Engaging youth in biodiversity education through visual narrative

Area of Science:

• Conservation Education
• Biodiversity Education
• Science Communication

Background:

• Engaging youth in conservation education is crucial for future environmental stewardship.
• Visual narratives like graphic novels are increasingly used for youth science education.
• Limited research compares visual narratives to traditional methods in conservation education.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the effectiveness of visual narrative (graphic novel) versus traditional (slideshow) methods for biodiversity education in third graders.
• To assess the impact on student perceptions of science and knowledge of wetland biodiversity.
• To investigate potential novelty effects associated with visual narrative use.

Main Methods:

• Developed a graphic novel and a slideshow presentation on wetland biodiversity with identical content.
• Randomized 26 third-grade classrooms to receive either the visual narrative or traditional resource.
• Administered pretest, posttest, and follow-up surveys to assess science perceptions and content knowledge.

Main Results:

• Students in the visual narrative group showed significantly more positive perceptions of science (3.79% increase, p=0.001).
• Students in the traditional treatment group scored higher on content knowledge quizzes (7.97% increase, p=0.002).
• Evidence of a novelty effect was found for the visual narrative, but not the traditional resource.

Conclusions:

• The choice of educational resource impacts student outcomes differently: visual narratives enhance perceptions, while traditional methods improve knowledge acquisition.
• Novelty effects can influence engagement with new educational tools, but may not sustain long-term knowledge gains.
• Effectively delivering conservation education requires careful consideration of the target audience and clear definition of educational objectives.