North Carolinians Present Research at North American Association for Environmental Education Conference

 

The 41st Annual North American Association for Environmental Education Conference recently ended in Oakland, CA (October 9-13, 2012). More than 1,000 environmental education professionals from around the world gathered to build capacity, increase their knowledge base and promote the environmental education profession.

The program is still available at http://www.naaee.net/conference, and you can also find reports and photos from the conference on social media. NAAEE has a Facebook page, and on Twitter, follow or (or just view the links if you are not a Twitter user) @NAAEEstaff and the #NAAEE2012 hashtag.

Faculty and students from two North Carolina universities, N.C. State and UNC Greensboro, presented at the NAAEE Research Symposium which is held the two days prior to the conference:

Identifying and Evaluating Drivers of Environmental Literacy in North Carolina
Do outdoor and environmental education work? We will discuss results from a study in support of North Carolina's ELP. Topics include how teacher environmental attitudes, use of environmental education, and time spent outside predict environmental literacy levels in North Carolina.
Presenters: Kathryn Stevenson and Renee Strnad, N.C. State University

"I'm not a snake person": Student's identity boundary work
In an ethnographic study of diverse high school students’ identity boundary work in a summer herpetology research experience, students, over time, engaged with nature and animals in ways that surprised themselves. We examined what promoted these kinds of identity boundary shifts (i.e. moving from I am not a "snake person" to I am a "snake person").
Presenter: Lacey D. Huffling, UNCG
Collaborators:  Heidi B. Carlone, Theresa Hegedus, Terry Tomasek, Catherine E. Matthews, Melony Allen, Mary Ash, Aerin Benavides

Identity-related motivations of vistors at EE events: Can snakes see science?
In this study, we researched what motivated visitors to attend community events focused on environmental education, specifically herpetology (the study of reptiles and amphibians). We examined the identity-related motivations of visitors with the goal of learning what sparks interest, emotion, and engagement in science.
Presenter: Lacey D. Huffling, UNCG
Collaborators:  Theresa Hegedus, Heidi B. Carlone, Terry Tomasek, Catherine E. Matthews, Melony Allen, Aerin Benavides

Using animals that slither, slide, run, and hide for education
Participants learned how to use snakes, salamander, turtles, and frogs for conservation education. They also experienced and discovered activities that engage students in authentic science while also teaching conservation.
Presenter(s): Lacey D. Huffling, Aerin Benavides, UNCG
Collaborators: Catherine E. Matthews, Heidi B. Carlone, Terry Tomasek, Melony Allen, Theresa Hegedus, Mary Ash, Lynn Sametz, Ann Somers, Andy Ash