmental science: A Canadian perspective.

Toronto: Pearson

Education Canada.

Georgia Strait Alliance. http://www.georgiastrait.org/

Green Teacher: Education for Planet Earth.

Magazine for K-12 Educators

Mason, Adrienne. (1991).

The green classroom.

Markham, Ontario: Pembroke

Publishers.

Marcinkowski, T.C. (2004). Monograph 1 - Using a Logic Model to Review and Analyze

an Environmental Education Program. NAAEE (North American Association For

Environmental Education) Publications.

Pacific Streamkeepers Federation. http://www.pskf ca/

Ravindranath, S. & Premnath, S. (Eds.). (1997).

Biomass studies: Field methods for

monitoring biomass.

New Delhi: Oxford & IBH.

Sierra Club, British Columbia. http://www.sierraclub.bc.ca/

SOLEI (Science Outdoor Learning Environment Inventory). In Orion, N., Hofstein, A.,

Tamir, P. & Giddings, G.J. (1998). The development and validation of an

instrument for assessing the learning environment of outdoor science activities.

Science Education, 81(2),

pp. 161 - 171

Stocker, D. (2006).

Math that matters.

CCPA Education Project.

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References

Basista, B. & Mathews, S. (2002). Integrated science and mathematics professional

development programs. School Science and Mathematics 102(7),

pp.3

59-370.

Capra, F. (1982).

The turning point: Science society, and the rising culture.

New York:

Simon and Schuster.

Hurley, M.M. (2001). Reviewing integrated science and mathematics: The search for

evidence and definitions from new perspectives. School Science and Mathematics

10 1(5) p.259-668.

Orr, D. W. (1994).

Earth in mind: On education, environment, and the human prospect.

Washington, DC: Island Press.

Reeder, S. & Moseley, C. (2006). Oh deer! Predator and prey relationships: Students

make natural connections through the integration of mathematics and science.

Science Activities 43(3),

9-14.

Schram, P.W.& Rosaen, C.L. (1996). Integrating the language arts and mathematics in

teacher education. Action in Teacher Education 18,

23-3 8.

SFU (Simon Fraser University). (2008). What is a Quantitative/Analytical course?

Retrieved 30 April, 2008 from

http://www.sfu.ca/ugcr/For_Students/WQB_Reguirements/Ouantitative/

Werner, L. (2001). Arts for academic achievement. Changing student attitudes toward

math: using dance to teach math. Teacher Guide prepared for The Minneapolis

Public Schools. Full Text available from ERIC online at

.http://www.eric.ed.gov/ER.I.CDocs/data/er.icdocs2sql/conte.nt

storage _0 1/0000019

b/80/1 b/92/85.pdf

Woodhouse, J.L. & Knapp, C.E. (2000). Place-based curriculum and instruction: Outdoor

and environmental education approaches. ERIC Digest. Full Text available on-

line from ERIC at

http://www.eric.ed.gov/ER1CDocs/data/ericdocs2sgi/content

storage 01/0000019

b/80/1 6/b4/43.pdf

. ?

WILD BC. http://www.hctf.calwild.htrn

Zandvliet, D.B. (2007). Learning environments that support environmental learning.

Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the National Association for Research

in Science Teaching, New Orleans, Louisiana, 2007.

Suggested Assignments

• In class quantitative assignments and exercises (see examples above)

• Cross-curricular unit plan development with significant mathematics component

• Project: Critical examination of environmental education program or resource with focus on

extent and quality of mathematical component. Suggested additions or modifications.

• Mini action-research proposal: evaluating environmental education practice

Lf o

4-0

tOCL

0-COURSE CERTIFICATION REQUEST

.1e

Thank you for your interest in planning and offering a Quantitative/Analytic (Q) course.

Quantitative/Analytic courses will help meet Simon Fraser University's commitment to the educati-ef

undergraduate students as defined by the new curriculum. This form is intended to:

• determine whether proposed or existing courses meet the Q criteria;

• estimate the number of Q seats available to students;

• assist faculty to think through the elements of a Q course

This form is divided into TWO sections:

Section I requests instructor, program and course information;

Section II requests detailed course content information.

Please contact Susan Rhodes at slrhodes@,sfu.ca or Local 3312 if you have any questions about

completing this form. Completed forms can be sent either electronically to the email address above or

through campus mail to Susan Rhodes, Curriculum Office, VP Academic.

Course Title:

Measurement and Evaluation in Environmental Education

Course # (if known):

Education

454

Is the course (double-click the applicable box, select "checked" from the Default Value and click "OK"):

a new course?

El a modification of an existing course that has not been taught as a Q course?

a course that has previously been piloted as a Q course?

Elan existing course that fulfills the Q criteria for certification?

To be considered, this form must be approved by the Chair/Director of your program and by the

Associate Dean of your Faculty. Please have them sign off as noted below, or send an email

confirmation to slrhodes()sfu.ca

llevw

Course Certification Form, ne 2007

Course Certification Fo,une 2007

Section I

INSTRUCTO1IPROGRAM INFORMATION

Name of Instructor(s)

flavh1 R Zndv1ief (nre fr.u1ty)

Department: Education

E-mail: ?

dh74sfil r.,

Telephone:

5680

If not the instructor named above, who will develop or revise the course?

If the course has multiple instructors, how will the department ensure that the varying course content will

routinely meet the Q criteria?

Designated sessionals will work under the guidance of the faculty member above --

Has the instructor(s) previously taught a Quantitative course? (Please specify)

COURSE INFORMATION

If this is a new course:

• when will it first be offered?

Summer 2009

• how often will it be offered?

As a

component

summer institute in Environmental Education

• what is the expected enrolment per offering?

If this is an existing course:

• how often is it offered?

• what is the current average enrolment per offering?

• what is the expected enrolment increase, if relevant, with Q designation?

Course Certification Forme 2007

0 ?

Section II

THE

CRITERIA

Definition:

To qualify

Quantitative/Analytic (o

r Q' for sho ?

rt),a course

must have either q

uantitative (numerical,

geometric) or formal (deductive, probabilistic) reasoning as part of its primary subject matter, or make

substantial use of

such reasoning in practical problem solving, critical evaluation, or analysis.

Interpreting the Definition:

Mathematics courses already required in Math, the Sciences, Engineering, Business Administration and

Economics, and statistics courses required in Social Science programs clearly qualify as

courses, as do

AM` symbolic logic courses offered in Philosophy.

Courses currently offered in programs such as En'ineering Science, Physics, Chemistry, Biology,

Business, Ecoñämics and other Social Science

programs that contain a significant math or stats

componentalso would he eligible for

designation.

•A third t

e of course eligible for 0 designation will be desi g

ned especiall y

for students iii the

Hunanities and Fine Arts. The goal of such courses will not be simply tonurtUre traditional math skills.

Such courses will aspire to the greater challenge of deepening the understanding and appreciation of

quantitative and formal reasoning, their ubiquitous utility, and their &eative potential. We view such

courssa focuing n the relation between (a) concepts and structures cOmmunicated through numbrs

andother systems ot'abstract reprCseniation (such as formal languages, programming languages,

tt

graphs)and b)

Istcring studcrits

ahilityto engage more effectively with the subject matter

of their respective.progranls and practical everyday situations. Such curses need not focus primarily on

quantitative or tonnalreasoning methods, hut should give significant exercise to such techniques through

model buikling and problem sol ing, both in class and in course assignments.

Please give a one-paragraph description of the content of the course, listing any prerequisites, and

provide a syllabus (if available).

$e ?

oackect.

Identify explicitly the Quantitative components of the course.

S e

Description of Quantitative assignments:

Please write a one-paragraph description of each

assignment or the type's of

assignments your course will require. We are interested in the

content of

the assignments, and particularly in how you will facilitate the learning of

concepts by students without

Quantitative/Analytic backgrounds.

See

a.-^a 

. ?

Educ4XX: Measurement and Evaluation in Environmental Education

Rationale

Cross-Curricular

The intent of this course is to drawn on ecological and systems thinking literature

which critique the compartmentalisation of knowledge into separate subject areas and to

extend this framework to include mathematical or quantitative reasoning. Environmental

education informed by a systems thinking epistemology is a cross-curricular endeavour,

as is the practice of environmental science and environmental activism (Capra, 1982; Orr,

1994). The study of the environment and our relationship with/in environments will

always include scientific, mathematical and socio-cultural perspectives.

Focus on Quantitative Reasoning

The more specific focus on the mathematical dimensions of environmental

education grow from research that have described many positive results achieved in

programs that integrated mathematics with other subject areas. Findings have shown

positive achievement increases in both mathematics and science for students participating

in programs which integrate these two subject areas (Hurley, 2001). There is also

evidence to suggest that students demonstrate greater enthusiasm, engagement and

enjoyment in classrooms where mathematics and science have been integrated (Austin,

Hirstein & Walen, 1997; Reeder & Moseley, 2006). Similarly, studies have shown that

students' engagement in the study of mathematics increases when it is integrating with

other subject areas (Werner, 2001).

Although there is evidence to suggest that the integration of quantitative methods

into other subject areas can have a positive impact on student engagement and

achievement across subject boundaries, teachers may not be trying to integrate subject

content in their classrooms. One reason may be that teachers feel they have inadequate

content knowledge to integrate curricula (Lehman, 1994, 2002). Another possibility,

specific to the case of mathematics, is that their ideas about teaching and learning

mathematics may be "deeply rooted" and "largely shaped by their own experience in

mathematics classes that offered traditional instruction": that is, separate from other

subject areas, teacher centred, decontextualised, and without argument or ambiguity

(Schram & Rosaen, 1996, p.26). As Basista and Mathews (2002) contend

If teachers have not experienced this integration

science and mathematics,

they are unlikely to teach integrated curricula in their classrooms

(p.359).

This course offers pre- and in-service teachers the opportunity to (re)discover

their knowledge of mathematics and practice ways that it can be integrated into

their teaching through the context of environmental education. It is an opportunity

to encourage and prepare new and practicing teachers to make quantitative

reasoning an integral language in the discourse of environmental education.

. ?

Community Partnerships: Situating Learning in Place

Woodhouse and Knapp (2000) describe place-based education as having the

following characteristics:

• It emerges from the particular attributes of a place

• It is inherently multidisciplinary

• It is inherently experiential

• It is reflective of an educational philosophy that is bràader than "learn to earn"

• It connects place with self and community

In keeping with these principles of place-based education, this course-will include