Strategies for Engaging Students in Structured Class Discussion

1. Strategies for Engaging Students in Structured Class Discussion Norm Christensen Nicholas School of the Environment Duke University

2. Section 1 Introduction Environmental ethics, economics and policy Energy and Ecosystems Atmosphere and Climate Climate change Section 2 Ecology of populations Human demography Ecology of communities Disturbance and change Biodiversity conservation Section 3 Water Agriculture Energy Urban ecosystems Environment and Human Health Course size = ~100 ~2/3 are first-year students; remainder spread across spectrum of class levels. ~1/3 plan to major in environmental science Course structure Lecture/discussion – 75 minutes 2x/week Discussion Boards and Blogs (BlackBoard) Topical breakout discussions Informal help sessions Field trip (groups of 20) – Duke Forest Evaluation 2 mid-terms Final Breakout session attendance Optional writing assignment Environmental Science and Policy (ENV 25) Class Overview ENV 25 meets general education requirements for courses in the natural sciences and it is the gateway course for Duke’s undergraduate majors in Environmental Science and Environmental Science and Policy.

3. Challenges • General frustration with strict lecture format • Lecture format and large class size encourages passive rather than active learning • Certain topics invite discussion

4. “I have my values… If you don’t like them, I have others” Groucho Marx Ethics Discussion Objectives Ethics as a framework for determining "right" behavior -- understanding the key elements of an ethical framework.  On what basis do you decide right from wrong?  Duty vs consequence-based ethics What matters most (i.e., what has intrinsic value) in making that decision? Anthropocentrism, Biocentrism and Ecocentrism How do would you resolve conflicting values? Environmental Justice Understanding the key role of ethical values in decision making with regard to key environmental issues, organizational governance and individual behavior. Ethics in practice Importantly, my goal is not to push a particular ethic. It is to have students think seriously and systematically about how and why they decide right actions from wrong actions.

5. Discussion Structured Around Five Case Studies • Case 1. A simple matter of right and wrong • A person breaks into a house and steals something • Case 2. Deciding who or what has value • Yellowstone Animal Management • Thinking Like a Mountain and The Land Ethic (Aldo Leopold) • The Meat Eaters (NY Times OpEd—Jeff McMahan) • Case 3. Conflicting values • Environmental Justice • The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas (Ursula K. Le Guin) • Case 4. Uncertainty and precaution (drop if short on time) • An Enemy of the People (Play by Henrik Ibsen) • Case 5. Ethics and decision making • Tainted money – Tain’t enough? • The Wrong Kind of Green – (OpEd The Nation—Johann Hari) Students are expected to have read the book chapter module on environmental ethics in addition to these essays and opeds.

6. Case 2 – Deciding who or what has value It’s October 1988. The Yellowstone fires have burned over 1 million acres of the park, including most of the North Range. This is the primary winter food source for the Park’s ungulates – Elk, bison and pronghorn. Further, all indications are that the winter months will be abnormally cold. Should the Park Service implement a feeding program (hay stations) for these animals? USNPS photo www.Vorchester.com NPS core mission (1916 Organic Act) -- … to conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wildlife therein and to provide for the enjoyment of the same in such manner and by such means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations.

7. Reactions and Structure • First reactions – “feed them, of course” • Asked why – “be humane”; “avoid suffering” • Ask leading questions about hunting; would it matter if we were talking about snakes or worms rather than elk? • Offer a bit of history regarding extinction of wolves and history of elk population change • A few students offer various alternatives • Limited feeding • No feeding • Asked why – “fewer elk might be better for the park”; “healthier elk herd”; “feeding not consistent with natural wild ecosystem” Discussion Pedagogy • Walk around the lecture hall, making eye contact and inviting participation • Let the discussion flow on its own, but keep a tally of student responses on the board • Provide additional information and ask leading questions to encourage wide range of responses • Encourage cognitive dissonance • Ask students to fit their responses into particular ethical frameworks • How do responses align with ethical frameworks (e.g., anthropocentric, biocentric etc.)? • Are decisions duty based or consequence based? • Wrap-up and summary (a bit more lecture oriented) • No evaluation is associated with this discussion

8. Case 5 – Tainted Money – Tain’t enough? BP approaches a Nicholas School faculty member with an interest in funding research related to restoration following chemical spills. The funds are provided with no proprietary restrictions under guidelines that meet the standards of Duke’s Office of Research Support. Should the School accept this funding?  National Geographic Magazine Creating knowledge and global leaders for a sustainable future --The Nicholas School’s mission is informed by Duke University’s theme of knowledge in the service of society and motivated by the need to restore and preserve the world’s environmental resources while adapting to a changing climate and a growing population with aspirations for rising standards of living. (Nicholas School Mission Statement) Duke University protects academic freedom for its entire instructional staff, and guards against incursions upon its own essential academic freedoms. (Faculty Handbook)

9. Summary • Values should be stated in an operational or actionable fashion • We are prone to decide right/wrong based on consequences conditioned by rules… but we do aspire to positive values or virtues, too. • What we believe about what has intrinsic or instrumental value really matters. • Competing values complicate decisions and generate conflict. • Follow up—these issues reappear often subsequent lectures • Opportunities to interject 15-20 minute discussions • Climate change – uncertainty and precaution • Conservation biology – what has value; environmental justice • Agriculture – ethics of eating, GMOs • Energy; environmental justice