Girls and youth of color experienced the largest gains in their dispositions toward science and the environment through participation in outdoor environmental educationAccording to existing research, participation in outdoor learning experiences which engage youth with the natural world, such as outdoor environmental education (OEE), can support children’s development of positive attitudes toward science and the environment. “A critical question facing the OEE field, however, is the extent to which OEE experiences have positive outcomes for youth that have been historically excluded and alienated in both science and environmental education, namely girls, youth of color, and girls of color.” This study addresses this need by examining the impacts that OEE experiences can have for girls and youth of color, with a focus on attitudes towards science and the environment. The study aimed to investigate: (1) If OEE programs can help students develop positive dispositions toward science and the environment, and (2) if there are differences in the effects of OEE programs based on students’ gender and/or racial/ethnic identity.
Eight environmental education organizations in the U.S. that offered OEE programming to students in grades four through six (age 9-12) participated in the study. The organizations were enrolled in the National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded Better Environmental Educational Teaching, Learning, and Expertise Sharing (BEETLES) OEE capacity building project. Six of the organizations offered overnight programs and two organizations provided single or multi-day programs. The OEE programs were focused on natural sciences and ecology, were facilitated by non-classroom educators and ranged from one to five days in length. A retrospective pre/post survey design was utilized to assess changes in students’ attitudes towards science and the environment. Within the same survey, administered at the conclusion of the OEE programs, youth were asked to rate their dispositions before and after participation in their program. The surveys included a total of five Likert scale instruments and additional demographic questions. Survey instruments included: 1) the Science Fascination Scale to measure positive affect, interest, and curiosity toward science and nature, 2) the Science Values Scale to measure perceptions about the importance of science in solving personal and societal problems, 3) the Science Competency Beliefs Scale to assess students’ beliefs regarding their ability to engage in science, 4) the Environmentally Aware Decision-Making Scale to measure students’ sense of responsibility to care for the natural environment, and 5) the Comfort in Nature Scale to assess attitudes toward and interest in the natural environment. Across the eight programs, 457 surveys were obtained from youth participants. Participants reported their gender identities as ‘girl’ (45%), ‘boy’ (41%), ‘I prefer to self-describe’ (2%), or ‘don’t want to say’ (6%). White (41%) and Hispanic/Latino (39%) were the most reported racial/ethnic identities. Survey responses were statistically analyzed.
Statistically significant improvements were detected between retrospective pre- and post-tests for the entire sample of youth across all five outcomes (Science Fascination, Science Values, Science Competency Beliefs, Environmentally Aware Decision-Making, and Comfort in Nature), with medium to large effects. The largest effects were detected for youth’s Science Competency Beliefs, while the smallest effects were observed for youth’s Comfort in Nature. Positive changes were found across gender identities, including significant improvements for all five outcomes for both boys and girls, and in four outcomes for ‘self-describe’ or ‘don’t want to say’ (SD/DS) youth (Comfort in Nature did not show significant change). Boys reported significantly higher levels of Science Fascination, Science Competency Beliefs, and Comfort in Nature than girls at pre-test, and, at post-test, boys continued to hold higher Science Competency Beliefs. However, girls had significantly higher post-scores than boys who had equivalent pre-scores for Science Fascination, Environmentally Aware Decision-Making, and Comfort in Nature, indicating that OEE programs helped girls make larger gains and “close the gap” in these areas.
Analysis of changes in dispositions by racial/ethnic identity subgroups also revealed significant improvements from pre- to post-test for all five outcomes for both youth of color and White-identifying youth. Examination of changes between race/ethnicity subgroups found that youth of color had significantly higher post-scores than White youth with equivalent pre-scores for all five outcomes. Specifically, this analysis revealed that: 1) for Science Fascination and Science Values, youth of color and White youth started out with nearly equivalent scores, but youth of color demonstrated greater gains; 2) for Science Competency Beliefs and Comfort in Nature, youth of color had lower pre-scores but their post-scores were equivalent to their White peers; and 3) for Environmentally Aware Decision-Making, youth of color had lower pre-scores but higher post-scores than their White peers. Importantly, when gender and racial/ethnic identity were examined together, one significant interaction effect was found which indicated that “girls of color showed significantly more growth in Comfort in Nature than would be expected based on gender or race alone.” However, despite these large gains, girls of color continued to report the lowest comfort in nature out of all the subgroups.
Findings reveal new insights on the impact of OEE programs for youth of color, girls and girls of color. Key findings indicate that OEE participation improved dispositions toward science and the environment for all elementary youth, and that girls and youth of color experienced the largest gains. Overall, “results showed an outsized impact for girls and youth of color on science and environmental dispositions compared with their male and White peers, respectively, these findings point to the value of OEE experiences to provide a positive and affirming space for youth who frequently feel erased and excluded within STEM learning opportunities and career pursuits.” The researchers conclude that OEE has the potential to disrupt inequitable learning experiences that have constrained the participation of girls and youth of color. Research should continue to examine how OEE can improve student outcomes through culturally responsive learning approaches.
The Bottom Line