Multi-county Virtual Environmental Education Summer Program in Response to COVID-19: Increasing connectedness & scientific knowledge

Summary

In summer of 2020, four coastal Georgia counties collaborated to provide 4-H youth with enriching, place-based science education while socially distanced.

Situation

The summer of 2020 presented multiple issues for county 4-H programming. Schools closed in mid-March and 4-H face to face programming came to a halt due to COVID-19. Camden, Glynn, McIntosh, and Wayne County summer 4-H programs focus on providing adventures in learning utilizing science and our local coastal environment. Understanding the local environment and environmental issues helps create citizens that can better make informed decisions. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency “Environmental education is a process that allows individuals to explore environmental issues, engage in problem solving, and take action to improve the environment.” Engaging youth in environmental education can effectively increase science achievement (NAEE, 2014). The Georgia Board of Education 2019 5th grade science test scores provide evidence for a definite need for science enrichment for local youth. Science proficiency scores range from 59% of Camden County students being proficient in science to only 24.5% in McIntosh County. Proficient refers to the student being prepared to move on to 6th grade science. Glynn and Wayne County scored at 35.5% and 34.6% proficient, respectively.

Response

To overcome COVID-19 restrictions, Camden, Glynn, McIntosh, and Wayne county 4-H programs created a three-part series, “Virtual Coastal Adventures,” to fulfill the need for science education from a distance. Virtual Coastal Adventures was designed to support the goal of teaching students about local environmental issues and marine life while incorporating the 4-H essential elements of mastery, independence, generosity and belonging. Virtual Coastal Adventures provided youth an opportunity to safely participate in a group activity during a pandemic while in-person programs were not possible; while also engaging youth in learning about their local environment. Each two hour session included a variety of delivery methods to ensure the program was accessible and allowed youth to participate in a variety of ways. Each session included asynchronous activity packets containing educational information and instructions for activities that would be completed during the virtual session, along with activities for youth to complete independently at home. Activity packets were mailed to participants prior to each session. Youth were given the opportunity to report on their accomplishments, engage in discussion, and ask questions during each virtual session. Three programs were offered, each with a unique focus on Georgia’s marine fauna: sea turtles, plankton, and marine mammals. Information on individual species, habitats, the challenges they face, and what youth can do to be environmental stewards was provided through direct instruction, videos, informational texts, and hands-on activities. Learning opportunities were a mix of at-home and live activities that included arts and crafts, cooking, puzzles, engineering, contests, experiments, virtual field trips, and observation of marine life through live feed cameras. Instruction and facilitation was provided by faculty and staff from all four counties.

Impact

Collectively, the Virtual Coastal Adventures series engaged 30 youth in live, interactive online programming. A total of 53 youth participants registered for the series and received the activity packets (36 unique individuals). Seven Georgia counties were represented. Three parent/adult leaders participated in the live online programs. Siblings and family members in the home were also engaged in completing at home and live program activities with the 4-H member. The Virtual Coastal Adventures activity packets and teaching materials were also shared with Kings Bay Youth Center in a collaboration with the Camden Co 4-H Agent. The youth center was unable to participate in live Zoom sessions. To serve the youth center’s need for engaging, hands-on science education, the Camden 4-H agent provided the Virtual Coastal Adventures lessons for the youth center to deliver independently. Nineteen additional youth were reached through the youth center. The Virtual Coastal Adventures program sessions were evaluated in a variety of quantitative and qualitative formats including a post-program survey, a pre and post “test” activity, and “super chat” quotes from participants. Out of the sea turtle program participants surveyed after the program, 99% gave the program a 4 or 5 star rating out of 5 stars. When asked how much new information they learned on a scale of 1-5, 99% participants reported a score of 3 to 5. Marine mammal participants also reported on a similar scale - 100% of participants reported a score of 3 to 5 in knowledge gained, with 80% reporting a 4 or 5. During the plankton session, students were asked to identify the number of plankton in a photograph before and after the lesson. All students improved in their plankton identification numbers at the end of the session and were able to comment on the importance of plankton, noting that plankton “helps us breathe and feeds a lot of other animals” and “they form the base of the food chain.” Parents also commented on the effectiveness of the sessions, stating that their children “loved the turtle class today,” and that although one activity challenge was the “hardest to figure out... it was a ‘good’ hard.” Another parent commented that her daughter “looks forward to 4-H Zooms so much;” and “We really appreciate the love you have for the kiddos and your love of sharing all of your knowledge to making the kids better people.” These programs helped to establish a knowledge base of coastal environments and ecosystems. With this knowledge, students can begin to form new and positive attitudes about marine animals and environmental issues, which then creates the potential for behavior change to occur. Ultimately, with more activities offered through this program, behavior change in our 4-H students can lead to positive human impacts on our coastal environments and our planet’s overall health.

State Issue

Sustainability, Conservation, & the Environment

Details

• Year: 2020
• Geographic Scope: Multi-County
• County: McIntosh
• Location: College Station, Athens
• Program Areas:
  • 4-H Youth