Dame Alas: Ecosocial education, citizen science and biodiversity in secondary education

Abstract

The current ecological crisis, marked by the accelerated loss of biodiversity and the degradation of ecosystems, demands a profound transformation in the relationships between society and nature. From an ecological perspective, it is recognized that living systems depend on complex networks of interactions in which every species, including humans— performs key functions for the planet’s resilience. This ecosystemic and relational understanding underpins the need for an education oriented towards the ecosocial transition, enabling students to understand, value, and act upon ecosocial challenges. Within this framework emerges the educational project “Dame Alas”, which starts from the guiding question: How can we design educational materials that integrate ecological complexity and participatory approaches to foster a critical and transformative ecosocial awareness?

To address this question, the Project “Dame Alas “proposes an interdisciplinary and hybrid didactic resource, co-designed and validated with teachers, experts in ecology, citizen science, and environmental education. The proposal brings together strategies such as storytelling, generative questioning, field trips, scientific observation, and citizen science, with the aim of connecting school knowledge with students’ urban environments. The educational material was implemented in 31 urban secondary schools in Catalonia and reached more than 1,800 lower secondary students. All participating schools implemented the basic sequence, which lasted between 10 and 12 teaching hours and included a field trip. Teachers could complement it with any of the three optional sequences. To assess the suitability of the material’s design, its applicability, and the reflections for improvement, a process inspired by design-based research was followed. This process drew on various methodological instruments, such as field journals produced during expert panels and teacher seminars, as well as data from questionnaires completed by teachers and students. The results show improvements in students’ motivation, sense of place, and critical awareness. Teachers highlighted the material’s curricular coherence, scientific rigor, and flexibility.