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1. Forest Management and Adaptation Strategies in Response to Climate Change by the Taiwanese Public

   https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos12081056  

   Wan-Yu Liu, Chien-Chen Wu (August 2021, Atmosphere)

   null (Ed.)

   Forests account for 60% of lands in Taiwan. Climate change impacts forests in many aspects and is increasingly likely to undermine the ability of forests to provide basic ecosystem services. To help reduce the impact of climate change on Taiwan’s forests, people must be made aware of the relationship between climate change and forests. Based on questionnaires collected from 17 cities in Taiwan, this study applied spatial analysis to assess the respondents’ understanding of climate change and adaptation strategies for forest management. A total of 650 questionnaires were distributed and 488 valid ones were collected. The results show that (1) Most respondents believe that climate change is true and more than half of the respondents have experienced extreme weather events, especially extreme rainfall; (2) Most respondents believe that climate change will affect Taiwan’s forests with the majority recognizing the increasing impact of extreme events being the primary cause, followed by changes in the composition of tree species and the deterioration of forest adaptability due to climate change; (3) Most respondents expressed that forest management should be adjusted for climate change and called for measures being taken to establish mixed forests as well as monitoring forest damage; (4) In order to address the difficulties faced by forest owners on the impact of climate change, the majority of respondents felt that the government should raise forest owners’ understanding on climate change and adaptation policies, while the subsidy incentives must also be adjusted. The results of this study show that the respondents do realize the importance of climate change and forest management so much so their awareness in this matter led to their support for forest adaptation measures and policies. 

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2. Virtual Growing Pains: Initial Lessons Learned from Organizing Virtual Workshops, Summits, Conferences, and Networking Events during a Global Pandemic

   https://doi.org/10.1002/lob.10431  

   Meyer, Michael F.; Ladwig, Robert; Dugan, Hilary A.; Anderson, Alyssa; Bah, Abdou R.; Boehrer, Bertram; Borre, Lisa; Chapina, Rosaura J.; Doyle, Chris; Favot, Elizbaeth J.; et al (February 2021, Limnology and Oceanography Bulletin)

   Abstract For many, 2020 was a year of abrupt professional and personal change. For the aquatic sciences community, many were adapting to virtual formats for conducting and sharing science, while simultaneously learning to live in a socially distanced world. Understandably, the aquatic sciences community postponed or canceled most in‐person scientific meetings. Still, many scientific communities either transitioned annual meetings to a virtual format or inaugurated new virtual meetings. Fortunately, increased use of video conferencing platforms, networking and communication applications, and a general comfort with conducting science virtually helped bring the in‐person meeting experience to scientists worldwide. Yet, the transition to conducting science virtually revealed new barriers to participation whereas others were lowered. The combined lessons learned from organizing a meeting constitute a necessary knowledge base that will prove useful, as virtual conferences are likely to continue in some form. To concentrate and synthesize these experiences, we showcase how six scientific societies and communities planned, organized, and conducted virtual meetings in 2020. With this consolidated information in hand, we look forward to a future, where scientific meetings embrace a virtual component, so to as help make science more inclusive and global. 

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3. Disparities in self-reported extreme weather impacts by race, ethnicity, and income in the United States

   https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pclm.0000026  

   Zanocco, Chad; Flora, June; Boudet, Hilary (June 2022, PLOS Climate)

   Giannini, Alessandra (Ed.)

   Extreme weather events are expected to increase in frequency and severity due to climate change. However, we lack an understanding of how recent extreme weather events have impacted the U.S. population. We surveyed a representative sample of the U.S. public (n = 1071) in September 2021 about self-reported impacts they experienced from six types of extreme weather events within the past three years. We find that an overwhelming majority (86%) of the U.S. public reported being at least slightly impacted by an extreme weather event, and one-third (34%) reported being either very or extremely impacted by one or more types of extreme weather events. We clustered respondents into four impact groups, representing a composite of self-reported impacts from multiple types of extreme weather events. Respondents in the highest extreme weather impact group are more than 2.5 times as likely to identify as Black or Hispanic and 1.89 times more likely to live in a household with income levels below the Federal poverty level. We also observe reports of higher extreme weather impacts from respondents who are female, do not have a bachelor’s degree and live in a rural area. Our results indicate that extreme weather impacts are being felt by a broad cross-section of the U.S. public, with the highest impacts being disproportionately reported by populations that have previously been found to be more vulnerable to natural disasters and other extreme events. 

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4. A methodological approach for researching online teacher professional development

   Johnson, M. M. (April 2021, Middle Atlantic ASEE Section Spring 2021 Conference)

   null (Ed.)

   COVID-19 has altered the landscape of teaching and learning. For those in in-service teacher education, workshops have been suspended causing programs to adapt their professional development to a virtual space to avoid indefinite postponement or cancellation. This paradigm shift in the way we conduct learning experiences creates several logistical and pedagogical challenges but also presents an important opportunity to conduct research about how learning happens in these new environments. This paper describes the approach we took to conduct research in a series of virtual workshops aimed at teaching rural elementary teachers about engineering practices and how to teach a unit from an engineering curriculum. Our work explores how engineering concepts and practices are socially constructed through interactions with teachers, students, and artifacts. This approach, called interactional ethnography has been used by the authors and others to learn about engineering teaching and learning in precollege classrooms. The approach relies on collecting data during instruction, such as video and audio recordings, interviews, and artifacts such as journal entries and photos of physical designs. Findings are triangulated by analyzing these data sources. This methodology was going to be applied in an in-person engineering education workshop for rural elementary teachers, however the pandemic forced us to conduct the workshops remotely. Teachers, working in pairs, were sent workshop supplies, and worked together during the training series that took place over Zoom over four days for four hours each session. The paper describes how we collected video and audio of teachers and the facilitators both in whole group and in breakout rooms. Class materials and submissions of photos and evaluations were managed using Google Classroom. Teachers took photos of their work and scanned written materials and submitted them all by email. Slide decks were shared by the users and their group responses were collected in real time. Workshop evaluations were collected after each meeting using Google Forms. Evaluation data suggest that the teachers were engaged by the experience, learned significantly about engineering concepts and the knowledge-producing practices of engineers, and feel confident about applying engineering activities in their classrooms. This methodology should be of interest to the membership for three distinct reasons. First, remote instruction is a reality in the near-term but will likely persist in some form. Although many of us prefer to teach in person, remote learning allows us to reach many more participants, including those living in remote and rural areas who cannot easily attend in-person sessions with engineering educators, so it benefits the field to learn how to teach effectively in this way. Second, it describes an emerging approach to engineering education research. Interactional ethnography has been applied in precollege classrooms, but this paper demonstrates how it can also be used in teacher professional development contexts. Third, based on our application of interactional ethnography to an education setting, readers will learn specifically about how to use online collaborative software and how to collect and organize data sources for research purposes. 

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5. On-Campus Field Experiences Help Students to Learn and Enjoy Water Science During the COVID-19 Pandemic

   https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2022.877327  

   Saup, C.; Lamantia, K.; Chen, Z.; Bell, B.; Schulze, J.; Alsdorf, D.; Sawyer, A.H. (May 2022, Frontiers in Environmental Science)

   Online modes of teaching and learning have gained increased attention following the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in education delivery trends likely to continue for the foreseeable future. It is therefore critical to understand the implications for student learning outcomes and their interest in or affinity towards the subject, particularly in water science classes, where educators have traditionally employed hands-on outdoor activities that are difficult to replicate online. In this study, we share our experiences adapting a field-based laboratory activity on groundwater to accommodate more than 700 students in our largest-enrollment general education course during the pandemic. As part of our adaptation strategy, we offered two versions of the same exercise, one in-person at the Mirror Lake Water Science Learning Laboratory, located on Ohio State University’s main campus, and one online. Although outdoor lab facilities have been used by universities since at least the 1970s, this research is novel in that 1) it considers not only student achievement but also affinity for the subject, 2) it is the first of its kind on The Ohio State University’s main campus, and 3) it was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, at a time when most university classes were unable to take traditional field trips. We used laboratory grades and a survey to assess differences in student learning and affinity outcomes for in-person and online exercises. Students who completed the in-person exercise earned better scores than their online peers. For example, in Fall 2021, the median lab score for the in-person group was 97.8%, compared to 91.7% for the online group. The in-person group also reported a significant ( p < 0.05) increase in how much they enjoyed learning about water, while online students reported a significant decrease. Online students also reported a significant decrease in how likely they would be to take another class in water or earth sciences. It is unclear whether the in-person exercise had better learning and affinity outcomes because of the hands-on, outdoor qualities of the lab or because the format allowed greater interaction among peers and teaching instructors (TAs). To mitigate disparities in student learning outcomes between the online and in-person course delivery, instructors will implement future changes to the online version of the lab to enhance interactions among students and TAs. 

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