Elevating the Civic Science Literacy of American Adults: Assessing a Renewed Citizen Science Paradigm Integrating Nonformal Outdoor Adult Education and Enhanced Experiential Learning DAVID PATRICK CRONIN Bachelor of Arts in Geological Sciences Cleveland State University December, 2003 Master of Science in Environmental Science: Geochemistry Cleveland State University August, 2006 Submitted in partial fulfillment of requirements for the degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN URBAN EDUCATION: LEADERSHIP AND LIFELONG LEARNING at the CLEVELAND STATE UNIVERSITY May, 2011 This dissertation has been approved for the College of Education and Human Services and the College of Graduate Studies by: ____________________________ Date: ________ Dissertation Chairperson, Jonathan E. Messemer, Ed.D. Counseling, Administration, Supervision, and Adult Learning/CSU ____________________________ Date: ________ James C. Carl, Ph.D. Curriculum and Foundations/CSU ____________________________ Date: ________ Robert L. Ferguson, Ph.D. Teacher Education/CSU ____________________________ Date: ________ Wentworth B. Clapham, Ph.D. Biological, Geological, and Environmental Sciences/CSU ____________________________ Date: ________ Abbed Babaei, Ph.D. Biological, Geological, and Environmental Sciences/CSU ____________________________ Date: ________ Heather Gallacher, Ph.D. Developmental Math/CSU Dedicated to My Mother and Father for all their love and support; My beautiful family - Alison, Shiloh, Tesse Belle, Fidget, and Beauregard; My friend, Albert M Forney, and family, Buster, who were lost during this arduous journey. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This research, and my doctoral studies career (yes, it seems like a career!), would not have been possible without the guidance, wisdom, support, knowledge, and unending encouragement of so many individuals. I owe a tremendous amount of gratitude to Dr. Jonathan Messemer, Dr. Jim Carl, Dr. Robert Ferguson, Dr. Abbed Babaei, Dr. Heather Gallacher, Dr. Pete Clapham, and Dr. Jeff Dean, as well as the sponsoring organization, facilitating organization, scientists, staff, and research participants of the 2010 RRBSA, and will do my best to continue to live each and every day of my life with the knowledge, integrity, diligence, and goodwill you have instilled in me. Elevating the Civic Science Literacy of American Adults: Assessing a Renewed Citizen Science Paradigm Integrating Nonformal Outdoor Adult Education and Experiential Learning DAVID P. CRONIN ABSTRACT America’s adult populace has failed to keep pace with the rapid inundation of science- centric advancements affecting nearly every facet of personal and public life. With deficiencies in areas of science knowledge, America’s adult populace is characterized as civic science illiterate. This research constructed and employed the renewed citizen science paradigm, incorporating nonformal outdoor adult education and enhanced experiential learning while maintaining the basic tenet of citizen science, towards elevating the civic science literacy of adults who volunteered to conduct scientific research towards answering important research questions posed by a science research agency. With 67 volunteers, 23 adults were purposively selected on the basis of their complete participation throughout the program. Data were collected through a concurrent mixed methods design, and both quantitatively, self-report surveys (n=23), and qualitatively, mixed method interviews (n=10), analyzed. The results demonstrate that the renewed citizen science paradigm statistically significantly elevated the science vocabulary knowledge (p<0.001) and science process understanding (p<0.001) of participating adults; while collecting over 30,000 pieces of scientific data in conducting research for an outside agency. Additionally, the research communicates how marked elevations in civic science literacy catalyzed volunteers to participate and assert their new civic science literacy in personal, social, and political forums, having taken ownership of v the scientific results and acting as advocates for its conclusions. As our globally expanding society becomes increasingly embedded in science and technology, there is an important need to continue elevating the civic science literacy of the adult populace. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ....................................................................................................................... v LIST OF TABLES........................................................................................................... xii CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION...................................................................................... 1 1.1 Research Problem ........................................................................... 3 1.2 Statement of the Problem................................................................ 7 1.3 Filling a Gap ................................................................................... 8 1.4 Purpose of the Study: Research Hypotheses................................... 9 1.5 Significance of the Study.............................................................. 10 1.5.1 Stop Acknowledging the Problem and Start Solving It ..... 10 1.5.2 Elevating Civic Science Literacy While Meeting Other Organizational Goals ......................................................... 10 1.5.3 Solving the NSF Problem: Meet Both Research Needs And Educational Goals ...................................................... 11 1.5.4 American Adults and the Scientific Community: Creating A Working Relationship .................................................... 12 1.5.5 Pyramid-Schemed Docent Led Education ......................... 13 II. LITERATURE REVIEW ......................................................................... 15 2.1 Science Literacy and Society ........................................................ 16 2.2 Science Literacy Typology ........................................................... 21 2.2.1 Practical Science Literacy.................................................. 21 2.2.2 Cultural Science Literacy................................................... 22 vii 2.2.3 Civic Science Literacy ....................................................... 22 2.3 Nonformal Outdoor Adult Education: What’s in a Name? .......... 25 2.3.1 Outdoor Education............................................................. 25 2.3.2 Adult Education ................................................................. 35 2.3.3 Nonformal Outdoor Adult Education ................................ 40 2.4 Experiential Learning Theory....................................................... 42 2.4.1 Experiential Learning: A Historical Context ..................... 44 2.4.2 Experiential Learning: The Modern Theory ...................... 49 2.4.3 Case Studies in Experiential Learning............................... 54 2.4.4 Summating and Building Experiential Learning Theory... 65 2.5 Citizen Science.............................................................................. 67 2.5.1 Citizen Science: The Future is Derived From the Past...... 70 2.5.2 Modern Case Studies ......................................................... 74 2.5.3 A Renewed Citizen Science Paradigm: Merging Program Strengths ............................................................................. 94 III. METHODS ............................................................................................... 98 3.1 Introduction................................................................................... 99 3.2 Methodological Considerations .................................................. 101 3.2.1 Research Protocols........................................................... 101 3.2.2 Participant Motivation ..................................................... 104 3.2.3 Experiential Learning....................................................... 104 3.3 Paradigmatic Approach............................................................... 108 3.4 Data Collection ........................................................................... 109 viii 3.5 Data Analysis .............................................................................. 113 3.5.1 Quantitative Methods....................................................... 113 3.5.2 Qualitative Methods......................................................... 115 3.6 Institutional Review Board ......................................................... 118 3.7 Researcher-Interviewer ............................................................... 118 3.8 Researcher Bias........................................................................... 119 3.9 Limitations of the Study.............................................................. 122 3.9.1 Relations with the Facilitating Agency............................ 122 3.9.2 Attrition............................................................................ 123 3.9.3 Generalization.................................................................. 125 3.9.4 Participation and Assertion of Civic Science Literacy .... 126 IV. Results..................................................................................................... 128 4.1 The 2010 RRBSA Citizen Science Program .............................. 129 4.1.1 The RRBSA: A Renewed Citizen Science Paradigm ..... 132 4.1.2 RRBSA Citizen Science Program Research Data .......... 142 4.2 Data Analysis and Findings ........................................................ 143 4.2.1 Civic Science Literacy and Scientific Vocabulary Knowledge: