Scientific Caricatures in the Earth Science Classroom: An Alternative Assessment for Meaningful Science Learning |
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| Authors: | Renee M Clary and James H Wandersee |
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| Institution: | (1) Department of Geosciences, Mississippi State University, P.O. Box 5448, Mississippi State, MS 39762, USA;(2) Department of Educational Theory, Policy, and Practice, Louisiana State University, Peabody 223F, Baton Rouge, LA 70808, USA |
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| Abstract: | Archive-based, historical research of materials produced during the Golden Age of Geology (1788–1840) uncovered scientific
caricatures (SCs) which may serve as a unique form of knowledge representation for students today. SCs played important roles
in the past, stimulating critical inquiry among early geologists and fueling debates that addressed key theoretical issues.
When historical SCs were utilized in a large-enrollment college Earth History course, student response was positive. Therefore,
we offered SCs as an optional assessment tool. Paired t-tests that compared individual students’ performances with the SC option, as well as without the SC option, showed a significant positive difference favoring scientific caricatures (α = 0.05). Content analysis of anonymous student survey responses revealed three consistent findings: (a) students enjoyed
expressing science content correctly but creatively through SCs, (b) development of SCs required deeper knowledge integration
and understanding of the content than conventional test items, and (c) students appreciated having SC item options on their
examinations, whether or not they took advantage of them. We think that incorporation of SCs during assessment may effectively
expand the variety of methods for probing understanding, thereby increasing the mode validity of current geoscience tests. |
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