Paper 4: Climate Change and Students’ Critical Competencies: A Norwegian Study

Book chapter

Steffensen, L. (accepted). Climate change and Students’ critical competencies: A Norwegian study. In J. Anderson & Y. Li (Eds.), Integrated Approaches to STEM Education: An International Perspective: Springer.

Abstract Climate change is a global and urgent challenge for governments around the world but it also requires an increased awareness by all citizens which should be developed during each student’s education. Addressing this challenge involves knowledge from science, technology, engineering, and mathematics [STEM], and calls for integrated STEM-approaches in school. The research presented in this chapter concerns 10th-grade students’ discussions about climate change, such as CO2-emissions and transportation. The focus is on identifying how students’ critical mathematical competencies are used in their discussions and arguments. The students participated in inquiry-based dialogues involving mathematical, technological and reflective argumentation, and included multiple perspectives such as environmental, economic and ethical concerns. Critical competencies are important to enable students to be(come) critical citizens.