Work

Primary-Education Students’ Performance in Arguing About a Socioscientific Issue: The Case of Pharmaceuticals in Surface Water

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: The teaching of environmental education must change to promote critical and reflective engagement with environmental problems. This study introduces a social science question for primary education focused on pharmaceuticals in surface water. The aims of the paper are to evaluate: the level of students' performance in arguing their answers in relation to the reference answer; their use and interpretation of provided materials from which they draw the evidence to justify their arguments; and the type of solutions they propose. This is done by analyzing the content of their written reports and the discourse during their group discussions. Statistical tests are also used to compare their individual and group performance. The results show that students perform at an in-termediate level. They use text and video effectively but struggle with graphs and maps. Their proposed solutions are contextually appropriate and consider multiple perspec-tives. Notably, their performance is similar whether working individually or in groups. All in all, this pedagogical intervention in the framework of scientific practices and transformative environmental education supports the development of scientific think-ing and sheds light on how students process information when addressing socio-environmental issues.

Source: Sustainability

DOI: 10.3390/su17041618

Authors: Nuria Fernández-Huetos, José Manuel Pérez-Martín, Irene Guevara-Herrero, Tamara Esquivel-Martín

Institution: Universidad Autónoma de Madrid

Language: English

Topic: Science Education and Pedagogy

Subfield: Education

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Quality education

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $2,896