[ASA] Workshop and lecture on teaching and discussing climate change - Thursday 12 December

[Michael Brown]

Dear ASA members,

Travis Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage) will be giving a workshop and lecture at Monash University on Thursday 12 December on how scientists (and astronomers in particular) can introduce and discuss climate change in their teaching and outreach. Travis is an observational astronomer and one of the authors of the Astro2020 white paper, Embedding Climate Change Engagement in Astronomy Education and Research <https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/64xvCE8kz9trXV4zTNqObn?domain=arxiv.org>. Abstracts for the workshop and lecture follow this email.

The workshop will take place in the PACE Studios, School of Physics & Astronomy, at Monash University Clayton, 10:30am-12:30pm Thursday 12 December. Please register for the (free) workshop via EventBrite <https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/vcjTCGvmB5ixXK3Pi7p9Uu?domain=eventbrite.com>. 

The lecture will take place at Lecture Theatre S9 at Monash University Clayton, 2:00pm-3:00pm Thursday 12 December, and will be streamed to enable remote attendance (details will be provided later).

If you have any queries about the workshop or lecture, please contact Michael Brown (Michael.Brown at monash.edu).

Sincerely,

Michael.


Helping Lecturers Help the World: A Workshop on Teaching Climate Change
Travis Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage)
PACE Studios, School of Physics & Astronomy, Monash University Clayton
10:30am-12:30pm Thursday 12 December

The purpose of this workshop is to improve the ability of scientists from a range of disciplines to engage the topic of climate change. This includes teaching it in introductory science subjects (e.g. “Astro 101”) and discussing it with the public. Climate change is a critically important topic and many scientists are well positioned to make a difference. For example, astronomers know about planets and their atmospheres, while biologists understand the impact of climate on ecosystems. First year classes are an effective way to teach climate change because these classes reach a large number of students, cover related topics and the relevant lecturers are often engaged in public outreach (e.g., through presentations in schools and media). Climate change is a difficult topic to teach because it spans a wide range of subject areas, from physics to psychology. It is also a controversial topic, meaning that simply knowing the science content is not enough to effectively teach it.  The purpose of our workshop is therefore to introduce scientists to: (1) resources that will improve their science content knowledge about climate change, (2) effective interactive and inclusive methods for teaching the topic in introductory classes, and (3) established strategies for engaging the public.


Helping Scientists Help the World: How to Talk About Climate Change
Travis Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage)
Lecture Theatre S9, Monash University Clayton
2:00pm-3:00pm Thursday 12 December

Why should scientists, regardless of their discipline, teach and talk about climate change?  We can all offer an important perspective. For example, astronomers know about planets and their atmospheres, while biologists understand the impact of climate on ecosystems. Introductory science classes are an effective way to teach climate change because these classes reach a large number of students and cover related topics. Overall scientists are highly trusted and understand key aspects of the science, although their climate science colleagues are often attacked by sections of the media and politicians. But, as we all know, climate change is highly controversial topic, meaning that simply knowing the science content is not enough to effectively teach it.  We therefore need to approach climate science communication differently than they do the other topics we teach.  This talk will present strategies that have been found to be effective in talking about what is perhaps the most important topic we teach.


-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://mailman.sydney.edu.au/pipermail/asa/attachments/20191126/15511651/attachment.html>