Using current science articles to evaluate the effect on students seeing relevance of science in their everyday lives

Abstract

In this classroom research project, current events were used to help students integrate environmental science concepts into their lives. The project focused on determining whether the use of current events influenced 'aha' moments, and if it influenced student learning. Students were given a relevant current events article to read during three separate units of study. Writing prompts followed each of the three articles. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of current events in the classroom, students were surveyed and interviewed, class discussion followed the writing prompts, teacher journaling took place, and the students were assessed on corresponding free response questions on the three units' summative assessments. Collected data suggests that currents events help students understand the relevance of science in their lives and also have a positive impact on student learning.