Research project to consider how projected climate change will impact a region of interest to the student
This activity was selected for the On the Cutting Edge Exemplary Teaching Collection
Resources in this top level collection a) must have scored Exemplary or Very Good in all five review categories, and must also rate as “Exemplary” in at least three of the five categories. The five categories included in the peer review process are
- Scientific Accuracy
- Alignment of Learning Goals, Activities, and Assessments
- Pedagogic Effectiveness
- Robustness (usability and dependability of all components)
- Completeness of the ActivitySheet web page
For more information about the peer review process itself, please see http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/review.html.
This page first made public: Aug 29, 2011
Skills and concepts that students must have mastered
Familiarity with how climate is projected to change by 2100 AD.
How the activity is situated in the course
Content/concepts goals for this activity
Projected changes in climate (e.g., a 4°C temperature increase) is abstract to most students. By conducting individual research projects, students gain a more concrete understanding of how projected climate change will affect something of interest to them.
Higher order thinking skills goals for this activity
Other skills goals for this activity
Description of the activity/assignment
Initial guidelines given to students:
Choose a location (where you are from, a place that is of interest to you) and investigate how projected changes in climate will affect that area. What are the expected changes in temperature, precipitation, storms, droughts, sea level, seasonality, etc? How will this affect the habitat of the area (for humans, animals, and plants)? How will this affect the local economy? What actions can the people that live in this area take to lessen the impacts of changing climate? Students write a scientific style paper on their findings, and present their research to the class in ~10 minute oral presentations (alternatively a poster session could be used).
Determining whether students have met the goals
Download teaching materials and tips
- Research Project description (Microsoft Word 42kB Oct22 10)
Presentation about this project (PowerPoint 2007 (.pptx) 11MB Oct22 10) from the Teaching About Earth's Climate Using Data and Numerical Models workshop, held in October 2011.