Socioscientific Decision Making and the Ocean: A Case Study of 7th Grade Life Science Students

Abstract

The purpose of achieving ocean literacy, like scientific literacy, is for citizens to be able to make informed decisions based on science.  One approach for teaching students about decision making is to use socioscientific issues, or "SSI."  The case study included a group of students participating in an ocean literacy-focused curriculum called Signals of Spring - ACES. The authors used focus group interviews, student-produced documents, and a decision-making task to explore decision making as it relates to the ocean. Findings contradict previous ones that students do not rely on what they learn in science class when making decisions. The 7th grade students in this study were able to apply ocean concepts pertaining to physical and biological processes to personal and societal decision making related to pollution, food choice, and on a sample SSI-based task. The results suggest that students are empowered by the knowledge of the ocean gained through the ACES curriculum and that using SSI may be a way to help students achieve ocean literacy.