Ocean literacy and climate change: modelling ocean circulation in the science classroom

Abstract

The ocean plays a vital role in global climate regulation and human life; however, its inclusion in secondary education remains limited. We present a classroom-based study on ocean literacy (OL) that involved a group of 4^th year ESO students (N=25) in the modelling of oceanic phenomena linked to climate change.

The proposal consisted of a learning sequence composed of four activities, including the construction of ocean circulation models to make climate predictions and the critical analysis of media information related to oceanic phenomena and climate change. The main objective was to explore students’ understanding of key OL principles concerning ocean characteristics and phenomena, as well as their connection to climate through modelling.

A qualitative methodology was used, based on discourse and content analysis of students’ written responses. The results reveal significant difficulties in understanding key concepts, namely ocean currents, their influence on climate, and the mechanisms behind marine upwelling. Nonetheless, contextualised activities helped bridge theoretical content with local contexts. The use of models and a critical approach helped to improve students' perception of the ocean's role in climate change.

These findings suggest that integrating contextualised modelling tasks into science education may enhance students’ understanding of ocean-climate interactions, contributing to the improvement of OL.