EXPERIENCING AMPHIBIANS: INSTRUCTION FOR BIOPHILIA,
ECOLITERACY, AND SUSTAINABILITY

by

Mark Thompson
B. Sc., University of Northern British Columbia. 1998
M. Sc., University of Calgary. 2003

THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF
THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF
MASTER OF EDUCATION
IN
MULTIDISCIPLINARY LEADERSHIP

UNIVERSITY OF NORTHERN BRITISH COLUMBIA
April, 2014

©Mark Thompson, 2014

UMI Number: 1525684

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Abstract
The current crisis in ecology, identified as a sixth mass extinction, may be addressed by
providing children with opportunities to experience nature. Without these experiences,
biophilia, or affinity for nature, may lie dormant. This study was designed by a conservation
biologist who delivered and evaluated a community-education curriculum based on local
amphibians. Fifteen youth were divided into three treatment groups: rural parkland, urban
parkland, and indoor to alter educational experience. A pre-post study design was used to
study potential treatment effects on biophilia and ecoliteracy. A Modular Ecoliteracy
Instrument (MEI) was used to collect item scores on various ecological concepts. The piloted
study design was partly limited by a small sample size and an ineffective control group. After
reviewing the general outcomes of the study, the author advocates for further development of
the MEI and hypothesizes that niche construction in the learning environment presents new
opportunities for biophilia and ecoliteracy.

iii

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Table of Contents
Abstract........................................................................................................................i
Table of Contents.........................................................................................................iii
List of Tables............................................................................................................... v
List of Figures............................................................................................................. v
Glossary of Terms....................................................................................................... vi
Acknowledgement...................................................................................................... xvi
CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION................................................................................ 1
Biophilia for Ecoliteracy and Sustainable Ecology....................................... 1
Connections to Leadership.............................................................................. 2
Amphibians as an Instructional Resource...................................................... 3
Purpose of this Study...................................................................................... 4
CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW.................................................................... 5
The Current Extinction................................................................................... 6
Conservation Leadership and Niche Construction Pedagogy........................ 8
Themes in the Modular Ecoliteracy Instrument..............................................12
Constructing Ecological Capital......................................................... 14
Biophilia and Ecoliteracy.................................................................... 15
Conservation Psychology.................................................................... 15
Energy Conservation........................................................................... 17
Alternative Ecological Conceptions...................................................18
Complexity and Emergence................................................................22
History of Ecoliteracy Education....................................................................23
First Nations Considerations...............................................................24
Local First Nations..................................................................24
Salamanders in a Dakelhe Narrative...................................... 25
Traditional Ecological Knowledge........................................ 26
Cultural edges......................................................................... 26
Early History of Nature Study............................................................29
Nature Study........................................................................... 29
Propaganda in the Schools......................................................31
Lessons from the Early History of Nature Study...................32
Uncertain Propaganda.............................................................33
Environmental Education and Research Post 1974........................... 34

iv
Ecological Instruments............................................................34
Educational Philosophy of this Thesis............................................... 36
Urban Education..................................................................... 37
Niche Constructing Pedagogy Revisited............................... 38
Experiential Treatment............................................................40
Perception from Experience....................................................41
Why Amphibians?...................................................................42
Experience of Amphibians and the Local Economy..............43
Empirical Biophilia.................................................................44
Chapter Summary........................................................................................... 45
CHAPTER III: RESEARCH METHOD....................................................................47
Convenience Sample and Enrollment................................................ 47
Teaching Initiative.............................................................................. 48
Teaching Materials..................................................................48
Curricular Activities................................................................50
The Modular Ecoliteracy Instrument..................................................51
Modular Design and Rationale.............................................. 51
Experimental Design........................................................................... 54
Limitations to the Study Design.........................................................55
Experimental Treatments....................................................................56
Group One, Urban Parkland...................................................58
Group Two, Rural Parkland....................................................58
Group Three, Indoors.............................................................. 59
Statistical Item Analysis...................................................................... 59
Statistical Calculations............................................................60
CHAPTER IV: RESULTS........................................................................................... 61
Observational Results......................................................................... 61
Group One, Urban Parkland.................................................. 61
Group Two, Rural Parkland................................................... 66
Group Three, Indoors..............................................................69
Summary Feedback.................................................................75
The MEI Instrument Analysis......................................................................... 75
Item Response Statistics.........................................................75
Analysis of Variance...............................................................86
CHAPTER V: DISCUSSION..................................................................................... 90
Contributions....................................................................................... 90
Convenience sampling............................................................91
Statistical Outcomes................................................................92
The New Ecological Paradigm Module................................. 92
The Natural Capital Module.................................................. 94
The Value Typology Kellert M odule..................................... 95
The Nature Relatedness Scale Module.................................. 96
Comparative Analysis.............................................................97
Strengths and Limitations...................................................................97

V

Considering Biodiversity and Niche Construction........................... 101
CHAPTER VI: SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS................................................105
Outcomes of the Ecoliteracy Research..............................................105
Curricular environments........................................................ 106
Study limitations.................................................................... 106
Contributions of the Study..................................................... 108
Closing Remarks.................................................................................109
References.................................................................................................................... I ll
Appendix A Junior Amphibian Ecologist League Announcement Poster................. 125
Appendix B Curriculum Booklets ............................................................................. 127
Appendix C Modular Ecoliteracy Instrument............................................................. 166

List of Tables
Table 1............................................................................................................. 47
Table 2 ............................................................................................................. 48
Table 3 ............................................................................................................. 76
Table 4 ............................................................................................................. 77
Table 5............................................................................................................. 78
Table 6............................................................................................................. 80
Table 7............................................................................................................. 81
Table 8.............................................................................................................82
Table 9 .............................................................................................................83
Table 10........................................................................................................... 84
Table 11...........................................................................................................85
Table 12........................................................................................................... 88
Table 13........................................................................................................... 89
List of Figures
Figure 1 ...........................................................................................................10
Figure 2 ...........................................................................................................28
Figure 3 ...........................................................................................................72
Figure 4 ...........................................................................................................87
Figure 5 ...........................................................................................................89

GLOSSARY OF TERMS
abduction A scientific inference where facts are considered in the imaginative genesis of
new conceptions and are intuited into theories and hypotheses. Abductive inferences are
"adopted on probation, and must be tested" (Peirce, 1901/1994, para 202), deemed worthy of
pursuit, and economically fashioned "to obtain the most valuable addition to our knowledge"
(Peirce, 1876/1994, para 140). "But suddenly, while we are poring over our digest of the facts
and are endeavoring to set them into order, it occurs to us that if we were to assume
something to be true that we do not know to be true, these facts would arrange themselves
luminously. That is abduction." (Peirce, 1903, quoted from Hoffmann, 1999, p. 279).
"Abduction is the "inference of an explanatory hypothesis accounting for observed effects"
(Fitzhugh, 2005, p. 156). (see also induction)

alternative conceptions Defined in educational literature as uncritically held cognitive
representations, myths or assumptions that affect two states of learning intelligence
(accommodation and assimilation); alternatively defined in this thesis as unreasoned
conceptualizations.

biodiversity Article 2 of the convention on biological diversity defines biodversity as "the
variability among living organisms from all sources including, inter alia, terrestrial, marine
and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are part; this
includes diversity within species, between species and of ecosystems" (United Nations,
1992). Naeem, Duffy, & Zavaleta, (2012) also make a connection between biodiversity and
ecosystem functioning. In these terms, biodiversity is the observable product of evolving

interactions, functional relations, and processes shared among genes, individuals,
populations, and species. This definition recognizes different dimensions to the term, with
examples including taxonomic, phylogenetic, genetic, functional, spatial, temporal,
interactive, and landscape diversity. A logical consequence "if conservation is the act of
conserving something, and that something is conveyed by the term biodiversity, then clearly
we are not conserving species...or any taxon for that matter" (Fitzhugh, 2013, p. 24).

cognitive niche construction Recognition of an evolved sophistication in the language and
sociality that can adjust to the moment to moment conditions that ecological fluctuations
impose. It is the cognitive ability of foresight and adjustment for survival by deploying
"information and inference, rather than particular features of physics and chemistry, to extract
resources from other organisms in opposition to their adaptations to protect those resources"
(Pinker, 2010, p. 8994). Hyperdeveloped cognition in humans coupled with technological
exploitation of resources has accelerated and created an evolutionary transition in the
ecological rates of consumption, disturbance, and the feedback this generates on the
emergent niche.

concept Conscious generalizations and subconscious abstractions that motivate our
behaviour to make sense of, understand, and describe the world we perceive. Concepts
"govern our everyday functioning, down to the most mundane details. Our concepts structure
what we perceive, how we get around in the world, and how we relate to other people"
(Lakoff & Johnson, 1980, p. 3). They are embedded into the neural synapses of mind located
specifically in the medial temporal lobe and the hippocampus, where the specialized system

for declarative memory operates. Declarative memory "is a memory for facts and events-for
people, places, and objects" (Kandel, 2009, p. 12748). Concepts are derived from feelings
acquired by the gain of experience (Peirce, 1891) and accepted according to our perceptions
of things, usually understood to be factual and thus believed.

conceptual inventory An assessment tool that gathers information on the associations that
people use to relate and map out their concepts. A conceptual inventory is used to create
concept maps. They are usually studied by using multiple choice questions with distractors.

concept map A graphical representation how people cognitively organize knowledge about a
topic and how they communicate their understanding of the concepts onto others.

consilience Coined and defined originally by William Whewell: "The Consilience o f
Inductions takes place when an Induction, obtained from one class of facts, coincides with an
induction, obtained from another class. This Consilience is a test of the truth of the Theory in
which it occurs" (1860, italics added). Importantly, Whewellian induction differs from
classical eliminative induction and is more similar to Peirce's concept of abuduction (Laudan,
1971); hence, a Consilience o f Abductions is important to its definition.

deduction A logical mode of inference where the conclusion is a necessary outcome of the
propositions contained in the premise. It is used in science as an "inference of predicted test
consequences that should be observed, if the hypothesis is true" (Fitzhugh, 2005, p. 156).
"[T]he first thing that will be done, as soon as a hypothesis has been adopted, will be to trace

out its necessary and probable experiential consequences. This step is deduction" (Peirce,
1901/1994, para 203).

discounting An economic concept that looks at values accruing in the future. Discounting
requires investment in the present and consideration for the temporal life of that investment.
It relates to sustainability as present generations discount future generations.

distractor An unreasoned conceptualization that is included in a multiple choice list and
serves the purpose of drawing attention to the common mistake.

ecology The interdisciplinary science on the economy of nature that builds upon our
collective knowledge on the relations of life and how the interactions of organisms relate to
the energetic and physical structure of a niche, patterns of evolution, and biogeochemical
pathways in the environment.

ecological guild A concept that is used in community ecology to group species together, not
because they are taxonomically related, but because they overlap in the way they are
similarly adapted to the environment.

ecoliteracy Accumulated knowledge, values and understanding of ecology.

ecosystem services Materials, energy and resource information that flows from natural
capital into society. Natural capital is created, processed, and stored in Earth's ecosystems.

Biodiversity sustains these services and performs ecological functions that contribute to a
heritable well-being and survivability.

environment All factors and scales of study that are external to an organism, including
abiotic factors such as temperature, radiation, light, chemistry, climate and geology, and
biotic factors, including genes, cells, organisms, members of the same species (conspecifics)
and other species that share a habitat.

environmental myopia Short-sight belief that nothing important environmentally extends
beyond the range of ones limited cognitive scope, temporally or spatially.

equity analysis A valuation assessment of how materials and resources of the commons are
fairly and ethically partitioned among the group.

exurban "Exurban areas refer to rural residential development beyond the urban/suburban
fringe where extensive landscape changes occur in housing densities of 1 per 0.4-16ha.
Exurban areas with <1 house per ha occur in native landscape matrix such as forests, prairies,
and deserts" (Mitchell & Brown, 2008, p. 3).

fact According to scientific realism, a fact is "either the being of a thing in a given state, or
an event occurring in a thing" (Mahner & Bunge 1997, p. 34). It is anything that exists
independent of our imagined beliefs. Theories and hypotheses do not turn into facts, but they
refer to facts through our perceptions and memory of phenomena. Facts are referred to by the

"conjunctions of theories and observed effects" (Fitzhugh, 2007, p. 2). "Phenomena are
causal events within the sensory apparatuses of organisms, but in so being, are themselves
facts" (Fitzhugh, 2006, p. 40). However, for irrealists (see Hacking, 1988) “reality1cannot be
used to explain why a statement becomes a fact, since it is only after it has become a fact that
the effect of reality is obtained” (Latour & Woolgar, 1979, p. 180). In other words, the
irrealists do not reject the existence of facts or reality, but they suggest that facts become
established and only after they are discovered and socially constructed through the
"negotations among small groups of involved research workers" (Hacking, 1988, p. 282).
Facts are primarily known through our perception, but others may be known indirectly by
means of logical inference (Jones, 1909).

heritable A gene or trait that is faithfully replicated or transmitted from one generation to the
next. Niche construction theory proposes an extended context of ecological heritability,
whereby the constant actions of organism engineers collectively modifies the physical
parameters of the environment. This cumulatively connects the coevolution of all the species
co-adjusting to such conditions across generations and leads to a faithful replication and
legacy of environmental parameters that persist in the niche. This is a kind of niche ancestry.
Organisms inherit genes plus the cumulative modifications that their parental generation
engineered into the niche, which influences the organization and developmental potentiality
of the offspring.

hypotheses A formal postulate based on theory that can explain classes of fact and predict
testable effects. A consilient hypotheses "can successfully predict or explain the occurrence

of phenomena which, on the basis of our background knowledge, we would not have
expected to occur" (Laudan, 1971, p. 371).

induction A process of rational scientific "inference of predicted test consequences that
should be observed, if the hypothesis is true" (Fitzhugh, 2005, p. 156). Induction is the
experimental stage of bringing the hypotheses to bear on observed test effects. There are
different classes of induction having different levels of strengths and weakeness on the
likelihood of convergence to truth and reality. William Whewell's (1840) concept of
induction is more akin to abduction using Peirce's (1994) terminology. As such, Whewell's
(1860) mode of induction (Peirce's abduction) "is not reasoning: it is another way of getting
at truth" (p. 454).

learning community A network of individuals that intentionally share ideas, explore values,
self-organize and collectively coordinate their behaviour. Successful learning communities
employ social intelligence as they communicate knowledge that enhances the creativity or
learning potential of individuals that organizationally sustains and amplifies knowledge into
the group structure.

natural capital Capital is a stock supply of goods, services, or information. Capital stocks
generate a flow of services to the welfare of humans and they exist in different forms, such
as: physical capital (for example, fish, trees, minerals); manufactured capital (for example,
tools, buildings); and abstract or intangible capital (information storage in computers and

minds or species and ecosystems). Natural capital is the stock of resources that maintains the
flow of ecosystem services.

niche "The set of abiotic and biotic conditions in which a species is able to persist and
maintain stable population sizes" (Weins & Graham, 2005, p. 519).

niche construction A process that is governed by the active agency of organisms as they
modify the conditions of their habitats and those of others that inhabit the same ecological
community. The habit of organisms interacting with their environments induces the
expression of phenotypes beyond their "skin" and into the surrounding ecosystem. This
dynamically transforms natural selection pressures by creating an extended feedback of
ecological inheritance. The preservation of niche constructed artifacts, such as inheriting a
nest or nutrients from decomposing bodies, has an effect on both the genetic and ecological
descendants that persist in the same environments, (see cognitive niche construction)

novel ecosystem A human disturbed ecosystem that has regenerated and self organized into a
community of life with a novel admixture and complex of introduced and native species.
Novel ecosystem is a term that urban ecologists are using to replace negative terms such as
degraded in recognition that these types of ecosystems provide ecosystem services as well.

peri-urban "The “edge” of the city expands into surrounding rural landscape, inducing
changes in soils, built structures, markets, and informal human settlements, all of which exert

xiv
pressure on fringe ecosystems. These peri-urban environments are the glue that link core
cities in extended urbanized regions" (Grimm et al., 2008, p. 756).

percept The mental organization of sensory information or memories on phenomena that
stimulate higher order cognitive thought processes. Phenomena stand as the percepts of fact.

rural Human settlement that extends beyond urban areas.

self-delusion A belief or perception about an unreasoned conceptualization that is maintained
for the reason that it leads to the desired or expected outcome of the belief. It is a hypotheses
about the world that can be demonstrably proven false.

suburban A residential district on the outskirts of a city (Mitchell & Brown, 2008).

theory "A word hobbled by multiple meanings" (Wilson, 1998, p. 57). Theories are
formulated in the imagination. They begin through creative inference to abduction, or a guess
on a mechanism or causal explanation of facts. They provide a cognitive explanatory
conception for evidence. Theories are emotionally rewarding as they simplify understanding
of cause effect relations or emergent systems. To remain relevant in the pursuit of scientific
inquiry they have to survive the continuity of critical test. Scientific theories provide a
systematic reference to facts and they are involved in the process of postulating a testable
inference to an hypotheses. Theories that become more complex, artificial, or ad hoc lose
their fecundity, whereas those that simplify matters, become more generally applicable, and

XV

generate a coherent and consilient understanding of independent classes of facts are true
motivators of inquiry and increased skepticism.

unreasoned conceptualization Concepts that are founded on ideas exchanged or individual
percepts that fail to add to knowledge and understanding. Unreasoned conceptualizations are
motivated by low-effort quick thinking and distract from theory that otherwise interlinks
facts and concepts together. They tend to lack moral, ethical, or logical considerations.
Unreasoned conceptualizations are easily susceptible to social and personal bias, they are
resistent to change, they reinforce belief through fanfare, they stifle inquiry, and explain
nothing as they have otherwise been subject to scientific test and falsified.

urban Populated areas that are dominated by human activities and structures, including the
fringes of nature that are noticeably affected by the juxtaposition.

xvi
Acknowledgements
I would like to acknowledge my supervisor, Dr. Willow Brown and co-supervisor, Dr. Peter
MacMillan for the assistance they provided during the development of my thesis. I would
like to extend my sincere gratitude to all my committee members for making the defense
possible and memorable. Dr. Loraine Lavallee provided expert guidance and inspiration in
conservation psychology and Dr. Dennis Proctor offered his philosophical insight. I would
also like to thank the chair of my thesis defense, Dr. Ian Hartley. I am also grateful for the
support I received from the graduate office, especially Kara Taylor and Dr. Kevin Smith. I
would like to extend my sincere gratitude and thanks to Dr. William McGill for his patience,
understanding, brilliant guidance, and direction that he provided in the final revisions, which
greatly improved this thesis. Students who participated in the study also deserve special
thanks; this thesis was about trying to find ways to improve on their quality of education.

A special thanks to my parents, Louise and Pius Synard, and to my community of friends
who have been there to support me through the years. I would like to extend both my love
and gratitude to my fiancee, Sarah Heinrichs. I am so proud of your recent accomplishment
and very happy that we will be graduating together. Thank you for being patient with me
during late nights of revision, discussions about the thesis, for your kindness, and for your
loving support. I am so happy that we have a passion to share and to continue on this path, to
create new experiential learning opportunities in our community, which truly starts at the
roots of empathy. I would like to both acknowledge and dedicate this thesis to my two sons,
Jaime Peterson and Rowan Thompson. I hope that you will be able to share a biophilic future
with families of your own.

1

In those areas where human land use pressure is greatest, amphibian habitat may supply a
useful template with which to manage growth and ensure the provision o f some ecosystem
services.
Baldwin, Powell and Kellert (2011, p. 324)
CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION
At this point in history, human beings are facing a sixth mass extinction (Bamosky,
Matzke, Tomiya, Wogan, Swartz, Quental, et al., 2011; Hooper, Adair, Cardinale, Byrnes,
Hungate, et al., 2012; McElwain & Punyasena, 2007; Rockstrom, Steffen, Noone, Persson,
Chapin, Lamgin, et al., 2009; Wagler, 2011; Wake & Vredenburg, 2008). The loss of earth’s
ecosystems may be due to a lack o f ecological literacy, or ecoliteracy, as industry-based
human activity continues to cause an increase in the measured levels of global forcings of
biological change (Bamosky, Hadly, Bascompte, Berlow, Brown, Fortelius, et al., 2012).
This crisis in ecoliteracy has occurred in conjunction with increasing urbanization and the
alienation of human beings from the natural environment. As the current trends to
urbanization and human focus on technological media increases, fewer citizens are likely to
develop biophilia, a complex behaviour that describes our affinity for nature resulting from
early interactions with the natural world (Wilson, 1984; Kellert & Wilson, 1993). Biophilia
and the valuing of non-commercial ecological services, or natural capital, are the
foundations of ecoliteracy, the combination of knowledge and values that may inform and
guide the collective human behaviour required to sustain the world's ecology.
Biophilia for Ecoliteracy and Sustainable Ecology
The concept of biophilia (Wilson, 1984), combined with niche construction theory
(Laland, Kendal, & Brown, 2007; Laland, Odling-Smee, & Feldman, 2001; Rendell, Fogarty,

2
& Laland, 2011) suggests that an educational contribution to long-term ecological
sustainability is viable. If the problem is the waning of ecoliteracy due to increasing numbers
of human beings living lives removed from nature, one potential solution is to develop,
through community-based or school-based education, curricula that provide direct
experiences with nature and catalyze biophilia, or deep human connections to nature, among
young learners. The long term effect of such programs may be compounded when these
young people become aware of themselves as niche constructors (Flynn, Laland, Kendal, &
Kendal, 2013; Rendell, Fogarty, & Laland, 2011; Rowley-Conwy & Layton, 2011; Shennan,
2011) whose actions have an impact on the natural environment.
Eventually, niche constructing behaviours may lead today’s young people to create
and preserve green spaces that will become their biophilic legacy. Given niche construction
of an urban environment that affords interaction with nature, such as one rich with green
spaces, wetlands, and accessible wilderness, the potential for future generations to develop
affinity with nature may be increased. To apply a concept from biology, affinity with nature
will become heritable when catalyzed and strengthened in a nature-rich urban environment
that was constructed as a result of the biophilic values of those who have gone before.
However, it must be acknowledged that biophilic values are not likely to develop to their full
potential in a biologically impoverished urban landscape.
Connections to Leadership
Conservation biologists have recently recognized the importance of adopting and
applying some of the new developments in leadership theory (Manolis et al., 2008). Classical
leadership theory posited and failed to find a coherent pattern of stoic leadership traits,
whereas modem leadership theory resonates with niche construction theory by suggesting a

3
situational form of social influence where anyone can take initiative and inspire the
mobilization of others as they see the need for change (Chemers, 1995; Manolis, Chan,
Finkelstein, Stephens, Nelson, Grant, & Dombeck, 2009). Modem leadership theory builds
on the idea that the learning is not based on pre-specified programs but develops through
cycles of contingency through constant feedback between the learner and the learner's
environment. This idea is developed in social organization leadership theories, organizational
learning or professional learning groups, for example (Fullan, 2007; Hargreaves & Fink,
2005; Mitchell & Sackney, 2008). Professional learning groups are a form of cultural niche
construction mobilizing different kinds of social environments where individual leaders can
thrive. “Humans can and do modify their environments mainly through ontogenetic and
cultural processes, and it is this reliance on learning, plasticity and culture that lends human
niche construction a special potency” (Flynn, Laland, Kendal & Kendal, 2013, p. 298).
Amphibians as an Instructional Resource
Amphibians are an ideal subject for biophilic conservation education in and near
urban areas. Scientific assessments of global extinction rates measure more rapid declines in
amphibians compared to any other taxonomic group (Collins & Crump, 2009; Wake &
Vredenburg, 2008). Furthermore, amphibians are a safe and accessible kind of vertebrate that
often fascinates children. In this study, amphibian-focused conservation education was based
on previous conservation education material that I developed for NAMOS BC (Northern
Amphibian Monitoring Outpost Society), a charitable non-profit organization that I initiated
in 2008 and operated, with a Board of Directors, until 2012. Although the NAMOS BC
organization is no longer functioning, the educational material and philosophy that I
developed as a part of that initiative have contributed to this study.

Purpose of this Study
To move toward achieving my theory-informed, long-term vision of conservation
leadership and to draw on amphibians as an accessible resource for biophilic instruction in
urban environments, I addressed short term goals in this study. Specifically, I developed
instructional approaches focused on amphibians and devised a means of evaluating the
effectiveness of instruction for promoting biophilia and ecoliteracy. Therefore, the purpose of
this study was to design and implement amphibian-focused nature study curricula and
evaluate them for their effectiveness in leading learners to value nature and develop
ecoliteracy, as evident in children’s awareness of the value of ecological services.
In the chapters to follow I provide a review of literature to provide context,
theoretical constructs, insight into the content and underlying perspectives o f the curricula
that I developed, and a perspective on conservation science, biophilia, and ecoliteracy
(Chapter II); the methods used, (Chapter III); results obtained and observations made
(Chapter IV) a discussion of sampling, statistical outcomes, module characteristics, a
comparative analysis, strengths and weaknesses, and finally biodiversity and niche
construction (Chapter V), with a summary and conclusions in Chapter VI. Appendices
include the Junior Amphibian Ecologist League Announcement Poster, Curriculum Booklets
and the Modular Ecoliteracy Instrument.

CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW
The function of this literature review is to provide context for the problem that I have
identified, the current extinction, and the theoretical constructs that point to the potential of
educational solutions: niche construction, biophilia, and ecoliteracy. I have built on my
professional experience as an ecologist and conservation biologist to develop the
perspectives most applicable to the aims of my study. Concepts identified in this process
contributed to the items of the Modular Ecoliteracy Instrument (MEI) and helped me to set
the polarity on item scores and values. The material that I have reviewed also provides
insight into the content and underlying perspectives of the curricula that I developed for the
Junior Amphibian Ecologists League.
Moreover, in reviewing these topics I provide a perspective on conservation science,
biophilia, and ecoliteracy that presents an alternative to some of the plans or directives for
sustainable development that are presented more generally. For example, my curricular aim is
less “akin to developing knowledge and skills necessary for participation in the ‘green
economy’ envisioned by the top-down promoters of Education for Sustainable Development
such as United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)”
(Kopnina, 2012, p. 700). A second major section of this literature review sifts through the
historical literature of nature study and moves into the transition that occurred during the
1970's. Several authors have identified this transition (for example, Kopnina, 2012), which
has become known as education for sustainable development and has become evident in
various environmental education or nature study instruments. The review serves a dual
function of giving a historical overview of educational research related to my topic of study

6
and the instruments that have been used to study values and perceptions of students following
intervention into various nature-based or environmentally orientated education programs.
The Current Extinction
One hundred years ago, the famed British biologist, Ray Lankester, forecast a theory
on the state of the “effacement of nature by man”:
It is, however, in cutting down and burning forests of large trees that man has done
the most harm to himself and the other living occupants of many regions of the earth's
surface.. .Forests have an immense effect on climate, causing humidity of both the air
and the soil, and give rise to moderate and persistent instead of torrential streams and
from regions far remote from the Arctic complaints come of an even more reckless
destruction of helpless animals. (Lankester, 1913, p. 370)
Lankester's (1913) theory was one of the earliest summations and forecasting of the
Anthropocene mass extinction The process has not abated and it is rapidly getting worse
(Ehlrich, Kareiva, & Daily, 2012). With the exception of Greenland and Antarctica, 83% of
the global terrestrial biosphere has now been converted to human habitat and 36% of the
Earth's biologically productive surface has been engineered into a human niche (Haberl, Erb,
Krausmann, Gaube, Bondeau, Plutzar, Gingrich, et al., 2007). A major ecological transition is
taking place globally. As the greatest physical ecosystem engineer to have evolved, humanity
may be able to niche construct solutions to this problem, vicariously through instruction and
by direct investment, which requires participation and long-term engagement in ecosystems
that retain their resilience and productivity.
The motivation behind the amphibian-based curricula that I have developed and the
problems I address in this study derives from the problem of extinction. My premise is that
the parallel extinction of direct experience in nature (for example, Hanski, 2005, 2008;
Miller, 2005) including the study, play, and direct physical engagement in the local ecological
engineering processes, is causally linked to the sixth or Anthropocene mass extinction

(Hooper et al., 2012; Wake & Vredenburg, 2008). There is reciprocity or feedback of
extinction with the loss of species and the loss of experience, which are both increasing.
Intertwined with this extinction are the values that influence and motivate human social and
ecological behaviours. Biophilic values, for example, cannot develop to their full potential in
a biologically impoverished world. Hence, curricula that can encourage direct engagement
with local nature to stimulate a sense of biophilia may counter this dual problem of
extinction.
Researchers continue to report on the trends of the current extinction, which qualifies
as a sixth major extinction paralleling in magnitude the previous five major extinctions in the
fossil record (McElwain & Punyasena, 2007; Wake & Vredenburg, 2008; Wagler, 2011). The
current extinction pattern, however, differs from previous mass extinctions in terms of scale
and the evolutionary transition of human intelligence that has engineered a new technological
context. Wagler (2013) conducted an extensive review of educational standards related to the
sixth mass extinction and concluded that the topic is missing from most educational
programs on environmental science and there are few curricular packages that have been
developed on this topic. This study and the curriculum development that is part of it were
motivated by my concern for the extinction crisis and the inescapable deterioration of human
well-being that will occur if the trend continues.
Governments, conservation biologists, and citizens have put extensive plans and
efforts toward the management, protection, and recovery of endangered species. Different
pieces of endangered species legislation have been put into effect in different parts of the
globe, but usually only after hard fought legal battles. Many conservation biologists,
however, are raising concerns that species endemism, species richness, and endangered

8
listings are not the most effective means to prioritize conservation action, let alone to
determine where to establish protected areas (Smith, Bruford & Wayne, 1993; Cowling,
Knight, Faith, Ferrier, Lombard, Driver, et al., 2004; Wood & Gross, 2008; Thompson, 2010;
Gratwicke, Lovejoy & Wildt, 2012; Fitzhugh, 2013). One basis for their argument is that
species only cover the taxonomic component to biodiversity, whereas the whole of
biodiversity includes additional dimensions that are more directly linked and applicable to
the functional ecology of the planet (Naeem, Duffy, & Zavaleta, 2012). Even more
disconcerting is the observation that children's conservation values tend to reflect the popular,
virtual, and exotic species over local species (Ballouard, Brischoux, & Bonnet, 2011), a bias
that may persist into adulthood and that removes emphasis from other important dimensions
of biodiversity. The prioritization of species for conservation legislation, funding and action
has more to do with human psychology than with what is actually relevant to the ecology of
the problem.
Conservation Leadership and Niche Construction Pedagogy
This study is a response to the clarion call for conservationists to address the
amphibian extinction crisis (Gascon, Collins, Moore, Church, McKay, & Mendelson, 2007).
Conservation biologists have also recognized the importance of adopting and applying some
of the new developments in leadership theory that “emphasize emotional over technological
intelligence” (Manolis et al., 2008, p. 880). Hence, this study is a journey in my own
leadership development for conservation science education.
New approaches to education are required to meet the increasing and diversity of
challenges that the Anthropocene extinction poses for education. Toward this end, this study
is as much a leadership initiative in conservation education as it is a study of ecology as it

9
relates to education. Niche construction theory is adopted in the educational approach that
was applied and incorporated into the curricula of this thesis. It forms a complement to
biophilia theory and ecoliteracy in general. Niche construction theory has yet to mature in the
educational literature but a large body of theoretical, mathematical and experimental research
has provided “unambiguous evidence that niche construction is of considerable ecological
and evolutionary importance” (Odling-Smee, Erwin, Palkovacs, Feldman, & Laland, 2013, p.
5). Flynn, Laland, Kendal, and Kendal (2013) identify one of the first educational linkages
consistent with the theory as “ .. .children direct their own learning by shaping their own
learning environment. Also in natural settings, children often learn from other children” (p.
303).
Modem leadership theory resonates with niche construction theory and builds on the
idea that the learning is not based on pre-specified programs but develops through cycles of
constant feedback between the learner and the learner's environment. Parallel understandings
and conclusions about the importance of feedback for development have also been featured
in educational leadership research, for example, in social organization leadership theories that
focus on organizational learning or professional learning groups (Fullan, 2007; Hargreaves &
Fink, 2005; Mitchell & Sackney, 2008). In this manner, professional learning groups provide
an example of cultural niche construction where groups mobilize to create the kinds of social
environments where individuals as well as innovation can thrive.
Niche construction is closely related to the concept behind ecosystem engineering,
initiated by Charles Darwin in 1881 in the nascent science of pedogenesis and bioturbation.
The behavioural activities of other organisms making tunnels, burrowing for food, and
displacing soils is called bioturbation (Hastings, Byers, Crooks, Cuddington, Jones,

10
Lambrinos, et al., 2007). The importance of this process was recognized by Charles Darwin
but the significance of this research was unfortunately overlooked by an agronomic science
that focused on crop production rather than the production of ecosystem services by other
organisms. Thus the science of organisms in soils, the primary process of soil formation and
a critical ecosystem service (Figure 1), was largely ignored, forgotten, and shelved to the
scientific periphery for an entire century (Wilkinson, Richards, & Humphreys, 2009).
S e rv ic e
Provisioning

S u b -ca te g o ry

F u n c tio n s

1 Food
2 Fibre
3 G enetic resources
4 Biochemicals, natural medicines & pharm aceuticals
5 Ornamental resources
6 Fresh w ater

1 Food
2 Raw materials
3 G enetic resources
4 Medical resources
5 Ornamental resources
6 W ater supply

7 Air quality regulation
8 Climate regulation
9 W ater regulation
10 Erosion regulation
11 W ater purification and w aste treatm ent
12 D isease regulation
13 P e s t regulation
14 Pollination
15 Ornamental resources

7 G a s regulation
8 Climate regulation
9 W ater regulation
10 Disturbance prevention
11 W a ste treatment
12 Soil retention
13 Biological control
14 Pollination
15 Nursery fonction
16 Habitat functions
17 Refogium function
18 Nutrient regulation

16 Cultural diversity
17 Spiritual and religious values
IBKnowledge sy ste m s
19Educational values
20 Inspiration
21 A esthetic values
22 Social relations
2 3 S e n s e of place
24 Cultural heritage values
25 Recreation and ecotourism

19 Information functions
20 Spiritual and historic information
21 S cien ce and education
22 A esthetic information
23 Cultural and artistic information
24 Recreation

26 Soil formation
27 P hotosynthesis
28 Primary production
29 Nutrient cycling
30 W ater cycling

25 Soil formation
26 Production function

Regulating

Cultural Services

Supporting Services

Figure 1. Ecosystem services and functions listed by the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment
(2005) and deGroot et al. (2002).
Darwin (1882) was the first to propose that the ecological actions of one organism can
alter the constructed state of the environment for other organisms. In this regard, Darwin
(1882) noted on the “service performed by worms in loosening, &c., the soil” (p. 312):

11
Worms prepare the ground in an excellent manner for the growth of fibrous-rooted
plants and for seedlings of all kinds.. .The plough is one of the most ancient and
valuable of man's inventions; but long before he existed the land was in fact regularly
ploughed by earth-worms. It maybe doubted whether there are many other animals
which have played so important a part in the history of the world, as have these lowly
organized creatures... other animals, however, still more lowly organised, namely
corals, have done far more conspicuous work in having constructed innumerable reefs
and islands in the great oceans (p. 316).
Jones, Lawton and Shachak (1994) re-introduced and expanded on this concept by
reviewing the physical interactions of organisms noted in ecological studies. Emphasis on the
physical modification, creation, or maintenance of habitats by “organisms that directly or
indirectly modulate the availability of resources (other than themselves)” (Jones, Lawton &
Shachak, 1994, p. 374) to other organisms was a new development in the ecological sciences.
Ecology had for a long-time been primarily concerned with trophic (i.e., feeding) dynamics
and relations. This switch in emphasis from trophic dynamics to understanding that the
physical alterations of the environment also modified the availability and flow of resources
was called ecosystem engineering.
Like much of the evolutionary sciences, educators have treated the student as a
receptacle of curricula as opposed to being active agents in the curricular environment. Niche
construction theory can be used to gain a better understanding of educational theory and
build on the initiative that has been encouraged to bring human niche construction into
interdisciplinary focus (Kendal, Tehrani, & Odling-Smee, 2011). Acknowledging niche
construction, as it was first introduced by Lewontin (1983), students are one of the causes of
their own learning. A student is not simply an object of a learning environment that is
imposed externally but is the subject of the learning environment as well. Using logical
expressions that are modified from Lewontin (1983), this concept can be illustrated in as
follows:

i. dSgtp/dt =_/(Sgrp + T, LEgrp)
ii. dLEgjp/dt = g(Sg,p + T, LEgrp)
iii. d(Sgrp, LEg,p)/dt = /i(Sgrp+ T, LE)
iv. dT/dt = /(Sgrp + T, LEgrp)
v. d(T, Sgrp, LEgn,)/dt ~_/(Sgrp + T, LE)
Whereby: S = student; LE = Learning Environment; T = Teacher; grp = group; and
fg ,h , i,j are functions. Formula's i-iii describe:
i.

groups of students learning over time, which is a function of the student group,
the teacher and the learning environment where the student group learns,

ii.

the learning environment over time as a function of the student group, the
teacher and the learning environment where group of students learn, and

iii.

the student group and the learning environment co-develop over time as a
function of the student group, the teacher and the wider learning
environment.

Part iii of the equation is important, because it explicitly shows that the student-learning
environment system is not a closed system; student groups participate outside of the
treatment. Formula's iv-v integrate the relationship of the teacher in this model where cultural
niche construction applies (Laland, Odling-Smee, Myles, 2010). These logical expressions
relate back to the way that niche construction based curricula are themselves developed by
way of dynamic and integrated interaction.
Themes in the Modular Ecoliteracy Instrument
Several authors in environmental education have posited concerns regarding a modem
transformation in the content in curricula on sustainability that has shifted from earlier
practices that used to focus on nature or conservation study. Characteristic of this shift, the

13
“moral obligation for caring about other species or the entire ecosystems is less often part of
[the] discourse” (Kopnina, 2012, p. 701). For example:
the dominant models of environmental education abstract the ecosphere from
developments in the economy, science, and technology, and are generally uncritical of
the existing society. Hence, they are unable to provide real insight into the causes of
our ecological crisis and to mobilize on behalf of adequate responses. (Kellner &
Kneller, 2010, p. 154)
The theoretical framework for this study, including biophilia (Wilson, 1984)
combined with niche construction theory (Laland, Kendal, & Brown, 2007; Laland, OdlingSmee, & Feldman, 2001; Rendell, Fogarty, & Laland, 2011) suggests an educational
contribution that shifts the emphasis back to nature and conservation as a means to achieve
long-term ecological sustainability. If the problem is the waning of ecoliteracy due to
increasing numbers of human beings living lives that are removed from nature, one potential
solution is to develop, through community-based or school-based education, curricula that
provide direct experiences with nature and catalyze biophilia, or deep human connections to
nature, among young learners. The long term effect of such programs may be compounded
when these young people become aware of themselves as niche constructors (Flynn, Laland,
Kendal, & Kendal, 2013; Rendell, Fogarty, & Laland, 2011; Rowley-Conwy & Layton, 2011;
Shennan, 2011) whose actions have an impact on the natural environment.
Eventually, niche constructing behaviours may lead today’s young people to create
and preserve green spaces that will become their biophilic legacy. Given niche construction
of an urban environment that affords interaction with nature, such as one rich with green
spaces, wetlands, and accessible wilderness, the potential for future generations to develop
affinity with nature may be increased. To apply a concept from biology, affinity with nature
will become heritable when catalyzed and strengthened in a nature-rich urban environment

14
that was constructed as a result of the biophilic values of those who have gone before.
However, it must be acknowledged that biophilic values are not likely to develop to their full
potential in a biologically impoverished urban landscape.
Constructing Ecological Capital
It is important to understand how ecosystem services relate to ecoliteracy generating
functions in order to understand the production or inhibition of ecological capital in any
given learning environment or treatment. Ecosystem services and functions listed by the
Millenium Ecosystem Assessment (Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, 2005) and de Groot
et al. (2002) are included in Figure 1. Ecosystems regulate the biogeochemical cycles of the
planet, which include energy, climate, soil nutrients, water, and other formulations of matter
and energy that in turn support and add to the growth of natural capital in the environmental,
physiological, cognitive, and cultural dimensions of life. All of these dimensions impinge on
the educational system as a whole.
Capital is a stock of materials or information that can be utilized to create goods and
services, whereas natural capital is the portion of the planet’s capital that comes from
biodiversity and is regenerated by ecological processes (Costanza, d'Arge, de Groot, Farber,
Grasso, Hannon et al.,1997). Natural (or ecological) capital is based on more than the
traditional concept of natural resources that are traded as commodities in markets. In contrast
to natural capital, natural resources are defined as marketable commodities, such as minerals,
fuel, lumber, and fish. Natural resources of the marketable form are only a minor component
of the diverse set of ecological resources that have value. Capitalist market systems were
never designed for investment in natural capital (Reese, 2002).

15
Chiesura and de Groot (2003) reviewed some of the more intangible factors or
products of natural capital that cannot be quantifiably valued by conventional economic
means. For example, marketable fish stocks are monitored by the Department of Fisheries
and Oceans Canada, fish stream inventories are regularly conducted in forestry by consulting
firms, whereas wild amphibian stocks and their wetland habitats are not included in these
inventories. The capital of fish and amphibian stocks have overlapping roles that cannot be so
easily segregated in quantified terms to say that one contributes more to the production of
ecosystem services, yet only fish receive consideration in forestry management.
Biophilia and Ecoliteracy
Biophilia describes the connections that human beings subconsciously seek with the
rest of life (Wilson, 1992, p. 350). Biophilia is a complex behavioural trait that is shared
among cultures and motivates our innate attraction to nature. Biophilia theory posits an
innate "emotional affiliation of human beings to other living organisms "(Wilson, 1993, p.
31). Edward O Wilson's (1984) biophilia hypothesis has improved understanding of the
unique cognitive relationship and complexly intertwined behaviours that bond humanity to
nature:
We are human in good part because of the particular way we affiliate with other
organisms. They are the matrix in which the human mind originated and is
permanently rooted, and they offer the challenge and freedom innately sought. To the
extent that each person can feel like a naturalist, the old excitement of the
untrammeled world will be regained. I offer this as a formula of reenchantment to
invigorate poetry and myth: mysterious and little known organisms live within
walking distance of where you sit. Splendor awaits in minute proportions (p. 139).
Conservation Psychology
Human perceptions, values, beliefs, and motives toward nature fall under the purview
of conservation psychology (Saunders, 2003). Perceptions of each human generation are

16
modified by the influence of the local ecological context. Conservation psychology offers an
explanation as to why society has become so concentrated on conserving the big familiar
organisms or charismatic megafauna versus the more unpleasant or smaller creatures, such as
snakes, amphibians, insects, other invertebrates and even fungi. Evolutionarily, this focus is
not surprising because human beings are, ourselves, large omnivorous predators.
“The last 50,000 years were witness to the extinction of approximately two-thirds of
all genera and one-half of all species of mammal weighing >44 kg (about the size of a
sheep)” (Avise, Hubbell, & Ayala, 2008, p. 11455). Although many species are threatened
with imminent extinction, fewer than 1400 of all species have gone extinct in the past 400
years (Stork, 2010). For amphibians, only 9-122 species out of 5,918 extant species have
become extinct since 1980 (McCallum, 2007). However, McCallum (2007) has presented a
more alarming view:
The current extinction rate of amphibians could be 211 times the background
amphibian extinction rate. If current estimates of amphibian species in imminent
danger of extinction are included in these calculations, then the current amphibian
extinction rate may range from 25,039-45,474 times the background extinction rate
for amphibians, (p. 483)
The psychology of contemplating scale in nature may also have bearing on
conservation priorities being swayed by an irrational discounting of natural systems, such as
investing in species now (large/spatially distant) and worrying about populations later
(small/spatially close). The discipline of conservation psychology reveals some convincing
reasons for conservation biologists to shift their primary focus toward local biodiversity from
exotic species. Biodiversity is complex, which makes it difficult to manage conceptually and
communally without falling victim to some of the numerous psychological phenomena that
change our perceptions of conservation value. Examples of psychological phenomena that

17
influence conservation values include the social-psychological phenomena of shifting
baselines (Papworth, Coad, & Milner-Gulland, 2009), environmental myopia (Silvertown,
Tallowin, Stevens, Power, Morgan, Emmett, Hester et al., 2010), prioritizing virtual exotic
species over local biodiversity (Ballouard, Brischoux, & Bonnet, 2011), prioritizing more
colourful animals over inconspicuous animals (Prokop & Fancovicova, 2013), priority for
different types of landscapes (Ulrich, 1993), and gender and cultural differences (Fuller,
Irvine, Devine-Wright, Warren, & Gaston, 2007; Heerwagen & Orians, 1993). I have
considered these psychological phenomena in the design of a curriculum geared specifically
to support youth engagement with local biodiversity. Elements of these psychological
phenomena are also evident in items of the MEI because of their relevance to conservation.
Energy Conservation
Ecosystems include streams of biomass, calories, nutrient cycling, and food webs that
need to be replenished. Items that are most on the radar for sustainability, including recycling
plastics, bioenergy plants, fuel efficient cars, and many other technological substitutes for
ecology, do not address the issue of nature conservation (Rull, 2011). “There remains a
disconnection, though between biodiversity conservation and emerging issues in
sustainability” (Baldwin, Powell & Kellert, 2011, p. 322). There is much evidence showing
that investments in nature improves the economy and the climate as well as human health,
psychology, and attitudes toward biodiversity conservation (Baldwin, Powell & Kellert,
2011; Mitchell & Popham, 2008; Fuller et al., 2007). Ecological investments focus on the
true core of sustainability.
The problem of meeting energy demands for sustainable development is not an
isolated human systems and technological problem. Energy efficiency can only be addressed

18
by meeting the reciprocal needs of ecosystems and human systems combined. Energy
efficiency and the conservation of biodiversity may be seen as separate issues. Items within
my MEI test this assumption. Energy flow through salamander populations, for example, in
the Hubbard Brook Ecosystem, is about 11,000 kcal/ha- yr (=46,000 kJ /ha yr). This is
approximately 0.02 % of the net primary productivity and is approximately 20% of the
energy flow through bird and mammal populations (Burton & Likens, 1975a, p. 1068).
To put the estimated 1.165 kcal/m2 caloric contribution of these southern Appalachian
salamander populations into perspective the annual average human harvest of the
world’s marine fishery was reported as 0.3 kcal/m2. (Davie & Welsh, 2004, p. 407)
Notice that the common unit in energy efficiency research is also measured in joules
in terms of human use per unit of biomass. Clearly the scientific units of energy (kJ = Kilo
Joules) apply equally in terms of power generation for human systems (Voivontas,
Assimacopoulos & Koukios, 2001) and natural systems alike. In the latter, however, these
energy values are understood in terms of ecosystem function (Burton & Likens, 1975ab). An
important difference is that the energy that flows through eco systems powers ecosystem
services, whereas the energy in human systems powers a variety of technological artifacts.
A more comprehensive or holistic understanding of ecology adds greater conceptual
value to the utilities and services that ecosystems provide. Conservation biology is hardly
conceived as or presented as a serious plan for energy savings. This is an economic error and
is considered an alternative ecological concept that my curricula addresses by highlighting
the energy systems contained in nature.
Alternative Ecological Conceptions
It is important for students of ecology to learn to understand, link, and explain
concepts as others do and apply the same rationale and mental skills to solve related
problems. However, novice learners often attempt to rationalize alternative conceptions.

19
Alternative conceptions are explanations and conclusions that are derived from uncritically
held assumptions (Klymkowsky & Garvin-Doxas, 2008). They are nodes in a web of
knowledge that “are usually held by a significant proportion of students and are highly
resistant to instruction” (Anderson, Fisher & Norman, 2002, p. 952). Alternative conceptions
differ from those that stem from the historical development of scientific thought, discovery,
and understanding of factual reality. Thus, educators need to identify alternative conceptions
that may be held by their students and become fully aware of the role this kind of thinking
can play in preventing new learning to take hold.
Concept maps that link ideas into propositions can be used to study patterns of
knowledge held by groups of students. Concept maps are built from a list of terms, for
example: population, decomposers, community, or food-webs. Participants are asked to
consider how the terms relate and to link them into a network of propositions. Each
proposition consists of two terms that are connected by linking words (for example,
communities consist o f populations, or food-webs have decomposers). Once completed,
concept maps, or the network of propositions, can show how many members of a group are
conceptualizing, thinking, retrieving, learning, and communicating about the subject matter
in the same way (Karpicke & Blunt, 2011; Zak & Munson, 2008). Concept maps are a useful
tool for understanding alternative conceptions, which "are not simply loosely organized
fragmentary ideas, but deeply seated personal theories of the world that—until corrected—
constrain students’ abilities to understand modem explanations of natural phenomena"
(Sneider & Ohadi, 1998, p. 266).
The constructivist perspective on pedagogy suggests that true learning involves
cognitive change that restructures rigid personal views. Compelling evidence coupled with an

20
internalized logical understanding of a discipline, such as ecology or economics, translates
into socially replicable concept maps. In other words, as new ideas are introduced new
concepts will independently, cognitively, and empirically connect to related concepts in
similar ways. The shared transition in perspective has been likened to a scientific revolution
or paradigm shift occurring on a personal cognitive level (Sneider & Ohadi, 1998). Teaching
the history of science with a constructivist-historical teaching strategy replicates the process
of discovery for ideas that have provided an overarching explanatory context for disparate
facts through supporting evidence.
The act of reconstructing knowledge through retrieval practice has been found to
induce more learning than elaborative study activities that use concept maps to structure
knowledge into memory. Elaborative study is the common practice as students are taught to
retrieve concepts that have been encoded into memory through the linkages of an organized
knowledge structure. “Far less attention has been paid to the potential importance of retrieval
to the process of learning...Retrieval is not merely a readout of the knowledge stored in one’s
mind; the act of reconstructing knowledge itself enhances learning” (Karpicke & Blunt,
2011, p. 774). Likewise, learning in an ecoliteracy based teaching philosophy is not as
strongly directed in the traditional manner of concept mapping, such as memorizing foodweb linkages as concept maps, but encourages the practice of retrieval by having students
recall information and cognitively restructure their direct experiences in nature.
Educators have identified and compiled a number of ‘‘alternative ecological
conceptions” (Klymkowsky & Garvin-Doxas, 2008) or “naive conceptions ” (Sneider &
Ohadi, 1998). They tend to be common answers given by students in response to open ended
questions (Stamp et al., 2006; Klymkowsky & Garvin-Doxas, 2008). A function of many of

21
the environmental psychometric instruments in use has been to identify and then "correct"
alternative concepts. However, this method of repairing knowledge by reference to
alternative conceptions is counterintuitive to the process of inquiry and learning. Inquiry into
alternative conceptions may be unreasonably blocked by intrinsic social and ecological
prejudice. The first rule of reason is: “Do not block the way of inquiry” (Peirce, 1931 /1994,
para 135). The naming of concepts as “alternative concepts” or “misconceptions” by
educators (for example, Klymkowsky & Garvin-Doxas, 2009) has the negative consequence
of downplaying the value of alternatives that are both necessary and valuable in the process
of discovery. The enterprise of science, as a model for social viability, builds theory out of
alternative conceptions.
Thus, an idea which may be roughly compared to a composite photographsurges up
into vividness, and this composite idea may be called a general idea. It is not properly
a conception; because a conception is not an idea at all, but a habit. But the repeated
occurrence of a general idea and the experience of its utility, results in the formation
or strengthening of that habit which is the conception (Peirce, 1898/1994, para 498).
In the preceding quote by Peirce (1898/1994), an instinctual idea (the habit)
transforms into the conception. Alternative conceptions push the boundaries of knowledge
into experimental phases of rejection, retention, or modification as new evidence comes to
light. Rather than using an inexact reference to what Francis Bacon called “the idols of the
human mind” (Bacon, 1990, p. 49), a more appropriate educational reference would be to
concepts without reason or unreasoned conceptions. Francis Bacon (1990) referred to these
preoccupations of the mind as idols of the tribe, cave, marketplace, and theater. "I would
argue that their [the idols] intrusive inevitability fractures all dichotomous models invoked to
separate science from other creative human activities" (Gould, 2000, para. 12). Educational
instruments used to locate unreasoned conceptualizations (e.g., Klymkowsky & Garvin-

22
Doxas, 2009) may help to identify impediments to reasoned inquiry and to research teaching
methods as they relate to change in perception and the thought process. Rather than trying to
correct for errors of conception, the curricular approach adopted in my thesis brought
students into environments where they could experience directly the facts of nature.
Items within the MEI give students a subjective outlet to express their feelings
qualitatively by means of an abstract scaling (disagree strongly to agree strongly). If the
scaling corresponds to a common understanding, conception, or construct of what constitutes
a favorable ecoliterate conception or a closer connection to nature, then the scaling will
correspond to the expected polarity across modules. However, some items or constructs may
by multidimensional and invoke different ways of conceptualizing the issues under
consideration.
Complexity and Emergence
When challenged to explain complex behaviour, students will often respond with
alternative rational explanations. Alternative explanations that are communicated will often
preclude randomness from the process, even though students clearly understand and can
explain randomness as it applies in an isolated system, such as diffusion of water across
membranes (Klymkowsky & Garvin-Doxas, 2008). Ecosystems are complex systems that
require an understanding of pattern and scale stemming from random based agents, such as
interacting molecules of water or genes on a molecular level to emergent patterns of
complexity at higher levels, such as communities (Levin, 1999, 2005).
Complexity and emergence are key concepts in the life sciences. The concept of
emergence is linked to Aristotle's precept that the whole is more than the sum of its parts
(Molnar, Marvier, & Kareiva, 2004). A complexity of interactions leads to emergence.

23
Forecasting of complex systems cannot be accomplished by reduction to the minute parts;
they have to be studied over larger scales by testing patterned relations in a comparative
context.
Teaching about complexity and its application toward understanding sustainability in
the life sciences is a challenge. Learning and teaching about complex social-ecological issues
may be inhibited by ignorance. Ignorance motivates a chain of reliance and trust in the statusquo of governance and further avoidance of information about the nature of complexity
issues (Shepherd & Kay, 2012).
Remaining sections in this literature review consider the principles of complexity in
context of other theories and their effectual relations in social-ecological systems. An
unreasoned ecological conception that I sought to address in the design and delivery of the
curricula for Junior Amphibian Ecologists League was the preclusion of random agents and
their role in the patterned organization of complex systems. Randomness can lead to
emergent complexity that is expressed from but not predicted by the interaction of randomly
interacting parts (Knapp & D'Avanzo, 2010; Robert, Hall, & Olson, 2001). I believe this
conception can be addressed by teaching about various scales of complexity through direct
engagement in nature study using local examples of biodiversity.
History of Ecoliteracy Education
The term environmental literacy first appeared in 1968, ecological literacy appeared
in 1986, and then ecoliteracy was coined in 1997. Each of these terms has been adopted in
various ways with different interpretations and meanings (McBride, Brewer, Berkowitz &
Borrie, 2013). The following section of my literature review provides a deeper historical
account of an ecoliteracy or environmental pedagogy prior to the coining of the phrase,

24
because some of the earlier literature provides important insight into the pedagogical theory
developed in my thesis.
First Nations Considerations
The First Nations peoples of British Columbia have extensive and deep historical ties
to the land because they gathered foods and other materials directly. Turner, Ignace, and
Ignace (2000) noted that roots of plants were dug, harvested, and planted from areas that
were left fallow for three or four years. This activity of cultivating the land required a
foundation of knowledge that was learned through generations of cultural transmission by
means of oral communication and social interaction (Turner, Ignace, & Ignace, 2000).
Current studies of First Nation's Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) (Turner,
Ignace, & Ignace, 2000) inform us that much information has been lost but there remains
much that can be learned about sustainability by engaging directly in local nature. TEK has
an important role in natural study education and the future development of conservation
biology around the globe (Kimmerer, 2002).
Local First Nations. First Nations peoples and Elders in Prince George and
surroundings areas have cultural ties to local amphibians. However, TEK with respect to
amphibians is not very well known or understood by outsiders. Some of the relations to
amphibians are discussed here in the context of the frog clans among the First Peoples of BC.
In an educational context, however, there are concerns about the conservation of cultural
rights. Turner, Ignace, and Ignace (2000) provided a set of guidelines that stress the
importance of acknowledging the people who are consulted for ecological knowledge
resources. In Prince George, for example, I have held informal discussions with local First
Nations Carrier (Dakelh) Elders, peoples, and chiefs about their TEK with respect to

25
amphibians. I have been hesitant to write about all that I have learned but, with permission,
one account about the Dakelh views about long-toed salamanders can be shared.
Salamanders in a Dakelhe narrative. Grace Rossetti, a Nak’azdli or Carrier/Dakelh
Elder, was kind enough to meet and discuss her traditional knowledge of salamanders.
Altrhough Rossetti was bom in Nak’azdli territory, she has lived in Prince George and so
prefers to be identified by name rather than associated with a specific First Nation.
Salamanders are not an animal that Dakelhe people will talk openly about. Before Rossetti
could speak to me about the salamanders she had to voice some words in private that were
taught to her by her mother. If a salamander was found by a child in the woods it had to be
returned immediately and the right words had to be spoken for the child’s protection. The
understanding is that salamanders can make you sick, cause death, and steal your soul. They
are an animal that is not to be touched. This narrative is similar to the information supplied
by Carl (1966) that long-toed salamanders are portend of death, places to avoid, or bad
omens among First Nations peoples of BC.
During the interview I explained that NAMOS BC was interested in ethical research
from a First Nations perspective and asked about collecting voucher specimens for study.
Rossetti said if a salamander was killed that a tiny piece of the salamander’s heart, liver and
other organs had to be buried near its place of capture. Tobacco would have to be lit at the
site as we voiced words of respect and thanks to the land and the salamander.
Multiple connections can be made between this First Nations narrative and
conservation, ecology, and educational ethics. The traditional activities of the First Peoples
collecting roots would mix soil habitats (Turner, Ignace, & Ignace, 2000) where salamanders
and toads would have undoubtedly been commonly encountered as debris was turned and

26
children explored nearby. Hence, these harvesting activities of the First Nation's peoples
would have been an active agent in the ecological niche of amphibians. Common among
Aboriginal peoples is a conservation ethic that expresses a deep respect for nature, as
expressed in current documents: "We respect and love our Land and know that, as our
Mother, it has provided for us; and according to our Teachings we will stand as one to respect
and protect our Land and all life on it" (Carrier Sekani Tribal Council, 2007, p. 4).
Traditional ecological knowledge. There are concerns about intellectual property
rights that must be considered when communicating about First Nations traditional
ecological knowledge (TEK). Including local TEK in this thesis or in my teaching requires
attention to guidelines and acknowledgment. Turner and Cocksedge (2001) provided
guidelines for sustainable harvesting of non-timber forest products with respect to First
Nations that included cultural and social factors applicable to traditional knowledge of
salamanders that has been shared. However, the cultural taboo related to salamanders makes
this a complex area for ethical decision making. For example, conflict of interest could occur
if a local Dakelh child were to join the Junior Amphibian Ecology Program. Respectful
inquiry on such issues is, for me, an ongoing pursuit in the development of educational
curricula.
Cultural edges. Ecological edges was the term used by Turner, Davidson-Hunt, and
O'Flaherty (2003) to describe ecological transition zones where different assortments of
biodiversity come together. A dynamic interrelation at the edge of these ecological transition
zones affects resilience and functional trait diversity and it threads emergent complexity into
the planet’s environment. These authors have connected ecological edges to cultural edges as
follows:

27
More than simply a metaphor, we would like to propose that, like ecological edges,
cultural knowledge systems can intergrade producing a richness of knowledge and
practices that enhances the resilience of local societies. Cultural edges, rather than
being border zones between discrete social entities, are zones of social interaction,
cross-fertilization, and synergy wherein people not only exchange material goods but
also learn from one another. (Turner, Davidson-Hunt, & O'Flaherty, 2003, p. 440)
The survey methods of the MEI were not specifically designed for inference on
cultural diversity among the student groups. However, the cultural narrative from local First
Nations presents an ecological and historical context that impinges on the development of
local nature study curricula. I have encountered a cultural edge in the relations between First
Nations and animal care and the effect on researching biophilia or teaching ecoliteracy.
Gaining an improved understanding of this cultural edge may assist in the further
development of an ecological ethics (Minteer & Collins, 2005) supporting ecoliteracy
curricula.
The Dakelh Chuntah Educational Society creates opportunities to teach children
about First Nations values and ecological sciences upon recognizing a common thread in
these two philosophies - an eco-cultural edge. Through NAMOS BC, I collaborated with the
Dakelh Chuntah Educational Society and, along with local Elders, I taught an amphibian
module. The activity occurred in Fort St. James in October, 2008, with approximately 30
children (see Figure 2). A traditional ceremonial smudge for good-hunting was performed by
an Elder before I taught my module on amphibian ecology. I took the children on a “hunt” for
amphibians. We caught frogs, toads, salamanders, and snakes. Each time a creature was
caught we gathered and talked about their ecological and cultural relations to the land.

28

Figure 2. Dakelh Chuntah Educational Society collaboration, October, 2008.
During field trips that I have organized and taught since 2004, children inevitably
capture creatures along trails. They find joy in handling them as they gently touch their skin.
Animal ethics committees and government scientists (Dr. Pumima Govindarajulu - BC
herpetologist - personal communication) are concerned about children touching wild caught
amphibians. This parallels the First Nations taboo of handling salamanders. The cultural root
of this response to amphibians has independent or parallel origins, yet the outcome is similar.
The relative degree of salamander encounters and relations is encouraged to remain low.
The ethics of handling creatures is a common problem in biophilia research and
education. A biophilia-based psychological study by Abell (2012), for example, examined
social identity theory in relation to human-animal relationships. The study searched for
motivations that would lead to voluntary assistance in the conservation of endangered animal
species. “However, the benefits of facilitating direct contact experiences to encourage
empathy, concern and helping behaviour need to be weighed against the potential cost to the
welfare of the animal” (Abell, 2012, p. 12).

29
Early History of Nature Study
Natural history, science, and philosophy have been partnered in formal educational
curricula going back to the thirteenth century but dwindled by the sixteenth century
(Thorndike, 1940). Prominent naturalists from the 19th century, including Johann Pestalozzi,
Charles Darwin, Louis Agasiz, and Thomas Huxley (Krupa, 2000) inspired an educational
philosophy of nature-study that is captured in Agasiz's dictum to "study nature, not books"
(Weaver, 1947, p. 162). Animals, plants, agriculture and educational programs geared toward
the outdoor experience held prominent roles in this early period of nature-based educational
studies (Fairbanks, Hodge, Macbride, Stevens, & Bigelow, 1905). In the early 20th century
there was an initiative by naturalists and educators to design nature study programs
(Kohlstedt, 2005).
A contemporary, Fairbanks (1905), explained:
Nature-study has developed in our schools as a result of impulses from several
different directions. On the one hand, we can trace its beginnings through object
teaching to Pestalozzi and other educational leaders of the still more distant past, all
voicing the feeling that the child's education should deal more with things and less
with books. From another side has come the growing influence of science in the
university and high school also emphasizing the importance of contact with nature.
(p. 52)
Nature study. Educational research on outdoor education, nature study, natural
sciences, and direct contact with nature gained momentum and attention through the
publication of Nature-Study Review in 1905 (Kohlstedt, 2005). The stated mission of the
journal "devoted primarily to all scientific studies of nature in elementary schools" was
printed prominently on the cover of most issues. The journal was launched with much
discussion on what defines nature study, how it is distinguished from science, and its
demonstrated importance for children’s intellectual development. The issue of importance

30
needed to be answered because there was concern about devoting less attention to other
subjects while also finding the time needed to add nature-study to an already stressed
workload for teachers and students.
To summarize very briefly, the materials of nature-study are incidental, its intellectual
purpose is the supreme thing. If it becomes an efficient means of securing a
symmetrical intellectual development, there must exist a definite conception of its
functions and limitations. The amount of work presented must be much reduced and
the method of presentation carefully adapted to the child's mental development.
Direct observation of nature must take the place of much time now taken by the
teacher, and the results of these observations must replace much that is now given in
readings from the multitudinous so-called 'nature-books’. (Coulter, 1905, p. 51)
Trafton (1913) sent out a questionnaire to nearly 1000 student that asked simple
questions, such as: "1) Make a list of all birds, insects and other animals that you have seen
living in Passaic. (Do not name animals that you may have seen in a menagerie) [and] 2)
Describe briefly the one most noticeable thing about each" (p. 152). Trafiton's (1913)
assessment instrument was designed to study general knowledge about plants, animals, their
related likes and dislikes, and conceptions about animal intelligence. Trafton (1913)
determined that the children could name very few wild species, had little understanding about
animal intelligence, and expressed an irrational dislike for snakes. Moreover, it was
determined that the amount of interest in animals increased as children knew more about
their habits. Trafton (1913) outlined his specific reason or philosophy for teaching naturestudy:
The development of the child and the demands of our civilization necessarily require
the child to spend a large amount of his time in preparing to become a part of that
civilization, but just as truly do they demand that these ties which bind the child to
Mother Nature shall not be entirely broken, but that these chords from Nature's heart
shall be fastened more securely to the child's life in order that through them may be
absorbed the inspiration that Nature can furnish. How to teach Nature so that these
ends may best be accomplished is the problem that teachers are now solving, (p. 150)

31
Propaganda in the schools. The outcome of nature-study for the development of a
child's civic relations in the domain of conservation was a common theme in nature study
(for example, Downing, 1912; Shufeldt, 1922) and this extends into the modem literature (for
example, Barnett, Lord, Strauss, Rosea, Landford, Chavez, & Deni, 2006; Cachelin, Paisley,
& Blancard, 2009). This approach to encourage civic duty was also evident in the United
States School Garden Army that was initiated in 1917 after World War I. The School Garden
Army enlisted trained experts to teach on the modem science of agriculture and encouraged
production in home gardening as a first principle of education with the goal of leading youth
into the life of the state (Hayden-Smith, 2007).
Remmers (1938) lectured students with the intent "to change their attitudes in a given
direction" (p. 354). He felt it was the role of schools to inculcate educators with the power of
educational propaganda to change attitudes among students that would lead to socially
desirable outcomes. Item (1) “Allowing the government to tell the farmer how to farm” and
(4) “Taxing all the people to plant new forests” were considered favourable outcomes,
whereas and items (2) “Allowing each farmer to farm as he pleases”; (3) “Clean farming”;
and (5) “Draining swamps” were less favourable. The study design lacked a control group
but there was a statistically significant change in favour of the desired outcome in attitude
scores following instruction. The urban group looked more favourably than the rural group
on item 1 after instruction, item 2 before and after instruction, and item 4 before and after
instruction. Both groups, however, showed the same general trend in attitude scores after
instruction. The first post-test assessment showed a dramatic shift in attitude, although
subsequent assessments in following months did not maintain the same degree of attitude
shift. The method created a baseline shift in attitude scores at the end of the study.

32
Lessons from the early history of nature study. There is a precautionary tale in a
review of the Williamson and Remmers (1940) historical study. Government intervention and
taxation were considered to be measures that would assist in the conservation of soils,
forests, and related problems. These researchers demonstrated the feasibility of changing
attitudes toward the intended outcomes of the program. Their intended outcomes also
resonate in Hardin's (1968) landmark paper on tragedy o f the commons. Both suggest that
government intervention is needed to stem the loss, through over-consumption, of communal
resources. However, evidence has shown that community harvesters of a local resource can
and do self-organize to manage their common pool resources sustainably (Ostrom, 2009;
Persha, Agrawal, & Chhatre, 2011; Wilson, O’Brien, & Sesma, 2009). Local participation in
rulemaking without external and well-crafted macro-level government intervention creates
environments that are richer in biodiversity while benefiting the local economy.
Hence, government intervention from afar to manage local natural resources is not
always going to be the desired outcome. Conceptions of how to conserve nature have
changed. For example, Rands, Adams, Bennun, Butchart, Clements, Coomes, Entwistle et
al.'s (2010) modem view of conservation is at odds with Remmers (1938) conceptions of
favorable outcomes:
To address the continued global loss of biodiversity, we propose the pursuit of three
interconnecting priorities: (i) to manage biodiversity as a public good, (ii) to integrate
biodiversity into public and private decision-making, and (iii) to create enabling
conditions for policy implementation, (p. 1300)
Similar concerns have been raised with respect to the dominant social paradigm and
how it promotes mainstream notions of environmental sustainability that are ecologically
defunct (Manoli, Johnson, & Dunlap, 2007; Rees, 2009). Modem approaches to conservation
have not progressed to a better outcome because resources remain in steady decline and there

33
is little sign of a predictable transition to come. There is a historical lesson on the danger of
teaching sets of goal orientated and conscious behavioural responses through rhetoric
describing them as environmentally or planet friendly. The kinds of environmental
behaviours advocated often result in adverse outcomes. From an ecological point of view,
there is sound reason to be highly skeptical of this approach.
Uncertain propaganda. A goal-orientated, environmentally friendly style of
education is also inconsistent with the concept of uncertain theory in scientific philosophy.
Teaching students to adopt some kind of “good” environmental behaviour, such as
encouraging them to help or care for endangered species (for example, Abel, 2012), is a
theory of conservation that is arguably more perilous in the larger scales of complexity where
outcomes are highly unpredictable. Pro-environmental teaching aids reinforce the conception
that the behaviour being taught is a good thing; however, upon historical reflection many
errors have been revealed. Enabling critical thinking skills through ample supply of
educational resources (for example, ecosystem services) is more philosophically consistent
with scientific inquiry as an enabler and motivator of behaviour that can lead to a better
understanding of local ecological economics and the means to deal with complex matters.
Recycling exemplifies a modem example to which this lesson of environmental or
conservation-orientated propaganda applies. The term recycling applies to ecosystems and to
the environmental notion of recycling technological artifacts, although the dynamic process
is not the same. Many educational programs are promoting pro-environmental propaganda to
change attitudes that will lead to a behaviour outcome in favour of recycling (for example,
Kollmuss & Agyeman, 2002). During outdoor educational excursions I stress to students that

34
there are fundamental differences between recycling in nature and recycling in human
systems.
Environmental Education and Research Post 1974
Behaviour has been of particular importance to the environmental educator.
Accumulation of knowledge or changes in attitude, however, do not necessarily translate into
strong behavioural change (Leeming, Dwyer, Porter, & Cobem, 1993). For example,
Kollmuss and Agyeman (2002) concluded that "research showed that in most cases, increases
in knowledge and awareness did not lead to pro-environmental behavior" (p. 242). Varied
educational factors, such as group size, duration of the program, teachers, teaching location,
and other environmental conditions can alter the outcomes. None-the-less, many studies have
identified significant changes through nature-based education (Cachelin, Paisley, &
Blanchard, 2009; Stem, Powell, & Ardoin, 2008).
Most environmental educators believe that the best ecological outcomes are nurtured
through direct outdoor experience (Cachelin, Paisley, & Blanchard, 2009; Stem et al., 2008).
There is a different pedagogical emphasis in nature-study outcomes that is more than
knowing the material; it is also about feeling the temperature, rain, or sunshine and being
sensorialy inundated by the complex nature of the biosphere. There was a transition in the
1970s, however, moving away from nature study education to focus more on the
technological side of environmental concerns.
Ecological instruments. Leeming et al. (1993) provided a review of environmental
education research that was published after 1974. The review focuses on studies that sought
change in environmental knowledge, attitudes, or behaviours and provides a methodological
critique of classroom versus out-of-class interventions. Additional instruments have been

35
developed, modified and tested since then (Dunlap & Van Lier ,1978,1984; Manoli, Johnson,
& Dunlap, 2007; Hagenbuch, Bynum, Sterling, Bower, Cigliano, Abraham et al., 2009;
Smith-Sebasto & Cavern, 2006; Farmer, Knapp, & Benton, 2007; Cachelin et al., 2009).
Examination of instruments in use by environmental educators reveals common goals
and themes. There is a common goal to increase environmental awareness using quantitative
response instruments. These instruments are used to assess the impact of various programs on
attitudes toward the environment. These researchers have used qualitative observation to
examine affective reactions to the program interventions. These goals differ from the goals of
this thesis, however, which is not based on environmental awareness or about measuring
attitude changes toward the environment. This thesis is directed at the biophilia hypothesis as
I try to gain a better understanding of this complex behavior in relation to different kinds of
ecological experience.
Biophilia is a complex behavior where forecasting and intentional factors needs to be
integrated into the theory beyond a simple genetic correlate of innateness. The rules of
biophilia, however, go beyond genetic instinct as gene-culture coevolution is also identified
as an important part of the theory (e.g., Mitchell & Mueller, 2011). Evolutionary
psychologist Mark Baldwin (1886) was the first to recognize that the intentional process is a
distinct cultural factor in evolution. Niche construction also brings the context of ecological
heritability into the mix, where modifications to the environment, artifacts, and homes, feed a
longer-term legacy of influence back into the degree of selective pressure that modules
fitness in the evolutionary process (Odling-Smee & Turner, 2011). This feedback loop has
important implications for testing the innateness components of the biophilia hypothesis in
looking at the ways that learners modify their environments, what role forecasting has in the

36
process, how this influences behaviour, and if the response is heritable on both genetic and
ecological levels. Response instruments or observations on behaviour will not be able to
provide a critical test of these more complex aspects to the biophilia hypothesis and may only
provide supporting evidence.
Biophilia behavior may indirectly be measured, however, by outcomes in an attitude
response instrument in the way that other studies have used attitude responses to study
environmental behavior. However, this is unlikely to serve as a critical test of the biophilia
hypothesis. Although attitude responses to an instrument represent one kind of behaviour, an
attitude response instrument may only provide supporting evidence behind some of the
cognitive aspects that are involved in the behaviour of interest.
Other types of evidence can be collected to determine if a behavioural response
occurs. For example, Ruiz-Gallardo, Verde & Valdes (2013) studied garden-based learning,
which uses a garden as a teaching tool. Ruiz-Gallardo, Verde & Valdes (2013) gathered data
on academic success, number of disruptive behavior episodes, and notes on general
qualitative change in the student’s behaviour. They identified an increase in academic
performance, less disruptive behaviour, and other benefits to the program.
Educational Philosophy of this Thesis
Student perceptions about urban ecology and the nature of their learning
environments is a critical component of this study. The traditional focus of ecologists on
pristine and wild nature requires a shift in emphasis onto urban ecology for many reasons
(Grimm, Faeth, Golubiewski, Redman, Wu, Bai, & Briggs, 2008; Mitchell & Brown, 2008)
but perhaps most important are the implications for conservation psychology. The

37
impoverished remnants of nature in urban environments are all that remains in the front lines
of ecoliteracy experience.
Urban education. Urban, peri-urban, rural, natural, disturbed, domesticated, and
novel are different kinds of labels that grade and complicate the taxonomy and nomenclature
of human settlement. “At one extreme are anthropogenic soils, where the main soil forming
factor is human influence; at the other extreme are natural soils that have not been used by
humans but have nevertheless received inputs of contaminated dust or precipitation”
(Rossiter, 2007, p. 1). Pre-industrial indigenous modifications to the landscape versus
modem transformation adds an important historical dimension to the taxonomy of human
settlements (Jackson & Hobbs, 2009). Some researchers use information on housing density
to classify suburban, exurban, and urban sprawl (Mitchell & Brown, & Bartholomew, 2008),
which does not satisfactorily define the entire cross section of urban ecology (Grimm et al.,
2008).
In relation to education, however, the history and continued practice of urban design
largely lacks the means to preserve or invest in the ecological infrastructure of school yards.
Ecological infrastructure is needed to generate ecosystem services that will yield long-term
dividends in educational outcomes. From a bioengineering perspective, however, there is
ample evidence of urban design flaws:
Designed or altered streams, rivers, flood channels, canals and other hydrosystems
serving urban areas neither replicate the aquatic ecosystems they replace nor preserve
the ecosystem services lost (except for those, like flood conveyance or water delivery,
for which they are designed). (Grimm et al., 2008, p. 758)
Conservation biologists require social, political and economic means to invest in local
populations linking biodiversity loss to local urban processes (Puppim de Oliveira, Balaban,
Doll, Moreno-Penaranda, Gasparatos, Iossifova, & Suwa, 2011). Organisms in populations

38
are the more sensitive bio-indicator of natural capital (Ceballos & Ehrlich, 2002), because
they underpin the mass provision of ecosystem services (Gaston, 2010), many of which are
cultural in nature (Chiesura & de Groot, 2003). Populations and the organisms in them are
the familiar part of our cultural experience, such as those in the local urban park, wetland or
forest that was likely cleared some point in recent memory (Miller, 2005). The urban
environment has the greater demographic share of nature experience.
Niche constructing pedagogy revisited. The detritus of technology creates a
heritable legacy of technological cycles, or technosols, that are produced in construction as
synthetic and mined materials are managed and distributed. The World Reference Base fo r
Soil Resources, for example, added technosols as a new reference soil group in the taxonomic
scheme. Technosols are defined as urban soils that are dominated by human technical
activity, including the presence of artifacts, impermeable liners and technic hard rocks such
as pavement (Rossiter, 2007). Sterilization by pavement, combustion of fuels, and decay of
technology pollutes the living environment with admixtures of materials inadvertently and
consciouslay, for example, the mercury cycle or other plastic/nano 'recyclables'. This
technological infection neuters the biological metabolism of ecosystems that otherwise fuel
the capital production of ecology and our general well-being through ecological services.
While on nature hikes unrelated to my teaching I have observed children tossing toads
and bashing them with sticks as they play freely and unattended. In this contemporary world
that is depleted in its urban capital of biodiversity, it is a minor sacrifice, if it is one at all, to
let children connect to vanishing pieces of this planet. Active ecoliterate pedagogy may equip
children with a sense of compassion and morality when active with free play without adult
supervision. These types of connections can be made the ecological niche beyond the urban

39
periphery, where children learn about the value of nature directly, as an important part of
human development toward an ecologically sustainable future. I envision natural spaces in
urban areas, such as schoolyards, that can both support and provide a healthy demographic of
niche construction activities and opportunities to nurture children’s joy and ecoliteracy
education.
Without direct relations to amphibian ecosystems, children will be inhibited in their
ability to niche construct an understanding of our ecological dysfunctions. It is challenging to
fully recognize and contend with the diversity of urban and cultural edges that create barriers
in the educational development of a behavioural ethos toward ecoliteracy, the conservation of
amphibians, and biodiversity in general. I often tell children to dirty their hands in the soil
before handling; they bioturbate the soils. In contrast, latex, nitrile or vinyl gloves, used
routinely by herpetologists and field biologists in general, are known to be ecotoxicologically lethal to amphibians (Cashins, Alford, & Skerratt, 2008). From an ecoliteracy
perspective, using toxic gloves for the care and handling of amphibians is irrational. Not only
are they toxic but they obstruct a valuable bond that can otherwise be obtained through direct
skin to skin contact.
We cannot win this battle to save species and environments without forging an
emotional bond between ourselves and nature as well - for we will not fight to save
what we do not love (but only appreciate in some abstract sense). (Gould, 1991, p.
14)
Children identify animals among their list of things that they like most (Randier, Ilg,
& Kem, 2005). Invariably, I have observed that children are keenly interested when a
salamander, frog, or any kind of wonder is discovered wild on the land. They crowd in
quickly, chatter rises, and they ask if they can hold or touch it. When they touch or hold a
salamander, joy is invariably expressed. A minority of children will opt to just look,

40
sometimes expressing fright, disgust, or repulsion. Children hold the salamander gently, they
communicate handling ethics amongst their peers, and they anthropomorphize the
salamanders by talking to them directly.
Experiential treatment. Curricula developed, implemented, and tested in this thesis
were designed to span a metabolic rift or ecological gradient from a technological niche to a
niche populated by amphibians. I drew on the example of Aristotle teaching while strolling
around a garden to develop a peripatetic approach to instruction:
Aristotle returned to Athens, together with Theophrastus, and founded the
Lyceum...Theophrastus became the second director of the Lyceum and the Peripatetic
School (the name of the school was derived by the habit of lecturing while strolling
around the gardens of the Lyceum)...The function of this institution was to train the
leaders, officials and experts of the new era (Thanos, 1994, p. 4).
However, in the design of this study, I used a gradient approach to investigate the niche
constructing activities of students in: (a) an indoor group vicariously engaged in the learning
activities under the direct influence of human engineered environments and tools, and (b)
outdoor groups attempting to further span the transect from urban parklands to rural forests.
Peripatetic curricular design encourages students to engage indirectly (indoor) or
directly (outdoor) in the kinds of ecological behaviour, such as bioturbation of soils while
hunting for salamanders, that otherwise engenders functional diversity and a dynamic
resilience in places at the margins of urban technology. The peripatetic gradient in the study
design reaches into environments of the planet’s ecosystems that become more speciose, such
as salamanders bioturbating soils while hunting for bugs. My sampling gradient stretches
from the urban niche into parkland places where organisms niche construct away from the
webs of technology.

The design of the study was intended to compare direct, indirect, and vicarious modes
of teaching about amphibian ecology and conservation. Direct experience included physical
contact and immersion into a natural setting where biodiversity could be encountered and
sensed, such as students visiting amphibian habitats on a field trip. Indirect experience
involved controlled and restricted contact with biodiversity and components of biodiversity
were removed from their natural habitat, such as plants and animals in a terrarium in a
classroom or museum. Indirect experience also included a field trip to an urban park
environment lacking the indigenous species. Vicarious or symbolic experience, the main
forum of public education, requires no physical contact with the natural world; the
experience is synthetically contrived (Kellert, 2002). A vicarious nature experience includes
watching nature programs on television, reading about nature in books, or learning about
amphibian conservation science using internet resources.
Perception from experience. Students in my study were asked to reflect on the
historical presence of biodiversity in each environment they visited during field trips or via
GoogleEarth. Children emphasized differences in importance between biodiversity that they
could illustrate in comparison to the actual local abundance or biomass of local species
(Snaddon, Turner, Foster, 2008). Thus, vicarious experience may cause cognitive distortion
in perceptions about the status of nature. Magazines and movies often give the most scenic,
spectacular and impressive views of the Earth, which makes the biomass of species seem
more abundant than it really is. Perceptions of biodiversity in novel urban environments may
seem mundane, dull, tame, domesticated and of less value. However, nature videos and
magazine articles on biodiversity may induce the alternative ecological conception that a

42
greater number of pristine environments, intact ecosystems, and species remain on the planet
relative to the few that actually remain (Hanski, 2005).
Why amphibians? Scientific assessments that measure the changing state of nature
with respect to the extinction crisis measure more rapid declines in amphibians compared to
any other taxonomic group (Collins & Crump, 2009; Wake & Vredenbuig, 2008). This is of
great concern to conservation-oriented scientists (Ehlrich & Pringle, 2008), myself included,
because amphibian losses and ecosystem services are intricately and tightly linked.
Amphibians not only fill a dynamic role that stabilizes the taxonomic composition of foodwebs but their eggs also deliver significant annual contributions of energy and nutrient flux
through aquatic sites to upland forests (Colon-Gaud, Whiles, Kilham, Lips, Pringle,
Connelly, & Peterson, 2009; Regester & Whiles, 2006).
Amphibians are important indicators for ecosystem integrity because they are often
keystone predators with biomass levels that exceed that of most other vertebrates in forest
soil ecosystems (Davie & Welsh, 2004). They are energetically efficient and function as
ecological conveyor belts, moving energy and nutrients through food webs. Amphibians are
also relevant to the issue of climate change because they are global regulators of large
supplies of carbon that are stored and cycled through the wetlands and forest soils where they
live (Wyman, 1998). Some have even postulated that the declines of amphibians are enough
to explain contemporary patterns in climate change (Davie & Welsh, 2004). Amphibians are
energetically efficient animals that can convert 50-60% of energy from their food into new
tissue, which is very high compared to the 2% efficiency in most birds and mammals (Collins
& Crump, 2008).

43
Losing one amphibian species is equivalent to losing two ecological species and this
is due to their complex life cycles metamorphosing from aquatic to terrestrial environments
(Whiles, Lips, Pringle, Kilham, Bixby, Brenes, et al., 2006). Global amphibian loss also
means that there will be significant long-term changes in ecological trophic structures, foodwebs, and levels of primary production across the planet (for example, Colon-Gaud, Whiles,
Kilham et al., 2009). The list of regulating ecosystem services that are directly linked to and
subject to disturbance as amphibians decline, include: organic matter dynamics (nutrient
regulation), predators-prey dynamics (biological control, pest regulation, disease buffer),
nutrient and energy transfers among habitats, carbon stocks and nutrient cycles (air
quality/climate regulation), and economics (food, medicine, eco-tourism).
Experience of amphibians and the local economy. The psychological link between
amphibians and profit is a difficult idea for the average person. However, the metapopulation
biology and local scale migration networks of amphibian populations (Gill, 1978) makes
them a particularly suitable ecological guild for spatially addressing social-ecological
connectivity in urban land development plans (for example, see Termorshuizen, Opdam, &
van den Brink, 2007). What would an urban environment look like if it had amphibians in its
center connected to populations on the periphery? How could such a human-nature niche be
constructed? Why would we want to construct such a thing? Amphibians are an ideal subject
group for making this seemingly odd connection between amphibians and profit, because the
status-quo or common answer is that there is no economic link between the two. This is an
alternative ecological conception and addressing it can help to bridge missing conceptual
links between the economy and ecosystems in general. It is simpler to understand economic
arguments for conserving fish, for example, because this food item can readily be bought at

44
the super market; but even with a high monetary valued price, global fish stocks are facing
near imminent extinction (Jackson, 2008).
Thinking about the odd links between amphibians and the economy requires new
perceptions and values that have not been regularly exercised by a large segment of the
population. In other parts of the world, the market value for amphibians for material goods
including frog legs, lab specimens, skins used for making wallets. There are also cases of
bioprospecting (for example, searching for unique compounds in amphibian skin) and ecotourism is a multi-million dollar industry, although much underground trade in amphibians
goes unreported (Collins & Crump, 2008). In British Columbia, however, amphibians are not
harvested as an apparent market resource. In contrast, they are an exploited byproduct of
forestry. Forestry operations kill amphibians (Waldick, 1997), yet neither provincial nor
federal governments have departments or biologists dedicated to monitoring or implementing
sustainable management plans for amphibian stocks. Hence, local society largely assumes
that amphibians have little value and for the most part, are indifferent to the services they
offer. As an educator, I see this attitude as an alternative ecological concept that may be
changed with biophilic community education programs.
Empirical biophilia. As students flip over decomposing logs to observe salamander
habitats, I point out the evidence that tells an ecological story about the history of complex
processes operating in nature. Students learn about the diets of bugs, worms, mollusks, fungi,
bacteria, spiders, frogs, and salamanders and how these organisms interact, break down the
materials, respire, and migrate to supply nutrients to plants. Children and youth learn about
food-webs, trophic levels, resilience, ecosystem engineering, and how biodiversity stabilizes
and sustains the system over extended time periods on the order of tens of thousands of years

(Laland, Odling-Smee, & Feldman, 2001). They experience the scientific enterprise by
collecting their own facts about natural materials on a local scale, which allows them to
visualize how the materials are recycled in a very direct way. The students can see bits and
pieces of leaves, sticks, eggs, and bones breaking into smaller components and they can gain
a perspective in scale; the connections can be verified by looking at large trees or micro­
pieces of debris in soils. Children leam through experience that biodiversity is employed in
the flux and flow of energy and materials that can move rapidly from local scales. They begin
to understand how this flux and flow stretches slowly across the global ecosystems.
Chapter Summary
The literature review in this chapter explored the history and broader philosophical
implications of ecoliteracy education in the context of a precipitous mass extinction. In
addressing these topics I have pondered a range of problems in the practice of conservation
and education that I seek to remedy with a peripatetic, niche-constructing and biophiliainducing approach to community-based education programs. There is a vast scale and
complexity in the problems that one encounters in the process of developing a personal
philosophy of ecological sustainability. First Nations and other cultural considerations, such
as animal care ethics, add to the complexity. However, in the process of reviewing this
literature from an ecoliteracy perspective, I developed a somewhat unique pedagogical
philosophy that is well-supported. I also identified and made inferences about several
thematic areas in which students may hold alternative ecological conceptions. Thematic
values that were identified in this chapter are integrated in the design of the Modular
Ecoliteracy Instrument (MEI); described in chapter three.

46
In the earlier part of the 20th century there was a great amount of educational effort
and academic research directed toward the benefits of nature study. In contrast to
environmental education programs, nature study education tends to focus more heavily on
the ecological sciences. The pedagogical emphasis also invested more in gardening and niche
construction (less so) related activities. Both nature study and environmental education have
had an emphasis on learning experiences through social or civic relations. The kind of
investment that nature study or niche construction pedagogy can put into local biodiversity,
however, may lead to ecological engineering or artificial selection that can embed a range of
ecosystem services into urban learning environments.
However, the emphasis on nature study started to dwindle after the mid-1970's in
parallel with an increasing urbanized landscape (including school yards) and educational
programs switched to environmental studies with fewer connections to local biodiversity.
Nonetheless, an international effort to restore school grounds biophilically, “as educational
resources has been under way for decades” (Moore & Marcus, 2008, p. 168). Environmental
education is more anthropocentrically aimed at changing behaviour to make decisions
perceived to be moral by spreading awareness of the consequences of certain actions. The
literature that I have reviewed revealed the danger of the environmental educational
approach. In contrast, nature study is more ecocentrically aimed at encouraging niche
construction behaviour as an instrument for learning. There are many pedagogical challenges
for teaching an ecoliterate curricula and adopting a niche constructing pedagogy that must be
considered carefully to address the Anthropocene mass extinction that is happening right
now.

47
CHAPTER III: RESEARCH METHODS
Details on the methods used for setting up the sampling design, enrolling students, and
the manner in which the material content for the study is presented first. A comprehensive
description of content contained in the MEI follows because it is a component of the study
design for sampling student perspectives on many of the themes that are reviewed in Chapter
II. I consider the limitations of the study design before moving into the specific details on the
analytical methods, including statistics, used in the investigation of the MEI responses.
Methods adopted in this thesis were reviewed and approved by the UNBC research ethics
board.
Convenience Sample and Enrollment
The target sample for enrollment was children aged 10-14, although some parents
asked if they could enroll younger siblings. Hence, younger children were also admitted into
the program. I used a convenience sampling of children and youth, with the baseline
demographics summarized in Table 1. Glossy coloured posters about &Junior Amphibian
Ecologists League nature study program (see Appendix A) were posted at public libraries,
coffee shops, Exploration Place, the College of New Caledonia, and at UNBC.
Table 1
Demographics o f Student Attendance Including Male.'Female Ratios
Age
8
9
10
11
12
13
14

#Students
2
3
6
3
2
1
1

m:f
2:0
2:1
3:3
3:0
1:1
1:0
0:1

48
Teaching Initiative
The Junior Amphibian Ecologists League was an initiative that I designed for
NAMOS BC to fulfill its educational outreach mandate and to serve as a conservation
leadership program for children. Parents were given a disclaimer that although younger
children would probably find much of the program enjoyable, they might also find it too
advanced. E-mail postings were sent out through various educational lists, a young naturalists
club, and by teachers.
Teaching materials. Since 2004 I have been teaching outdoor educational modules
on amphibian ecology to various groups and ages, from pre-school to university students and
adults. My teaching program integrates, in various kinds of educational events, the materials
and lessons that I have developed, adopted (with permission), or adapted over the years. In
the educational event described in this study, One Junior Amphibian Ecologists League, I
taught variations of the curriculum for five days to each of three treatment groups, according
to the schedule shown in Table 2.
Table 2
Scheduled Dates and Times fo r Treatment Groups
Group 1 (rural
parkland)

Group 2 (urban
parkland)

Group 3 (indoorvicarious)

Thurs. Aug. 25, 2011
8:30am-4:30pm

Tues. Aug. 30th, 2011
9am-4:30pm

Fri. Sep. 9,2011
6pm-8:30pm

Fri.Aug. 26,2011
8:30am-4:30pm

Wed. Aug. 31st, 2011
9am-4:30pm

Sat. Sep. 10,2011
9am-4:30pm

Sat. Aug. 27, 2011
8:30am-Noon

Fri. Sep. 2nd, 2011
9am-Noon

Sun. Sep. 11,2011
9am-4:30pm

Sun. Aug. 28, 2011
8:30am-4:30pm

Sat. Sep. 3rd, 2011
9am:4:30pm

Sat. Sep. 17,2011
9am-4:30pm

Mon. Aug. 29, 2011
8:30am-4:30pm

Sim. Sep. 4th, 2011
9am:4:30pm

Sun. Sep. 18, 2011
9am-4:30pm

49
I reviewed pamphlets or booklets from an assortment of wetland or amphibian
ecology programs for children, for example, Project WebFoot through Ducks Unlimited,
Wetland Keepers (Southam & Curran, 1996), and BC Frog Watch (Ovaska & Govindarajulu,
2010). I looked for activities, assignments, and the kind of layout that I thought would be
most effective. My initial plans were to use the free resources and activities offered by
government or non-profit organizations. However, after reviewing the material I decided that
it was not specific enough to the ecology of Prince George's amphibians. Therefore, I
borrowed ideas from this material and also used other resources on amphibian ecology,
including data from some of my own ecological studies, to create three booklets (see
Appendix B) for the Junior Amphibian Ecologist program.
The Junior Amphibian Ecologist booklets contained detailed information on each
activity, including learning objectives, activity terms, methods, illustrations, color
photographs, maps, and background information on the ecological material children and
youth would be learning about. The booklets had the NAMOS BC logo on the cover.
Students in each group were supplied with a copy of the wetland ecosystem journal by Ducks
Unlimited Project WebFoot, a pamphlet guide to amphibians of BC (Ovaska &
Govindarajulu, 2010), a frog pencil, and a lined notebook. I explained that learners would not
be graded but I asked that they do their best to attend each day of the program with all the
supplies that I had handed out. The curriculum booklets (Appendix B) explain in greater
detail what the participating youth were taught directly and with my assistance during the
activities.
The three curriculum booklets were specifically tailored to each of the rural
parkland, urban parkland, and indoor treatment groups. Each activity outlined the same kind

50
of learning material across treatment groups and much of the written work was duplicated,
although sections were shuffled slightly. The indoor booklet, in particular, had to refer more
to the indoor teaching tools such as the computer, a slide show, and the mapping exercise.
Although the nature of the activity was modified, the ecological background material
remained substantially the same. Key words were presented through different activities. The
reading materials in the curriculum booklets were used as activities progressed and I would
bring students together to read out sections, highlight keywords, and discuss as a group.
Curricular activities. Beyond the written materials, however, I designed the learning
activities to encourage niche constructing behaviours. These behaviours modify the learning
environment, such as when children break a decaying log apart, so that the children become
both cause and effect in the modification of the materials of study and the environments they
learn from. The statistical inductive component involving the MEI, was a pilot to gather
evidence and spatial information on educational values in relation to a research design that
could potentially induce a biophilic response in the treatment group.
The curricula immersed students in the study of amphibians in the learning context of
urban and peripheral ecosystems in Prince George. The study design transected an
environmental teaching gradient running from (a) direct learning in peri-urban, rural to
parkland environments, such as city parks and peri-urban parks that are accessible to the
general public where amphibians are known to occur; (b) indirect learning spanning
urban/suburban/peri-urban/exurban parkland environments where local species amphibians
are mostly absent; (c) urban vicarious teaching indoors with school yard play environments
and urban ecosystems where wild amphibians are very likely to be absent.

51
The Modular Ecoliteracy Instrument
This section describes the methods used to pilot the MEI in a quasi-experimental
design. The goal of the approach described is to improve on the research methodology and to
consider its inferential relations to the biophilia hypothesis. I designed content within the
items of the Modular Ecolitearcy Instrument (MEI) to match information that was written
into the curricula (Appendix B) and taught peripatetically to students enrolled in the junior
amphibian ecologist league. Many of the ecological concepts and alternative forms reviewed
in chapter 2 were targeted in the curricular design and contrastive elements of the item
contents. The literature review was also used to construct the thematic content of each
module abductively.
Modular design and rationale. Six modules were organized thematically into the
MEI (Appendix C). Module 1 was designed to collect baseline demographic information and
student perceptions of the amount of time they spend on outdoor versus indoor type
activities. Prior to analysis, activities were sub-divided into three thematic groups, including:
(a) outdoor motorized activities (e.g., riding an ATV) or watching nature programs (nature
tech); (b) nature based outdoor recreation (nature rec); and (c) general electronic media
(tech). Module 2 is the recently revised NEP instrument by Manoli, Johnson, and Dunlap
(2007). Module 3 was designed to measure conceptions and attitudes about natural capital.
The items within this module target economic issues, including management, forestry, and
comparisons between technological things we pay for and processes in nature that are free.
Items in module 4 (Appendix C) continue on the theme of natural capital and this
module was organized further into four sub-units measuring conceptions and values related
to ecological discounting. The items within this module were designed to gather information

52
on temporal and spatial perceptions of natural capital over small to large scales. This module
integrates common findings in psychological research into discounting within environmental,
ecological, and economic theory (Fenech, Foster, Hamilton, & Hansell, 2003; Hardisty &
Weber, 2009).
The nature of the questions for module 4 complicates the analysis o f pre-post effects.
I designed questions in module 4 to look at ways that participants value ecological,
economic, or environmental goods and services over time, distance, and in context o f the
complexity of issues concerning conservation ecology and sustainability. For example, Unit
A of this module presents the following scenario: "In forestry, reduce the total amount of area
that is usually harvested in the province by 50% and leave the rest alone to let amphibian
ecosystems and migration routes return to normal." The scenario was followed by five
options: "This sounds like a wise economic policy for the next: 1.10 years, 2. 20 years, 3.
fifty years, 4. one-hundred years, 5 .

years." Participants could write their own value

in the final option, but few gave an answer here, which is an indication that this item was
beyond comprehension or not well designed.
Items 6 to 11 in unit B of module 4 presents the following scenarios (paraphrasing the
actual items - see Appendix C), "It is better to": item 6: conserve amphibians now to prevent
losses in the future, item 7: conserve fewer bigger instead of many small wetlands, item 8:
spend more to conserve local amphibians with fewer species rather than spending on
amphibians in Vancouver where there are more species, item 9: same as item 8, but it
contrasts local amphibians to more distant species in Amazonian rainforests, item 10: spend
more to conserve wild and distant from the city instead of local and urban, item 11: spend
more on threatened or endangered than the common local species. These items were designed

to contrast conservation values at different scales of time, place, and complexity. Unit C in
this module presents a scenario that compared the value of conserving amphibians in
economic terms: "The economics of government, industry, and society would improve
greatly if everyone decided it was best to spend money on..." The options were either to
sustain things giving perspective that runs from global to local and present to future, or invest
in biodiversity. The more complex design of module 4 means that inferences are more
sensitive to sample size. Module 5 is a 9 item value topology assessment that I devised to
focus specifically on amphibians, according to the value themes in Kellert (1999). Module 6
is the nature relatedness scale (Nisbet, Zelenski, & Murphy, 2009).
The comparative modular design (Appendix C) provides an inferential framework for
the analysis of MEI student responses. The contrastive context provides a measurable index
on validation. Validation is a measure of the degree of confidence in the evidence "to support
the types of inferences that are to be drawn from test scores" (Crocker & Algina, 1986, p.
217). Validated test scores are utilized in the abductive inference to hypotheses that are
further scrutinized by the observational components of my study. Given that the new
structure of the MEI has yet to be trialed except in this study, and my sample size was kept
low for pragmatic reasons, the degree of confidence for inductive statistical inference in
reference to treatment groups and their MEI responses is largely reserved for future study. In
other words, a goal behind designing the curricula and piloting the MEI in this study was to
develop an effective test for my biophilia hypotheses. According to my statistical hypothesis,
I expected that direct niche constructing experience with live amphibians in their natural
habitat would respond more favorably to the MEI ecological values and students without
direct experience in nature study (that is, group 3) will remain indifferent (no effect).

54
The modular design o f the MEI may prove a useful comparative link to the various
instruments in use and may assist in the development and analysis of the newly developed
modules (Appendix C). Leeming et al. (1993), however, stressed the importance of using or
revising instruments already in use. Nonetheless, researchers continue to experiment with
new types of instruments that are designed and tailored to their particular program needs and
questions of interest. Moreover, some instruments address multiple yet parallel themes (for
example, Barnett et al., 2006; Stem et al., 2008). Partial consistency is maintained by joining
instruments already in use with other modules using the MEI approach (Appendix C). The
carryover of instruments that have already been tried creates a comparative baseline for a
meta-analysis of results relative to other studies. Module 2, bringing the NEP into the MEI, is
particularly useful, because the items were designed explicitly for children, specifically 1012 years of age, following revisions after extensive sources of feedback including interviews
and trials (Manoli, Johnson, & Dunlap, 2007). Module 6, the nature relatedness scale from
Nisbet, Zelenski, and Murphy (2009) has been previously administered to undergraduate
students with mean age 19.48 (SD = 2.83) and may have been more challenging for the
younger students in this study, although no more so than module 5 that was based on Kellert's
(1999) value typology (Appendix C). Items in both modules 5 and 6 use simple sentences
that could make them more accessible to a younger age group.
Experimental Design
My research design enabled me to gather observations on the effects of the teaching
environments in relation to student responses in pre- and post-administration of the MEI
(Appendix C). Participants were asked to enroll in one of three groups scheduled to run at
different times (Appendix A); a convenience assignment. Information within the postings

55
(Appendix A) did not supply information that would cause discrimination of the three
treatment groups: (a) rural parkland-direct, (b) urban parkland-indirect, and (c) indoorvicarious', note, that groups (a) and (b) were subsequently conjoined in the final analysis.
Another component of the study includes observations that I made while teaching the
curricula. For this reason, a small sample size was a pragmatic component in my study
design. It allowed me to focus on my teaching methods and style. It also allowed for careful
observations of student behaviour in relation to their environments. The relative degree of
inferential confidence in this study is raised by the merger of my observations of student
behaviour, facts about their interactions within the respective teaching environments
(treatments), and in relation to contrastive statistics from the MEI item responses.
Limitations to the Study Design
A small sample size is a key limitation of my quantitative analysis. Including only a
few students in the study increased the likelihood that participants within each group would
not be representative of the population as a whole. Students having highly different views or
values from the rest of the group could have a strong effect on the results when placed in
smaller groups. The smaller sample size, however, was intentional, so that I could focus on
the practical side of developing the curricula, teaching, observing, and learning in the
process. Learning during the process, for example, would suggest that I was more
experienced by the time the final group was being taught. This would alter the treatment
design, adding a further limitation or consideration when interpreting the final results.
Ferraro and Pattanayak (2006) provide a concise summary of the common types of
limitations that are encountered in ecologically orientated research and the kinds of controls
that can be put into place to mitigate them:

56
Examples of confounding effects include historical trends, unrelated programs or
policies, and unobserved environmental and social characteristics. As in all
scientific research, confounding effects are addressed through baselines, measures of
covariates, and control groups. Baselines measure pre-intervention conditions and
behaviors, and thus control for initial conditions that may affect measures of program
effectiveness. Covariates are observable factors that also influence the outcome
measure; these factors may be socioeconomic, biophysical, economic, or institutional.
Control groups are individuals, communities, or areas that do not experience the
intervention but are otherwise similar (on average), (p. 0484)
Furthermore, weather, season, sample size, independence, time, and socio-economics
are examples of compounding factors that could plausibly alter the outcomes this study.
Mosquitoes and unpleasant weather could leave participants with a negative attitude toward
an outdoor program. Conversely, students in an indoor group may become restless. Studies of
this kind generally suffer from the general applicability of the results across geographic
regions, where different types of ecosystems are explored, which is why I included the NEP
to serve as an additional standard for comparison with other studies.
Experimental Treatments
The MEI modules were printed on legal sized paper and followed a planned sequence
of qualitative difficulty from 1 (Module 1), page 2 (Module 2), page 3 (Module 3), page 4
(Module 4), and page 5 (Modules 5-6) (Appendix C). The MEI was distributed to all students
shortly after we went through our introductions. Approximately fifteen minutes was spent
reviewing the instrument with page by page oral instruction explaining the format of each
module and how the Likert attitude scales work. The same instructional procedures were
repeated for each group (rural parkland, urban parkland, indoor). Students were informed
that they could take as much time as they needed to complete their responses. They were
instructed to read each item carefully and to raise their hands if they had a question. They
were informed that completing the instrument was voluntary, that they would not be graded

57
according to their responses, and to simply skip and leave a blank if they came across an item
that they did not understand. The administration procedure for the MEI was repeated at the
morning of the final day of the program, before the students in the control group were able to
directly experience amphibians in the wild.
The urban parkland and indoor groups were informed, after they had completed
filling in their responses, that the final day of the program would be a trip to see an
abundance of amphibians in Forests for the World. They were told that this is where they
would see baby salamanders developing in the water, toads hopping across trails, and quite
possibly an adult salamander digging under a log. This research design ensured that all
children would have an opportunity to experience amphibians directly while also controlling
for disappointment they might feel about the group factors (outdoor, urban, indoor) by
including a common field trip component toward the end after administering the post-test.
The children were not informed about the study design and given no indication that their
group would be treated differently than other groups.
A control group acts as an external measure for testing hypotheses and sets a baseline
for possible confounding effects "that are contemporaneous with the intervention and could
plausibly affect the outcome and thereby mask the intervention's effect" (Ferraro &
Pattanayak, 2006, p., 0484). My quasi-experimental design used data from the MEI to
investigate the effect of differing ecological contexts in relation. My treatment control was
the indoor group that was removed from the direct experience of amphibians until after the
post-test was administered. The indoor group was the experimental control because the
members missed the direct biophilic experience on the topic being taught. "All quasiexperimental designs meet the following three requirements: (a) There must be a treated and

58
untreated group, (b) There must be pretreatment and post-treatment measures, (c) There must
be an explicit model that projects over time the difference between the treated and untreated
groups, given no treatment effect. The third requirement is a synthesis of the other two and is
at the heart of quasi-experimentation" (Kenny, 1975, p. 345).
Group one, urban parkland. Nine children were in attendance for the first group.
The location of the first meeting was at the Forests for the World parking lot. Parents left
after they dropped off their children, handed in the signed waiver forms, and held brief
greetings. The students and I walked to Shane Lake where we formally introduced ourselves.
I introduced myself as a graduate student in the education program and explained that this
program was part of my research. The MEI was handed out and instructions were given. The
group completed their responses at the picnic tables near the dock overlooking Shane Lake. It
took students less than 45 minutes to complete their responses.
Group two, rural parkland. The rural parkland group first met at the Moore’s
Meadow parking lot. although six people had pre-registered for this group, only three
students attended. During this module the parents stayed with the students as I went over the
instructions for the MEI instrument. I had asked that only the children work on the responses
but the parents remained and became involved in reading the items for their children, which
had not occurred in group one. I found that administering the instrument was more
challenging with the parents present. One student had minimal reading skills and he could
not finish the MEI. He was happy to be excused from completing both the pre-test and post­
test.
The parents left as we started the hike through Moore's Meadow. The three boys were
excited to share their knowledge of places where they already knew to find amphibians. They

59
were curious about Moore's Meadow and why we would be looking for amphibians in this
park without obvious wetlands. They were concerned at the prospect of not finding
amphibians. The activity on coarse woody debris paralleled the same activity that the outdoor
group had experienced. The abundance, class, and types of coarse woody debris was similar
to those that are encountered in Forests for the World.
Group three, indoors. The first day of the indoor program started at UNBC in front
of the library. The students and their family members gathered in the rotunda gallery, where
they sat to complete the MEI instrument. Some of the parents stayed and sometimes assisted
their children by going over the items; one set of parents joined us for the entire program. I
explained to the parents assisting their children and to the students directly that they should
fill in their own independent responses to express how they felt about each item and if they
did not understand an item to simply leave it blank and continue.
Statistical Item Analysis
Enumerated MEI responses were imported into jMetrik 3.01 (Meyer, 2013) where
item response scores and indices of reliability were calculated. The jMetrik program provides
a fast and effective method for item analysis to test if inferences can be drawn according to
the degree of validity and reliability in the early piloting and development phase of the MEI
instrument. Item analysis of the MEI instrument can improve upon the effectiveness of the
instrument to measure change in values, enthusiasm, and concept learning relative to the
environmental context of teaching for each treatment group (outdoor, urban, and indoor).
Biserial and point biserial correlations are calculated in jMetrik as in internal criterion
of total test score as described in Crocker and Algina (1986) and Olsson, Drasgow, and
Dorans (1982). The item correlation values provide an index of internal item reliability in

60
each module of the MEI. It is an internal measure of the degree o f linear relationship between
the item score and the total Likert criterion scores.
Statistical calculations. Pre- versus the post-paired t-tests were calculated from
students item responses. The t-tests were calculated manually in OpenOffice™ Calc utilizing
formula notation from Hurlburt (2006) in an initial exploratory analysis of individual student
responses to the treatments. R stats (v. 2.15.2, R Core Team, 2012) was used to run the t-test
comparing total scores in the pre-post responses and to calculate Cohen's d (Cohen, 1988) for
effect size in my power analysis. Two kinds of ANOVAs were calculated. However, rural
parkland and urban parkland groups were amalgamated due to small sample size; the indoor
group retained its status as an untreated control. The treatment variable from this collated
analysis was direct skin contact with a wild local amphibian, which both the rural parkland
and urban parkland groups experienced before the post-test. R stats (v. 2.15.2, R Core Team,
2012) was used to calculate results for the second type II repeated measures ANOVA, which
included gender as a covariate to test the effect of treatment group relative to the total of the
item responses. Item scores were summed to obtain the scored ecoliteracy index (that is, the
total score) for each treatment group (Indoor (Pre, Post) X Oudoor (Pre, Post)). A Cohen's d
power analysis was performed by utilizing an online SAS pearl script for a 2 X 2 factorial
ANOVA (Friendly, n. d.).

61
CHAPTER IV: RESULTS
I present observations that were made during the execution of the study prior to
moving into the results of the statistical analysis of the MEI responses. During the study I
made notable observations that were related to biophilia and niche construction. Students
exhibited many different kinds of behaviour in response to the different treatments and
activities during execution of the curricula and study design. My observations of the students
expressing various types of complex behaviours suggests that the more direct contact with
amphibians caused an excitement and expression of joy that was not noticed in the indoor
group. Results include my observations of the students and also observations of the learning
environments as they became modified by the children who were engaged in learning
activities.
Observational Results
This section presents my observations of the Junior Amphibian Ecologist League as I
taught the programs for the three treatment groups. Details regarding social dynamics and
descriptions of the curricular activities as they unfolded are included. There are also notes on
student behaviour in response to the teaching context, on ecological effects in the respective
teaching environments, and reflections from my experience of teaching the curricula. These
details provide context for the statistical results and for my response to them.
Group one, urban parkland. The first lesson plan involved the study of
decomposing logs. We hiked through the wilderness, flipped over logs, and sifted through the
debris in search of invertebrates and amphibians. This activity created a complexity of
learning opportunities and ecological material for children to manipulate as we discussed the
life history of each creature discovered. The design of the lesson plan also meant that the first

62
group became modifiers of the ecosystems in which they were learning. Their actions
bioturbated the soil as their boots compacted their pathways and they dug in search of living
creatures. We foraged for knowledge as we searched for amphibians. We found, handled, and
identified centipedes, slugs, ants, beetles, larvae, eggs, spiders, pill bugs, worms, logs, plants,
berries, fungi, roots, dirt, and salamanders.
We selected and studied a few large and well decomposed logs in great detail to keep
the footprint of disturbance levels localized. Students were curious and asked about the
berries in places where we were searching. In response I shared my naturalist knowledge of
edibles. Some of the students ate wild berries and leaves as I taught about the ecological
connections between the sun’s energy and the nutrients they were ingesting. This direct
experience connected the physiology of the learning environment to the senses of the
students experiencing wild food, many for the first time in their lives. This experience related
to the planned lesson activities and discussion on the lives of amphibians, other creatures in
the decomposing log, the forest around us, and how the ecological process links to the
recycling of energy, minerals, and nutrients across the entire planet.
The salamander became the prized find. Once discovered, students in the group
gathered around and with their hands spread out they let the long-toed salamander,
Ambystoma macrodactylum, walk across their skin. Every student smiled and expressed joy,
excitement, and sometimes anxiety at the touch of the salamander. After allowing this
salamander effect to run its course and releasing the salamander, I told an accurate
salamander story (non-fiction narrative) that included aspects of its ecological life history,
such as lifespan, anatomy, behaviour, diet, and other anecdotes from my accumulated
knowledge on this species. To captivate their imaginations, I told them that salamanders were

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the ancient defenders and warriors of the soil that had been defending this territory since a
time before the dinosaurs.
The log sampling and salamander discovery process helped the children to develop a
perception of salamanders in their habitat. It provided an opportunity to teach about the
ecological prevalence of salamanders relative to the prevalence of other species encountered,
to decaying logs, and to the compacted recreational trail system that runs through Forests for
the World. Students learned through direct visual and tactile experience how predators have
less representative biomass than their prey and that plants, the primary producers, are the
most abundant in size and number to support the large base of the ecological pyramid.
I took the class off trail purposefully for brief journeys into densely vegetated
locations. At the start of the program I explained that they would learn about the kinds of
techniques that an ecologist would use to study and understand amphibians so they could
experience what it felt like to be an ecologist working in the field. We navigated past
scratching thorns, biting mosquitoes, over fallen logs, and through dense thickets of leaves.
Some students complained about the scratches but the group was generally expressing joy,
excitement, and laughter throughout the experience. Teaching in an environment of bushy
terrain engaged the physiology of their motor and sensory systems while the group
experienced and imagined what it was like to be an amphibian ecologist.
After searching through logs, the moss, plants, and organic layer of the soil and the
physical structure of the decomposing log was modified and visibly apparent to the group.
Students could visibly perceive the effect or footprint of disturbance caused by their activities
and we talked about this. After we searched through each log, I instructed the students to

64
rebuild it carefully by piling the broken pieces of debris and re-attaching the moss layer,
which they did.
Some activities did not work as well as planned. The Burlese funnel, for example, is
commonly cited as a simple method for collecting insects. However, the students collected
few insects using this method, likely due to a lack of a proper light source, technical
difficulties, and other mistakes that were reported on the day they were returned.
Nonetheless, many larger invertebrates were simple to catch, study, and leam about using our
hands and empty containers.
Some of the activities had to be modified from the planned execution in the
curriculum booklet. Methods that were incorporated into lesson plan 7, to sample the aquatic
and wetland ecology, were impractical because students became too engaged with the
wetlands we were visiting to follow a prescribed lesson plan. Frogs were jumping,
invertebrates were swimming, and it was a sunny day. The students were excited, and so I
encouraged free play and the use of their senses during independent exploration.
I sat along the path where the students could bring their discoveries back to me. I had
my dissecting microscope set-up along the shore of the wetlands and we looked at magnified
aquatic life. As the students brought their collections to the microscope we learned about
each specimen in greater detail by searching through my library of aquatic and amphibian
field books.
On one of the program days the scheduled activity was interrupted to play a game of
tag. The students requested that we play a game, so I invented a game of tag involving
salamanders, beetles, and logs to illustrate a trophic pyramid. Only one or two salamanders
play against a greater number of beetles and decomposing logs. The design of the game was

65
used to re-convey the message that keystone predators are lower in biomass than herbivorous
beetles and the decomposing logs. We played and on rest breaks we gathered to discuss the
ecology related to the game as we looked at the actual logs on the ground. They learned that
the logs contained saprophytic mushrooms that feed on the death of these primary producers
and provide food for beetles that feed the salamanders: these connections fit into a food chain
that regulates the cycles of life in a perpetual game of tag.
During these breaks we discussed the rules of the game as a model for ecology. For
example, we reasoned that the beetles could only stay safe at a log for a brief period of time
before their food supply ran dry or the log decomposed completely. In the game, the students
as logs held their arms in the air where beetles would hold on for safety. The log counted to
ten as they decomposed or ran out of food for beetles. Once the logs drop their arms, the
clinging beetles had to flee from the salamanders, or find another log for safety. Beetles
tagged by salamanders would drop to their knees, but logs could regenerate a beetle by
tagging them with an extended arm. Logs were only allowed to walk, where salamanders and
beetles could run. The rules of the game can lead to a sustained ecology where nobody wins.
Students playing the beetles could get caught, but the regeneration aspect to the game keeps
the activity in play.
Students who participated in the program repeated the MEI at the start of the last day.
Family and friends were welcomed to join us on the final day. This social gathering created
an opportunity to share and discuss the program to others. Once the students completed their
MEI responses, the entire group hiked through the woods to revisit sites we had learned
from. We reviewed the material with the extended family and friends and shared some of the
ecological knowledge that had been learned.

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At the end of the last day of the group one session, everyone gathered in the parking
lot. A food web exercise was completed. There were a large number of people in attendance
(approximately 20) and everyone was allowed to be any creature of their choice. Everyone
participated and each was given a sticker with a creature name. A ball of string was passed
from creature to creature. Once the web was completed we discussed collectively how every
creature was connected by feeding or by functional relations. We created an ecological web,
tugged on the string, and removed some creatures out of web to see what would occur. This
exercise was used to discuss how food webs and loss of species can change the connections
and cause an effect for other species in the ecosystem. The final exercise also provided an
opportunity to share the learning experience with extended family and friends.
Group two, rural parkland. Students were told that a salamander was last reported
from Moore’s Meadow in 2005. We surveyed the entire wooded circumference of the
meadow and cut through the base as we discussed how there is no obvious wetland within the
park where amphibians could breed, deposit eggs, and develop. Hence, any salamander that
would enter Moore's Meadow must have migrated across a road as an adult. One student
expressed his knowledge that Forests for the World was an excellent place to locate
amphibians and suggested it would be a good place to look. We discussed these issues in
relation to the abundance of amphibians in urban environments and the ecological impacts of
roads on connectivity.
A single robust western toad was eventually found in a little gully that appeared to be
an older remnant patch of the original forest. The coarse woody debris was older, covered
heavily in moss, and larger sizes were decomposing. The boys were thrilled at this find and
their enthusiasm for the program picked-up significantly after this discovery. Their response

67
to the toad was similar to the salamander effect described for group one. Moore's Meadow
provided a good starting point to learn about coarse woody debris where salamanders were
unlikely to be found, yet all the classes and types could be located. There was still an
apparent abundance of slugs, worms, and ants. The students were taught how to classify
coarse woody debris and use this information to read the landscape, such as the age of the
forest and whether it would provide a suitable habitat for amphibians.
The different places that were visited by this group provided opportunities to discuss
the ecology, structure, and development of urban parks in relation to amphibian ecology and
the environmental context. Amphibian migratory behaviours and habitats were discussed as
we surveyed the environment. As I did for the first outdoor group, I taught the children how
to navigate using a compass and showed them sampling techniques with transects.
The second day of the program continued at Cottonwood Island Park, where we
discovered a salamander along a transect. This was the first record of a long-toed salamander
in this urban area and the students were excited to be a part of this discovery. The salamander
effect was observed in this group as it had been observed in group one. I encouraged their
enthusiasm and suggested that they could do amphibian surveys on their own in local parks
or near their homes.
The Hudson Slough trail system provided us with an opportunity to study a Duck's
Unlimited wetland reclamation site. Although we could see that habitat for ducks was
available, albeit polluted with garbage, the upland habitat for amphibians was missing. There
were patches of young mixed-forest stands but there was very little to no pieces of coarse
woody debris. We collectively inferred and agreed that amphibians could not live here. We
discussed this in relation to the design of urban greenspace. Could this area be modified so

68
that amphibians could live in the area? How could such modification be accomplished? We
discussed the possibility of adding different classes and types of woody debris.
The fourth excursion brought us through a new urban development in the College
Heights neighbourhood. The location provided a perfect opportunity to explore the recent
impact of human development on amphibian habitats and soils. We discussed how humans
were themselves great modifiers of the Earth and how this changed the structure and function
of ecosystems that surround our living space. At the end of our walk, after finding a wetland
with wood frogs along a dirt road, we came to a new development where the homes were still
under construction. At the very edge of this site is an older growth forest with freshly cut
soils at the edge. We walked a short way into the forested edge and found a salamander under
a large piece of coarse woody debris.
This recently developed site presented an opportunity to discuss the effect of urban
development, the edges they create, the depth, and the kind of effect they have on local
ecosystem over time. The group expected that the salamander population would probably
decline as families started to move into the homes, expecting trails and other modifications to
the adjacent habitat. The sequence of the program armed them with the knowledge of coarse
woody debris serving as an ecological clock to tell the age of patches of forest, provided
them with a perspective on the age of the forest and how this fit in relation to the recent
development. We learned about urban ecology and its effect on amphibian ecosystems.
On the final day of the program I repeated the MEI administrating procedure used for
group one, meeting at the Greenway parking lot. The MEI instrument was handed out at the
start of the morning before the students got to explore the larger ecology of the amphibians.
Friends and families were invited to join us and we reviewed the ecological information that

69
the students had learned as we hiked through the forested environment together. Once the
MEI was completed, the group of children, friends, and family members was able to
experience, through direct observation, the full scale of the abundance of amphibians and
their complex life history from larvae and tadpoles, juvenile to adult. The larger scope of the
amphibian life history with migration linking aquatic to terrestrial sites could not be observed
in the urban setting but was experienced on this final day. The food web group exercise was
also repeated at the end of the hike.
Group three, indoors. I began the indoor program by talking about a photo exhibit
that displayed wildlife, nature scenes, and mining operation in Canada. We all noted how
beautiful the nature scenes and photographs were as we tried to name all the creatures we
could see. We could locate many large mammals, fish, sea stars, trees, and birds but no frogs,
toads, or salamanders appeared in any of the images. In this context we talked about the
awareness of amphibians in our art, our minds, in our culture, and in our surroundings. I
introduced the Junior Amphibian Ecologist program to them as it was introduced to groups
one and two by describing how they would learn about the ecology of amphibians in our
local area.
We left the UNBC rotunda and walked through the UNBC David Douglass botanical
garden. Two girls joined the program at this time but they did not complete the pre-test
portion of the program. The wetland retention ponds in the botanical garden were a perfect
location to discuss the impact of human construction on the ecology of amphibians. At the
base of the wetlands from dusk shortly into a moonlit evening, the students were able to see
frogs in the water, although we also found garbage and the students noted oil on the water's

70
surface. Music was also blaring in the background from student festivities and the area was
lighted artificially.
During this introductory meeting, we talked about the connectivity of these wetlands
to the surrounding campus at UNBC. We looked at the species of plants that surrounded the
shore of the wetland and the gardens: some were exotics and others were invasive species.
For example, we located a mullein or velvet plant, which is very soft and provides one of
nature's nicest and most effective substitutes for toilet paper. Other plants were located and
discussed in this urban site surrounded by manicured trails, parking lots, and the glowing
hum of street lights. The entire edge of the wetland is surrounded by dirt trails, cement, or
pavement and there is no coarse woody debris along the edges. The students were excited to
see the adult frog, although they were unable to catch it, and tadpoles could not be seen. I
told the students that the last day of the program would be a field trip to Forests for the World
where they would be more likely to see the material and amphibians that they would be
learning about through the program.
The indoor program was based at the Prince George Exploration Place. The
Exploration Place director had given permission for use of the entire museum space for the
duration of the program at no cost. During breaks the children played in the museum’s indoor
play areas or we went out to the swings and slides in Fort George Park. The indoor teaching
environment presented different kinds of opportunities but I found it more challenging to
captivate the students, to focus and keep their attention, and to sustain my own focus on
teaching the materials. In an effort to keep the children interested in persevering with the
entire program, I told them that they would be learning how to become an amphibian

71
ecologist and on the last day we would be going on a field trip to apply what we would learn
in class.
I developed innovative techniques for hands-on experience tailored to the indoor
environment. For the coarse woody debris activity, for example, I went out into the forest
early in the morning and shoveled three decomposing logs into large plastic bins. The logs
spanned different decomposition classes and types listed in their charts (Appendix B). This
group learned how to classify the logs using the same charts that the outdoor and urban
groups had used. The top A-horizon layer of the soil immediately surrounding and under the
log was shoveled into the bin and I did my best to keep the logs intact and positioned as they
were. The students were given an opportunity to study the logs ecological components in
greater detail by tearing them apart (Figure 3). They classified their logs to the decomposition
classification charts as we discussed the life history of decomposing logs. They were very
excited about this activity, hoping that an amphibian could be found, and were able to look at
all the creatures under the dissecting microscope. We did not find any amphibians.

72

Figure 3. Students from in the indoor control group dissecting decomposing logs; faces are
blurred.
In another exercise, a large sheet of white paper was spread across the floor and
students were supplied with pencil crayons. I asked the students to illustrate the creatures
they found in their decomposing logs. We developed a list of local creatures and students
were asked to illustrate a food web showing all the connections to the decomposing logs.
Using the illustrations along the large sheet of paper we ran a line transect across the paper in
the same way that I had shown to do a line transect for the outdoor and urban groups.
However, this transect ran through their illustrations. We used this to discuss the methods that
ecologists use to capture and study amphibians in the wild.

73
I took this group on a single half-day trip along Hudson's Bay slough from
Exploration Place to Norway Street. We walked along the urban trail system; parts paved
some gravel, adjacent to and sometimes running right through the riparian zone. In my
previous and personal explorations of this area I have only ever discovered a western toad
near the water’s edge under clumps of debris. This activity paralleled the style of the urban
group as we visited the same places and went over the same kind of material. We studied the
Ducks Unlimited wetland reclamation project. There are Ducks Unlimited signs along the
trail system, although they have been vandalized. There is almost no coarse woody debris in
any part of the riparian zone. Ducks could be observed, birds heard, garbage found, but no
amphibians could be located in the thinly forested edges.
This walk provided an opportunity to talk about ways to learn about the history of our
environment by studying urban nature. In addition to wild edible berries, we also located
apple trees and rhubarb, which were signs of an old farm. The lack of coarse woody debris
informed us that the surrounding trees were a first generation that has not yet had enough
time to create a coarse woody debris habitat. The classes of the coarse woody debris can
inform a rough estimate of the time since a tree had fallen. However, in this area where there
were no decomposing logs, we concluded that the area had been cleared at one time. One
family who had participated in the entire program with their children shared some of their
knowledge on the history of farming in the area as well. The discussions were similar to
those of the urban group as we talked about wetland reclamation for ducks, the absence of
decomposing logs for amphibians, and asked if they would like to have amphibians return to
this area.

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The museum provided an opportunity for the children to view some of the local
amphibian species in cages. At the time, Exploration Place held long-toed salamanders
(Ambystoma macrodactylum), westem-toads (Bufo boreas), and spotted-ffogs (Rana
luteiventris). The children were not allowed to hold or touch the amphibians but some exotic
snakes and reptiles were sometimes made available for the children to touch by the museum
staff. The amphibians at Exploration Place are maintained in 30 gallon terraria and have a
slightly different "domesticated" appearance (dilated pupils, larger bodied, different
coloration, more lethargic) compared to their wild kin in the forest.
Some of the electronic media and map printing exercise did not work as planned.
Computer volume and plug-in problems prevented us from watching a movie about
amphibians. A local print shop misplaced a large map of Prince George that I had planned to
use to get students to identify urban parklands and draw favorite amphibians on each spot.
The point of finding urban parks large enough for amphibian drawing was to emphasize the
problem of urban fragmentation. In lieu of these activity plans, we gathered around my
computer and explored the Prince George area looking at urban parkland using GoogleEarth.
We studied and discussed the different urban parks and talked about the amphibians in
relation to where we lived. I also told stories about prehistoric amphibians and their
paleontological history using coloured illustrations, which appeared to captivate the students.
We also played games with an amphibian theme.
The final day of the program was a field trip with friends and family into
Forests for the World. There was a slight mix-up in the morning and some parents were
waiting at the wrong parking lot, which caused a delay in getting the children started on the
post-responses of the MEI instrument. It was a cold, wet, and rainy morning and this had an

75
obvious effect on the outcome and number of responses that were completed. The students
huddled in cars to complete their responses, but I believe the delay, coupled with the poor
weather, meant that some students rushed through their answers or did not fill in the
instrument. However, a few of the students were committed to filling in their responses.
Summary feedback. Parents and children from all groups provided supportive
feedback and praise for the program. Some asked if their kids could register in all three
groups but I informed them that the groups had to remain independent. Many wanted to
know if I would be running this program again next summer.
The MEI Instrument Analysis
The administered MEI took an average of 25 minutes for students to complete. Less
than half of the students raised their hands for assistance on one or more questions. Some
expressed the opinion that they found the instrument easy to complete, while others struggled
with some of the items or modules. One student lacked basic reading skills and could not
complete the instrument. A few students required items to be read aloud and a few of the
younger participants were confused by the more difficult modules and were instructed to skip
to the easy page at the very end. The majority of the participants understood the first page on
demographics but many were confused by the item requesting "cultural background /
ethnicity", which elicited the greatest number of questions.
Item response statistics. Reliability coefficients provide information on the
instrument’s consistency for replicated measures of test scores. Reliability coefficients can be
estimated by stability, the same test on two separate occasions to the same group, by
equivalence, administering the test on one occasion to the same group but with two formats
that cover the same content, and by precision, "the repeated correlation between test scores

76
when examinees respond to the same test items repeatedly and there are no changes in
examinees over time, or as Cronbach (1951) preferred to describe it, when the elapsed time
between testings becomes infinitesimal" (Crocker & Algina, 1986, p. 117). Comparison of
the pre- post-administration of the MEI instrument provides an estimate of the coefficients of
stability and precision.
Students returned 33 completed copies of the MEI instrument. Item frequencies and
descriptives for the five different modules are reported in Table 3. The first module of the
MEI (ACT = Activities) is most likely to exhibit a high degree of stability, because it had the
lowest percentage of non-responses relative to the other modules (Table 3). Of students who
completed the MEI instrument, all except one scored “never” on item 10 (motorcycling).
This non-random pattern is an indication of honesty in responses, comprehension in the
structure of this module of the MEI, and is evidence of reliability in the feedback (Ballouard,
Brischoux, and Bonnet, 2011).
Table 3

Range of Total #
# of items of Responses* Percentage Blanks
Item module
3.57%
32
Activity Demographics
17
10
29
10.91%
New Ecological Paradigm
21-27
26.21%
20
Natural Capital
20-24
35.30%
Ecological Discounting
20
26-32
10.10%
Value Typology Kellert
9
16.02%
21
24-30
Value Typology Nisbet
a. The range includes the total number of responses for each module (score >1)
from the total of 18 participants that completed the MEI instrument (pre + post)
from groups 1-3 (indoors, urban, outdoors).
Eighty-seven percent of the students gave the same response score to the same item in
pre- post-tests, which provides a measured index of stability and precision. One student in

77
group 1 (outdoor education) provided significantly different responses in the pre- versus the
post-paired t-tests (p < .05; calculated in OpenOffice™ Calc and discussed further below);
likely due to increased comprehension of the instrument as the student reported significantly
greater involvement in the listed activities in the post-test. Younger participants generally left
more items unanswered than the older individuals (Table 4). There are too few
representatives in each age category for a strong conclusive inference but it does appear as
though the 12-14 year olds were able to complete the instrument more accurately (Table 4).
Table 4
Percentages o f Blank or Ambiguous Responses According to Age, Pre, and Post Experience
______________________________ Age (# of respondents)_________________
Item Module 8(2) 9(3) 10(6) 11 (3) 12(2) 13(1) 14(1) Pre
Post
1. ACT
0.2% 0.0% 0.4% 2.7% 0.2% 0.0% 0.0% 5.6% 1.2%
2. NEP
0.3% 3.0% 3.3% 0.0% 0.9% 0.0% 0.0% 8.9% 13.3%
3. NC
6.1% 5.0% 6.4% 4.1% 2.3% 0.0% 0.0% 26.0% 26.7%
4. ED
6.2% 4.1% 7.7% 8.2% 3.6% 0.2% 0.0% 32.5% 38.7%
5. VTK
0.7% 1.7% 1.0% 2.4% 2.0% 0.0% 0.0% 14.0% 12.7%
6. VTN
3.9% 6.1% 1.0% 3.5% 1.3% 0.0% 0.0% 16.4% 16.3%
In the first module on activity demographics, movies, motorcycling, television, and
watching nature programs had among the highest correlation polyserial values (Table 6);
these values were calculated in jMetrik. Motorcycling, water skiing, skidooing, and cell
phones had the lowest level of endorsement. Internet had the highest level of endorsement,
followed by television, movies, and then video games. Almost everyone reported that they
never took part in motorcycling (p = 1.00; r = .81), whereas motor boating had variable
responses spanning “never” to “often” and the lowest negative correlation polyserial (p =
2.03; r = -.12). Cell phone (p = 1.67; r = .04) and hunting or fishing (p = 2.58; r = .12) had
the next lowest correlation polyserials (Table 5).

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Table 5
Item Analysis Statistics on the Activity Module
Abductive Endorsement
Item-Total Correlation
Activity
S. D.
Theme
Correlation Polyserial
(Pt)
Motorcycling
.81
nature tech
1.00
0.25
.45
Water skiing
1.06
.64
nature tech
.46
0.50
Skidooing
1.42
.38
nature tech
0.90
.31
Cell phone
tech
1.67
•04
1.16
Quading
nature tech
1.79
1.05
.53
.48
Motor boating
nature tech
2.03
-.11
-.12
1.26
Watching nature programs nature tech
2.12
1.22
.69
.73
X-country skiing
nature rec
2.21
.28
1.22
.26
2.24
Canoeing
nature rec
0.97
.61
.65
.35
Mountain biking
nature rec
2.30
1.29
.32
Camping in a tent
.30
nature rec
2.48
1.06
.28
Nature watching
2.58
.49
nature rec
1.00
.46
2.58
Hunting or Fishing
nature rec
1.15
dI
dI
2.67
.37
Video-games
tech
1.16
.35
tech
2.85
.84
Movies
1.03
.66
Television
2.91
1.01
.68
.74
tech
.50
Internet
3.00
1.00
.45
tech
Note. Using a minimal critical value at 2 standard errors above .00 and value obtained by the
approximation method in Crocker & Algina (1986, p. 324), correlation scores < .25 are
flagged in underlined bold.
Item-total Pearson and correlation polyserial values have been used for item
discrimination analysis when testing for knowledge and for identifying an item malfunction
(Crocker & Algina, 1986). However, the MEI does not test knowledge retention but was
designed to measure motivations, values, or attitudes. Hence, item difficulty is actually a
measure of endorsement for these psychological parameters. The minimum acceptable total
Pearson or correlation polyserial values are usually set at.00 + 2op, which equals .25 in the
MEI response. This value is used to detect items that elicit atypical or random responses
(Crocker & Algina, 1986). Items that are lower them this value in the sample of 17 activity

79
items indicates that cell phone, motor boating, and hunting or fishing induced random
responses.
The inferred themes for the activity module match with near precision when ranked
according to the levels of endorsement (Table 5). The outlier is cell phone usage, which was
not strongly endorsed and groups oddly with nature tech. The nature tech activities have the
lowest endorsement, nature rec has the middle value, and tech is the most strongly endorsed
activity. A one factor ANOVA (Theme) results in a significant difference in the between
group means, F(2,14) = 9.73, p = .04, which lends support to the thematic groupings.
The total mean of endorsement scores for each module and Cronbach's alpha
estimating the internal total module reliability is reported in Table 6. The Cronbach alpha
values indicate high internal repeatability for each module. The ACT, NEP, VTK, and VTN
elicited the majority of responses for each module (Table 3) indicating greater levels of
comprehension and stability for these modules. The newly devised VTK module performed
better than the VTN module that has been used in many other studies. Nonetheless, 73.8%
and 64.7% of the participants supplied answers to the NC and ED modules (Table 3)
indicating a high level of comprehension or confidence for these more difficult modules.
Items were reverse score transformed for the negation items, for example, the negation of “I
think salamanders are cute” would be “I think salamanders are ugly”. A random set of items
were put into the negation form to provide a measure of control over acquiescence (Friborg,
Martinussen, & Rosenvinge, 2006). The VTN module had the highest total mean
endorsement for pro-ecological values (Table 6). Standard deviations about the mean (Table
7) indicates greater variation in responses for the VTN module, which may be an effect of a )

80
lower comprehension in the VTN items or b) the nature of the items eliciting more polarized
attitudes.
Table 6
Item Analysis Statistics For each Module o f the MEI
Cronbach's
alpha
1. Activity Demographics
.76
.90
2. New Ecological Paradigm
.92
3. Natural Capital
4. Ecological Discounting
.97
.71
5. Value Typology Kellert
6. Value Typology Nisbet
.95
Item Module

SEM

Mean

S. D.

3.90
3.37
4.68
5.21
4.26
5.46

36.91
33.70
48.76
45.67
29.42
63.48

8.02
11.55
25.86
31.48
7.10
25.80

#of
items
17
10
20
20
9
21

Reliability indices (i.e., Cronbach’s a) indicate strong internal consistency and pre- to
post-test stability. Fifteen students completed their responses on both the pre- and post­
administration of the MEI for the majority of the modules. Tables 7-10 contain item analysis
results showing endorsement and Pearson's correlation values for each separate module,
excluding the ecological discounting module; correlation scores < .25 are flagged in
underlined bold and items have been sorted in descending order of endorsement in the total
score. The ecological discounting module is treated separately because the structuring and
design of the items were not conducive to the same type of item analysis. The SEM (standard
error of measurement) is the standard deviation of a score. The SEM is smaller where the
S.D. is small and also declines as sample size increases. It is also smaller for more reliable
measures.

81
Table 7

Item Analysis Statistics the New Ecological Paradigm (NEP) Module o f the MEI
Endorsement
___________ i!*™ ________________________________ (p.i)....._ .
Plants and animals have as much
4.22
right as people to live.
People must still obey the laws of
4.06
nature.
People are supposed to rule over the
3.78
rest o f nature.
When people mess with nature it
4.00
has bad results
People are treating nature badly
3.83
Nature is strong enough to handle
the bad effects of our modem
3.44
lifestyle.
a big disaster in the environment
^^
soon.
People will someday know enough
about how nature works to be able
2.94
to control it.
People are clever enough to keep
2.44
from ruining the Earth.
1Q
There are too many (or almost too
^
many) people on Earth___________________

S.D.

Item-Total Endorseme
Pearson
nt (pi)

^

Item-Total
Pearson

Item-Total Endorsement
Pearson
(pi)

1.48

72

3.80

1.70

.89

4.03

157

.82

1.66

.59

3.73

1.71

.94

3.91

167

.77

1.83

57

3.80

1.86

84

3.79

182

.70

1.37

.76

3.53

1.73

89

3.79

154

83

1 29

77

3.47

1.55

.95

3.67

1.41

88

1.65

.66

3.67

1.72

92

3.55

166

78

1 77

53

3.33

1.68

.85

3.27

170

68

1.55

J9

2.60

1.30

.76

2.79

1 43

.45

1.38

56

2.60

1.59

.73

2.52

146

.64

1.67

.04

2.00

1.36

.35

2.39

1 56

J2

82
Table 8

Item Analysis Statistics the Natural Capital (NC) Module o f the MEI
S.D.

Item-Total
Pearson

Endorsement
(Pi)

S.D.

3.28
3.22
2.67

1.78
1.86
1.85

.68
.88
.80

3.27
2.40
2.93

1 83
203
1 79

.67
.55
.79

3.27
185
179

1.77
1.95
1.80

.68
.71
.79

1.89

1 84

68

1.87

1 88

.75

188

1.83

.71

1.73

1.49

.60

1.76

1.46

.44

2.67

1.80

.90

2.64

1.90

.85

Endorsement
Item
A. Tbe economic cost of trying to conserve amphibians:

(Pi)

Is necessary because amphibians sustain forest ecosystems and wetlands.
Is not as important as conserving fish, bears or other large animals.
Is too high and would reduce economic benefits, such as jobs
Wetlands need to be large enough to justify the cost o f preserving them.
Otherwise, companies will loose money as they are forced to reduce the
harvest size by leaving so many trees around every small pond
Is mainly important if there are endangered or threatened species involved

1 48
.32
1.78
B. Wide strips of vegetation should be left along the margins of every amphibian wetland when clear cutting
Only if fish are also present.
2.03
.82
2.61
Would sustain the long-term economic situation for foresters because this
would help enhance biodiversity functions, such as nutrient flow.
Only within protected areas, like Jasper or BanffNational Park, otherwise this
practice would reduce forestry yields, industry profit, and threaten job markets
Only where, when, and if it is economically feasible to do so.
Even if it reduces timber harvest supply in the short term as this measure is
necessary for the conservation o f amphibian biodiversity

Item-Total
Endorsement (p,) S.D.
Pearson

Item-Total
Pearson

2.22

2.07

.61

3.00

204

.78

158

2.06

.67

2.22

1.86

.84

2.00

1.85

79

2.12

1.83

.81

2.22

1.93

.78

1.87

1.64

.53

106

1.78

.67

1.50

1.42

.30

2.20

1 61

.68

1.82

1.53

.46

3.22
2.67
2.67

1.96
2.03
2.03

.48
.60
.61

2.87
3.13
: 2.53 ■

2.03
1.96
1 92

.67
.35
.76

1.97
1 98
...........2.61.......:.... 1.95

.57
.48
.67

2.00

1.41

.60

1.60

1.50

.60

1.82

1.45

.60

1.83

1.72

.72

1.73

1.58

.69

1.79

1.63

71

1.94

1,55

71

1.53..

1.51

.57

1.76

1.52

64

■3M: ;■.V:

2.13

.68

220

78

3.33

207

.73

2 78

2.16

.72

347

2.07

.80

173

2.08

74

2.78

1.93

.90

2.67

206

.76

2.58

1 80

86

2.44

2.04

.83

2.33

1 68

82

145

208

.81

C. Having ponds with amphibians in cities, like Prince George or Vancouver is:
As important as having ponds with amphibians in a forest.
Is a great idea.
Should be drained to prevent mosquitoes from breeding.

3.06
188

D. Recycling plastics, paper and metals:
Is energy efficient and directly beneficial for amphibian ecosystems.
Is more green, sustainable, and creates more jobs than investing in
conservation programs for amphibians.
Is very similar to the recycling process in nature, such as a decaying log.

E. Amphibians:
Are economically important.
Have important roles to play in our health care system. For example, glands in
their skin may contain potential medicinal properties and cures for disease.
Not as economically valuable as fish, because there is an huge fishing industry
and very little to no industry that relies on amphibians.
Are not as complex as computers or other technological devises that humans
can create.

83
Table 9

Item Analysis Statistics the Value typology Kellert (VTK) Module o f the MEI
Pre Response

Post Response

Total Response

Endorsement (pj

S.D.

Item-Total
Pearson

Endorsement
(Pi)

for the toads and salamanders that get squished on roads

4.33

1.03

-.06

4.20

I think salamanders are cute

3.56

1.72

.56

4.27

storytellers.

3.89

1.45

.24

3.53

hope to see and then learn more about them

3.28

1.99

J2

3 87

frightens me or grosses me out.

322

1.59

-.09

3.33

1.68

85

3.27

I 61

38

3.06

1.92

-.06

3 27

1.33

.26

3.15

1.66

.08

Item

Item-Total
Pearson

Endorsement
(Pi)

S.D.

Item-Total
Pearson

1.42

.50

4.27

1.21

.26

0.80

.13

3.88

1.41

.33

2.00

.82

3.73

1 70

.55

1.88

74

3.55

1 94

.42

S.D.

4tllipiilt/IUlM C
U
VUJVUIVV Vi illjpiiUilVU IVI U
1U
O
WU
1IU

t ui nvtituiuu wtui vv ivtiunw, ivtuiuw tvs u iiusuiui uuttv,

and populated by amphibians if foresters plant trees after
A frog does not feel pain the same way that 1 do.

2.83

1.69

.10

293

1 49

-.03

2.88

1.58

.04

2.78

1.80

.49

2.87

1.85

.60

2.82

1.79

.54

2.06

1.47

J5

1.67

1.40

M

1.88

1 43

*1Z

1IllipillVIUiWM
JVM
il lilipVIMUit JVIVlltlltV 1VJVUIVV iVi

medicine and education.
a1 iv uivjt iiiipviuuit pivpvii^ v> iwiipiiiviuiiii u uiui uivj

serve an economic purpose by recycling soil nutrients,

84
Table 10

Item Analysis Statistics the Value Typology Nisbet fVTN) Module o f the ME1

Item
I enjoy being outdoors, even in unpleasant weather
want
1 enjoy digging in the earth and getting dirt on my hands.
I take notice of wildlife wherever I am
I don’t often go out in nature.
Even in the middle o f the city, I notice nature around me.
My relationship to nature is an important part o f who I am.
humans.
My ideal vacation spot would be a remote, wilderness area
1 feel very connected to all living things and the earth.
I am very aware o f environmental issues.
Conservation is unnecessary because nature is strong enough to
recover from any human impact
1 am not separate from nature, but a part o f nature.
The state o f non-human species is an indicator o f the future for
humans.
I always think about how my actions affect the environment.
The thought of being deep in the woods, away from civilization,
is frightening.
I think a lot about the suffering o f animals
My connection to nature and the environment is a part of my
spirituality.
My feelings about nature do not affect how 1 live my life
Nothing I do will change problems in other places on the planet
Some species are just meant to die out or become extinct.

Total Response
Pre Response
I
Post Response
I
Endorsement
_ _ Item-Total
Item-Total Endorsement
Item-Total
Endorsement (pt) S.D.
S.D.
Pearson
Pearson
Pearson
(Pi)
(Pi)
67
1.62
1.55
3.94
4.00
1 72
84
3.87
.45
1.62
1.79
.50
.57
62
3.67
1.45
3.61
3.36
1.80
.73
3.45
1.66
.76
3.07
1.94
.71
3.78
1.75
,75
.89
3.39
3.61
1.85
.66
3.13
1 64
1.78
.78
.80
3.36
1.85
.77
3.07
1.71
3.61
,86
1 81
.88
1.81
.84
3.33
3.61
1.82
3.00
84
1.82
1.67
.84
2.03
.84
3.28
3.13
3.21
1.83
.61
.68
53
1.73
3.13
2.00
322
3.18
1.64
.68
1.62
.63
1.66
.75
2.80
3.15
3.44
.88
3.15
1.56
3.17
1.54
.86
1.64
.92
3.13
73
1.72
.65
1 71
3.11
1.78
3.07
.83
3.09
3.39

1.85

.58

2.73

2.02

.74

3.09

1.93

65

3.17

1.65

.77

2.93

1.87

.82

3.06

1.73

.80

2.67

1.75

.62

3.33

1.59

90

2.97

1.69

.71

2.94

1.83

.74

2.93

1.71

.76

2.94

1.75

.75

2.89

1 81

.53

2.60

1.72

.65

2.76

1.75

.58

283

1.79

.70

2.60

2.03

.76

2.73

1 88

.73

239

1 97

.67

3.07

1.91

.64

2.70

1.94

.63

2.39
2.00
1.61

1 72
172
1 38

.68
.42
.40

2.33
2.27
2.20

1.50
1.33
1.47

.54
.52
,53

2.36

1 60
1.54
1.43

.62
.45
.44

2.12

1.88

85
A /-test and Pearson's regression analysis were used to inspect the responses of each
individual student. In comparisons where r-values were significant, the pre-post item
responses were graphed and visually examined for outliers. A low effect size due to low
sample size means that the statistics are more sensitive to outliers that were often created by
the asymmetry of blank items in the pre- or post-responses that were correspondently
answered otherwise. These results were used as an exploratory analysis of the data to
determine and justify the removal of students who may not have comprehended the MEI or
failed to provide either a pre- or post-responses. A pairwise Pearson's correlation test was
also performed for the total score of each module separately against the sum total of the
remaining modules (Table 11); the total score is the sum of responses following reverse
transformation of the negation items. A correlation was more often statistically significantly
identifed (a = .05) when the total score was compared against the individual modules,
indicating that the total score of all modules responds similarly to justify a combined
analysis. A Cohen's-d power analysis of the sample sizes for a “medium” effect,

=

0.5, and for a “large” effect, dp0puiation = 0.8, gives a power level of 0.23 and 0.42 respectively.
Combining the modules into a total score would increase the effect size.
Table 11

u>
00

Pairwise Pearson's correlation matrix fo r four modules o f the MEI1------------NC
NEP
VTK i VTN TOTAL SCORES
NC
X
.45
X
NEP
.39
.36
X
VTK
X
VTN
.30
.13
.66
.38
.66
TOTAL SCORES
.45
‘Note: NC = Natural Capital, NEP = New Ecological Paradigm, VTK = Value Typology Kellert, VTN = Value
Typology Nisbet. Not significant values are bold underline.

86
Analysis of Variance. Summed items creating MEI total scores for each group were
averaged and plotted to examine effect and interaction in the sample data (Figure 4).
Interactions are shown for the partitioned modules and all modules combined. The results
were inconsistent among the different modules. Outliers were present and removed for
subsequent ANOVA tests. A one-way ANOVA comparing the two groups (parkland v.
indoor) did not identify any significant difference (a = .05) between the two groups in their
pre-test responses (Tables 12-13). The repeated measures type II ANOVA including gender as
a covariate identified significant differences (a =.05) for gender in the NC module and by
treatment (parkland v. indoor) when accounting for the total scores (Table 13). Power
analysis utilizing Cohen's d (Cohen, 1988) suggests a sample size of 30 individuals would be
required for a 2 X 2 ANOVA of moderate effect size (d = 0.5) to approach a power level
equal to 0.8.

87
NEP Score* Interaction

ACT S co n s Interaction

NC Scoras Interaction

Total Score*

SI

e-

a
n

a

a

a

R'

B

Pre Indoor Pre Outdoor Post Indoor Post Outdoor

Indoor pre Outdoor Poet Indoor Poet Outdoor

Pro Indoor Pre Outdoor Poet Indoor Poet Outdoor

Combined Ecolttearey Scoras Interaction

VTN Scoras Interaction

R

s
Total Score*

I
R

a
e

i

a

i
Pre indoor Pre Outdoor Poet Indoor Poet Outdoor

Pre Indoor Pre Outdoor Poet Indoor Poet Outdoor

Figure 4. Box-plot displays of modular ecoliteracy scores; outdoor refers to the parkland group.

88
Table 12.
One-way ANOVA table fo r the different module scores.
Module
ACT
NC
VTN
Total Scores:

F
0.05
0.4698
0.89
0.41

(num df,denom df)
p-value
(1,25.576)
0.833
(1,22.182)
0.500
.... 0157
(1,19.496)
(1,20.692)
0.531

Table 13.
Repeated measures Type II ANOVA fo r the different modules with significant values
bold and gray highlighted.
ACT
Treat
Gender
TreatiGender
Residuals
NEP
Treat
Gender
TreatiGender
Residuals
NC
Treat
Gender
TreatiGender
Residuals
VTN
Treat
Gender
TreatiGender
Residuals
All Scores
Treat
Gender
TreatiGender
Residuals

Sum Sq
85.4
85.4
3.9
1007.7
Sum Sq
"41.7" ...... .
99.5
18.5
1625.1
Sum Sq
485.0
2051.8
784.4
5717.9
Sum Sq
1750.0
87.4
14.2
11225.2
Sum Sq
36611.0
1647.0
1.0
56468.0

Note: Significant at the p<0.05 level.

Df
1
1
1
24
Df
1
1
1
24
Df
1
1
1
22
Df
1
1
1
24
Df
1
1
1
20

F Value
2.0343
2.0343
0.0934

P r (>F)
0.1667
0.1667
0.7625

F Value
0.6155
1.4702
0.2725

P r (>F)
0.4404
0.2371
0.6064

F Value
1.8661
7.8943
3.0178

P r (>F)
0.1857
0.0102
0.0963

F Value
3.7417
0.1868
0.0303

P r (>F)
0.0650
0.6695
0.8633

F Value
12.9669
0.5834
0.0004

P r (>F)
0.0018
0.4539
0.9833

89
The pattern for endorsement in the ecological discounting (ED) module responses is
shown in Figure 5. Only item 6 elicited a strong endorsement in this unit scenario, the
remaining scenarios fluctuate closer to the 3 point neutral endorsement line (Figure 5b). All
responses for items 12-16 were on the disagreeable end of the scale and generated an
anomalous negative trend (Figure 5c). Unit D phrased scenarios around willingness to give
up or pay, which was even less agreeable (Figure 5d) than responses in unit C (Figure 5c).

Mm 12

Ham 17

Figure 5.
Graphs illustrating average levels of endorsement in the ED module, unit A (Items 15, a), unit B (items 6-11, b), unit C (items 12-16, c), unit D (items 17-20. d).

90
CHAPTER V: DISCUSSION
Item analysis is traditionally used to identify items that are correlated in support of
the existence of an underlying factor that the test is designed to measure. If items within a
module, for example, are uncorrelated, then they may be eliminated because they may not be
measuring the same kind of underlying theme. However, a measure of high internal
consistency having Cronbach's alpha greater than 0.7 is typically used as an indication that a
similar theme is being measured and all modules exceeded this value (Table 6). The heuristic
process of using item analysis for the discrimination and elimination of items has been used
extensively by educators and psychologists developing tests that are of minimum length
while at the same time yielding scores that are reliable, valid, and correlated to the theme
being studied (Nunnally & Bernstein, 1994; Rust & Golombok, 2009).
Contributions
My thesis study makes several contributions that give reason to continue on this path
of research despite limitations that were known prior to piloting the curricula (Appendix B)
and MEI (Appendix C). Psychometric instruments, educational assessments of attitude, or
concept inventories can take multiple years to develop and refine before they prove effective
for analysis and testing of outcomes (Leeming et al., 1993; Manoli, Johnson, & Dunlap,
2007). Klymkowsky and Garvin-Doxas (2008), for example, created the Ed’s Tools program
to assist researchers in the process of refinement of research-based conceptual assessment
instruments. A refinement of the study design to include interviews, for example, would be
required to refine sections of the MEI or even the curricula using Ed’s Tools (Klymkowsky &
Garvin-Doxas, 2008). A low sample size was used to pilot my study design to compensate for

91
the first time use of the MEI, the curriculum, and prior knowledge of the amount of time that
would be needed to create an effective test of ecoliteracy values.
At best, the MEI instrument may only provide insight into the cognitive aspects to the
biophilia hypothesis. Furthermore, it is expected that the niche construction process, an
underlying goal of the curricula, would take multiple generations to develop, which adds
further limitations to the study design. However, the MEI, curriculum, and research methods
that were applied in this thesis provide an informed foundation for their subsequent
refinement. The curricula and MEI could be tailored to apply in other geographic locations
beyond Prince George.
This thesis makes several original contributions. Examination of student perceptions
of natural capital has yet to be explored in other studies. The development of the niche
construction pedagogical theory is another original contribution that could improve on the
ability of researchers to investigate and gain further insight into biophilia. It also provides a
new direction for educators for getting students involved ecologically in a way that has the
potential to address conservation related issues applicable to the Anthropocene mass
extinction. Niche construction pedagogy identifies the means and a unique opportunity to
access and create a diversity of ecological goods and services (Figure 1). There is opportunity
to research this area further in relation to the ecological economics and sustainable education.
Convenience sampling. Prior to conducting an item analysis on the Activity Module
(ACT), I arranged the different activities into three dimensions: a) nature tech, b) tech, and c)
nature rec. These dimensions were identified by the sorted arrangement of the endorsement
scores and the ANOVA revealed that the actual arrangement was significantly related to the
themes I predicted. Cell phone usage was the only exception to the statistical pattern and my

92
prediction. The fact that cell phones are used in social communication may have bearing on
this surprising result. Otherwise, students that enrolled in the junior amphibian ecologists
league would likely be biased toward traits for biophilia, at the very least their parents had
enough interest and motivation in ecoliteracy-based education to enroll their children in the
program. Even with this inherent bias of my convenience sampling design, however, these
students’ endorsed activity ratings indicated greater strengths of connection to technology
relative to nature-based themes.
Statistical outcomes. All modules yielded statistically reliable responses, indicating
honesty in the student responses, which means that the data provided useful information.
Items with low correlation values are flagged using the discrimination index. Values < .25 for
Pearson's r were used to discriminate items in the study (Tables 6-10) that may be flagged for
elimination or close scrutiny for future development of the MEI. Several items within the
activities module had low correlation scores. However, items within this module undoubtedly
measure activities and despite the low correlation values, these items should be retained
within this module. The process of ranking endorsement and predicting themes within the
themes helped to identify different kinds of activity factors. If a particular student ranked
technological or electronic types of activities more heavily than a student ranking naturebased activities, then there would be an expectation that the nature study intervention would
affect the former student more than the student is already involved in nature. Students who
were enrolled in my study, however, showed a high endorsement and reported involvement in
nature-based activities.
The new ecological paradigm module. The New Ecological Paradigm (NEP)
module is one of the most extensively used instruments to obtain measures of an ecological

93
worldview among participants. The version utilized in this study was borrowed from Manoli,
Johnson, & Dunlap (2007) after many heuristic rounds of discriminant item analysis,
elimination of problematic items, and revision. The < 0.25 correlation value was chosen
because it approaches the lower values obtained in the NEP, which has received extensive
study on its validity. Despite the extensive work that has been done on the NEP instrument,
my study flagged item 10 (Table 8) as having a low correlation (< .25) in the pre-test,
although the value was not as low in the post-test responses. This item also received the
lowest level of endorsement in both the pre- and post-test. Item 8 was also flagged in the pre­
test but yielded a high correlation in the post response measure. It is difficult to cross­
compare these specific result with other studies, because the NEP has many different versions
that are being used that could bias the interpretation. However, a review of the literature
reporting on the relative endorsement for item 10 (or wording adapted thereof) revealed that
it varies considerably across studies (for example, Hagenbuch, et al. 2009; Manoli, Johnson,
& Dunlap, 2007; Wu, 2012). Of anecdotal significance, however, the two items most strongly
endorsed in this study have similarly and consistently received top endorsement in other
studies.
Manoli, Johnson, and Dunlap (2007) identified three dimensions in the NEP using
factor analysis and a significant change in response from “slightly anthropocentric to a
slightly ecocentric perspective” (p. 11). Hagenbuch et al. (2009) administered the NEP to
post-secondary students in pre-posttest response following completion of a natural sciencesbased course. They did not identify any significant shift in the responses. Hence, these
previous studies identified only a minor shift in the NEP response following intervention.
Chen, Peterson, Hull, Lu, Hong, and Liu (2013) used the NEP to study responses among

94
groups who had experienced environmental harm. Their results using the NEP supported the
general finding that higher scores tend to be significantly correlated with changes in
environmental behaviour or intentions. Chen et al. (2013) found a significant link between
high NEP scores and previous experience of environmental harm. Likewise, Pienaar, Lew,
and Wallmo (2013) identified a significant change in context of presenting material on
different species in conjunction with test administration. Kopnina (2012) reviewed some of
the criticisms that have been launched against the NEP instrument, including Mayer and
Frantz's (2004) conclusion that the NEP measures cognitive belief rather than affective
experience. My study included students that were already nature-orientated individuals, as
results from the ACT module suggested, and the curricula were more orientated toward
affective experience. Moreover, an accumulating body of research has also indicted that there
are different sub-scales contained within the NEP instrument (Pienaar, Lew, & Wallmo,
2013). Hence, these factors may have contributed to the lack of change in responses in my
study.
The natural capital module. All items in the Natural Capital (NC) module had high
internal correlation values in my study (Table 9). Although much discussion exists in the
literature on natural capital (for example, Costanza, de Groot, Farber, Grasso, Hannon, et al.,
1997; Farber, Costanza, Childers, Erickson, Gross, Grove, et al., 2006; Fenech, Foster,
Hamilton, & Hansell, 2003; Rees, 2002) this is the first instrument, to the best of my
knowledge, that has been designed to measure values on the topic of natural capital. Students
gave the highest endorsement to the concept (item 1) that the economic cost o f trying to
conserve amphibians is necessary because they sustain forest ecosystems and wetlands. The
second highest endorsement (item 2) supported the idea that amphibians are economically

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important. They did not agree with the idea that recycling o f plastics, paper and metals was
similar to the recycling processes in nature (item 16). The low endorsement scores for section
D of this module seem to indicate a common conception that technology cannot replace,
excel, or duplicate the processes of nature. It also shows a surprising contrast of nature
conservation versus the instructional approach evident in green techno-environmentalism,
such as recycling.
My analysis showed that the students generally held a high value for amphibians with
what would be considered a pro-ecological viewpoint in both the pre- and the post-test
responses (Table 9). Despite a relatively high number of blank or ambiguous responses
(Table 4), the NC module was fully completed by the older students and the correlation
analysis (Table 9) indicated that a consistent theme was measured. The item discrimination
analysis performed in this study did not flag any problem items for elimination. While no
treatment or pre-post effect was identified, there was a highly significant difference in
response by gender.
The value typology Kellert module. Several items were flagged in the item analysis
for the new Value Typology Kellert (VTK) module (Table 10). Although many of the items
were flagged in the pre-test, the number and type of problematic items shifted in the post­
test. This result may be a learned response to the instrument or there may be multiple themes
or dimensions represented in the items. Other than the simplest ACT module, the lowest
percentage of blank responses was given for this module (Table 3). Item 2 reflects the item
developed by (Ballouard, Provost, Barre, & Bonnet, 2012) studying the affectivity toward
organisms that are less favored (for example, “ snakes are cute”). Further study, such as a
more in-depth statistical factor analysis, is required to better understand the performance of

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this module. Items 6, 7, 9 produced the lowest overall correlations. Rather than elimination,
their content could be simplified. Item 7 may be signaling a false effect because there was a
grammatical error: “feel” appeared as “feels”, and the error drawn to the students’ attention
during the test. Items 6 and 9, however, could be modified to the following:
From:
All wetlands can be restored, returned to a natural state, and populated by
amphibians if foresters plant trees after a clear-cut timber harvest.
To:
Wetlands can be restored and populated by amphibians ifforesters plant trees after a
clear-cut timber harvest.
From:
The most important properly o f amphibians is that they serve an economic purpose by
recycling soil nutrients, which is an essential service fo r forest industries.
To:
Amphibians help the economy by recycling soil nutrients, which is an essential
service fo r forest industries.
The nature relatedness scale module. All items in the Value Typology Nisbet (VTN
or Nature Relatedness Scale; Nisbet, Zelenski, & Murphy (2009)) module had high internal
correlation values in this study (Table 10). The VTN was originally developed “to measure
the affective, cognitive, and experiential aspects of individual connection with the natural
world” (Nisbet, Zelenski, & Murphy, 2009, p. 735) but it also provides a hedonistic measure
of happiness (Zelenski & Nisbet, 2012). The difficulty in comparing my results to other
studies is that the endorsement scores have not been reported in the literature for comparison.

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Comparative Analysis. Some of the item responses contrast sharply with similar
items in other modules. Item 1 in the NEP module (Table 7), for example, focuses on equal
rights for animals whereas items 2 and 8 in the VTN module are endorsed relatively strongly
and would suggest that humans have more rights than animals. Some of the items with low
endorsement also tend to have lower correlation and may be flagged for further
consideration. Item 21, for example, places meaning into the question and may have less to
do with the actual problem of species extinction. The low endorsement for item 20 suggests
an optimism that is held by the respondents that their actions or behaviours can help to solve
larger problems. The total score analysis suggests a significant treatment effect. The indoor
group declined in their MEI score, whereas the outdoor group had a minor increase with a
smaller variance in the post response (Figure 4).
Strengths and Limitations
It is notable that the top endorsement in the MEI was about enjoyment of the
outdoors, which has a sharp bearing on the outdoor parkland versus the indoor treatment
groups of my study. Nisbet and Zelenski (2011), however, concluded that “even natural
spaces in urban settings can increase happiness; the grandeur of national parks is not
required” (p. 1105). The results of my study may indicate that the urban setting that the
indoor students were exposed to may have had a larger effect than anticipated and thus
reduced the effectiveness of my study to measure an affect by means of exposure to nature.
Regardless of the statistical effectiveness of the MEI, the design and launching of the
Junior Amphibian Ecologist League curriculum was a valuable outcome of this study.
Teaching in the different environments in Prince George's Parklands helped to identify the
ecological resources that are available for nature study. Numerous studies have identified the

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benefits of nature for health, happiness, and general well-being (for example, Zelenski &
Nisbet, 2012). The curricular booklets that accompanied the program have also generated a
resource that is being revised and shared widely with members of the Partners in Amphibian
and Reptile Conservation (PARC). PARC is a not a funding organization but is an association
described as “an inclusive partnership dedicated to the conservation of the herpetofauna reptiles and amphibians - and their habitats” (PARC, 2013a). The mission statement of this
organization, which is “to conserve amphibians, reptiles and their habitats as integral parts of
our ecosystem and culture through proactive and coordinated public/private partnerships”
(PARC, 2013b), is consistent with the original directive of NAMOS BC. Through my
attendance at the Northwest PARC annual meeting on April 8th and 9thof 2013,1 have formed
partnerships within PARC to further develop these curricula and share the components of the
MEI that appeared to work most effectively.
Observations of the behaviour of students expressing joy and enthusiasm during the
administration of the Junior Amphibian Ecologists League, and especially upon the discovery
of a live amphibian, suggested to me that the experience was significant. Ballouard, Provost,
Barre and Bonnet (2012), for example, studied over 500 schoolchildren using a 47 closed and
open item questionnaire showing a marked effect in children’s attitude even after a single
field trip. They reasoned that the direct handling o f the snakes was largely responsible for
this effect, which was rated by the students as the most preferred activity. However, these
previous study results and my observations are not supported by the quantitative analysis of
my study. Low sample size lead to an inconclusive statistical inference generated by the MEI,
despite strong internal consistency.

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My study design may not have offered a valid test of the learning or values that could
have potentially developed during five days of nature study. Alternatively, or as a
compounding factor, the MEI instrument may not have been effective in tracking affective,
cognitive, and experiential changes that have been reported extensively in other studies
involving nature-based education or outdoor-based interventions (for example, Nisbet,
Zelenski, & Murphy, 2009). Strong internal consistency within the responses to the different
module's plus the joining of tried and tested instruments from other studies, a common
approach for this type of research (for example, Nisbet, Zelenski, & Murphy, 2009; 2011)
suggested that the MEI was performing as intended.
My study design lacked an effective control group. Nisbet and Zelenski (2011), for
example, identified increased levels of happiness through contact with nature; however,
participants systematically underestimated the hedonic benefits of urban nature. Likewise, I
may have underestimated the influence of urban nature on the indoor group during the
Hudson's Slough field trip. Kossak and Bogner (2011) were able to identify a significant
effect of individual connectedness to nature after a single day of intervention. Their control
group consisted of students who were not enrolled in the program at all. The very act of
teaching about nature and having even limited access to natural things likely had a greater
influence on the experimental design than I had predicted or realized at the time. Many of the
educational components in Kossak and Bogner's (2011) treatment group, for example, are
similar to the components that were taught to my indoor group. Learning during the process
of teaching the material would also suggest that I became more experienced by the time the
final group was being taught, which could have furthered this effect and bias the treatment

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design, adding a further limitation or consideration when interpreting the final results. Hence,
my study design would have required a strong effect from the parkland learning experience.
In this study students were only asked (self-report) about their direct experiences with
toads, therefore it cannot be treated as experimental. The possibility that some
students who were more interested in toads (by unclear motivation) simply wanted to
handle toads more than other children cannot be ruled out. (p. 261)
The limited sample size is another limitation in my quantitative study design.
Although the smaller sample size may be a limitation quantitatively, it may have added
strength to the qualitative component, adding practicable elements for implementing the
curricula. A key indicator of the small sample size is noted in the pre-test responses in the
MEI instrument. The two groups provided significantly different responses, indicating that
they already held significantly different views, as would be expected with a smaller sample
size. Clearly, however, an increased sample size after training through the gain of experience
in teaching the curricula would provide a more robust data set for making conclusions and
generalizing these to other studies.
Other limiting variables can be identified in my study. The post-administered MEI to
group 3 was given on a cold and windy morning, for example, which may have made
concentration more difficult for this group of students. Some students in the indoor group
received thorns in their fingers and were annoyed by mosquitoes. Conversely, students in the
indoor group seemed to lose focus and expressed boredom after spending too much time
learning indoors when the weather was noticeably nice outside. A final limitation of studies
of this kind is that they suffer from the general applicability of the results to other geographic
regions and across cultures (Kopnina, 2012). Different types of ecosystems and cultural
differences among participants that were not included in my analysis are likely variables of
consideration in future applications of this study.

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Considering Biodiversity and Niche Construction
The frontiers o f biodiversity and ecosystem functioning research are rapidly
expanding as new approaches and technologies, and a rapidly growing database,
allow researchers to address questions at levels of precision and scale not possible in
1992 when the field formally began. There is no question that we need new data,
tools, and approaches to understand how growing biotic impoverishment and biotic
homogenization will influence ecosystem functioning and the environmental and
economic fates of nations... The central environmental message of biodiversity and
ecosystem functioning research, to conserve biodiversity to improve human
wellbeing, has historically been essentially utilitarian in its reasoning. This focus is
sometimes understandably seen as contrary to widespread and urgent conservation
efforts to save species and ecosystems from extinction for non-utilitarian, cultural
reasons. (Naeem, Duffy, & Zavaleta, 2012, p. 1406)
The important thing about organisms (other than humans) in ecosystems is that they
did not require international agreement or environmental awareness to organize a
homeostatic and profitable global system that was sustained for billions of years.
Salamanders, for example, are innately sustainable. Why has it become so important to teach
fellow human beings what was once a part of our natural evolutionary condition? Is teaching
environmental awareness or social marketing of environmental behaviour effective? The
niche construction pedagogical perspective that I have developed in this thesis suggests an
alternative approach that could be more successful and self-sustaining.
The niche construction pedagogical theory that was incorporated into my curricula
and study addresses the very processes that modulate the resource base (for example,
ecosystem goods and services, Figure 1). The approach involves students in the ecological
engineering process by creating the conditions in which students have opportunities to design
educational environments so that they can functionally self-invest in a homeostatic economy.
My research on a biophilia effect as potentially measured by the MEI responses or by
behavioural observation, contrasted the student-leaming to environment relationships as
though the study design created a closed system.

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A critical component of the niche construction process is that it addresses the
dimensional aspects of biodiversity that are not wholly covered in species-based approaches.
This was addressed in the literature review, where it was revealed that biodiversity is more
than species, which is only a measure of taxonomic diversity. Biodiversity also includes
phylogenetic diversity (genealogical relations over time), genetic diversity, spatial or
temporal diversity, landscape diversity, and functional diversity (Naeem, Duffy, & Zavaleta,
2012). The niche construction process not only stimulates the singular dimension of species
diversity but it is a process that ecologically engineers the multiple dimensions to
biodiversity that functionally sustain and regenerate ecosystem goods and services (Figure 1)
that the curricula (Appendix B) were designed to access. Likewise, biophilia may also be
expanded to include behavioural motivation or desire to value not only species but a broader
spectrum of biodiversity that the niche construction approach can access.
Indeed, species targeted for conservation, reserves, and protected areas represent a
tiny fraction of the biosphere and are therefore not likely to strongly influence
biogeochemically derived ecosystem services such as carbon sequestration and food
production. Yet the cultural values of biological diversity can themselves be construed
as ecosystem services, and their preservation is fully coherent with nonutilitarian
conservation efforts and arguably no less important. Nothing in biodiversity and
ecosystem functioning research should dissuade conservation from its efforts to bring
our age of extinction to a halt. (Naeem, Duffy, & Zavaleta, 2012, p. 1406)
In comparison to the niche construction pedagogy, the Emulated Natural Disturbance
approach to forest management (Kreutzweiser, Sibley, Richardson & Gordon, 2012) and the
theory behind it aim to emulate or mimic processes of natural disturbance, such as matching
the spatial patterns of fire in a harvest. The process lets foresters and industrial investors
engineer and incorporate a managed disturbance into their plans.
Sections of my literature review consider traditional environmental educational
initiatives that focus on recycling, energy efficiency, and a long list of “Earth friendly”

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strategies aimed to get everyone involved, to pitch in, and do their part. However, in contrast
to an ecosystem engineering approach these strategies seem highly ineffective in the longerterm because they are largely disconnected from the ecological processes and represent an
ecological dysfunction that may be the root cause of pollution, climate change, and the
extinction of life.
Niche construction pedagogy is an ecological approach to deal with these issues in a
direct way. Rather than focusing on teaching environmental awareness, my proposal for
niche construction pedagogy concentrates on getting students involved directly in the kinds
of ecological activities that have the potential to generate natural capital. Students linked into
the inertia of a niche-constructed economy can enable a natural metabolism for producing
and sustaining a steady supply ecological goods and services (Figure 1). According to the
theory, the general well-being in society would be increased for a greater number of
individuals as the activities and their choices modify their own niche and other’s that become
linked collectively, directly, and freely into the commonwealth that is created out of the niche
construction process.
Niche construction pedagogical theory and practice may suffer educational and social
prejudice because nature study is not accepted as a current instructional approach. Yet, my
reading and experience as an ecologist have compelled me to believe that nature study is the
most vital means to exercise and advance sustainable scientific knowledge in a way that is
healthy. A broad analysis on research into direct engagement and learning outdoors broadly
supports the premise that educators and students “have a greater sense of satisfaction in their
lives” (Blanchet-Cohen & Elliot, 2011, p. 759). There are more opportunities for

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development of the learning environment, the educator and the student through increased
access to natural spaces.
During the outdoor teaching program in this study, students were actively engaged in
physical activities, excavating logs, digging through dirt, sifting through soil, and wading
through wetlands. Children learned peripatetically because the curricula spanned three
environments, including a forested park with wetlands, urban ecosystems with forests and
wetlands, and indoors at the Exploration Place museum. The indoor group differed from the
urban ecology and outdoor group through the exclusion of direct niche constructing
activities. Outdoor learning presented students with opportunities to directly engage and
manipulate soils and organisms in local ecosystems. The two outdoor student groups
bioturbated soils, foraged on wild berries, and added disturbance to the sites where they
learned. In short, the curricula enabled and encouraged ecological engineering from the
students, although the experiment was short-term relative to the broader implications of the
primary research questions entailing niche construction theory.

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CHAPTER VI: SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS
The concept of the Junior Amphibian Ecologist League was part of an educational
initiative for the non-profit conservation charity that I initiated in 2003. The curricula that I
delivered and evaluated in this study were part of this conservation leadership initiative. A
paper by Manolis et al. (2008) identifying the importance of building on leadership theory
and practice in conservation science inspired me to link this study to my leadership position
within NAMOS BC (Northern Amphibian Monitoring Outpost Society). As the director for
this conservation-orientated charity, my goals were to develop an effective and practical
conservation initiative. Specifically to develop curricula that could encourage learning
practices that would sow the seeds of ecoliteracy for youth in the Prince George area.
Outcomes of the Ecoliteracy Research
Moving a step beyond the biophilia hypotheses, I inferred that longer-term outcomes
for conservation behaviour could be further enhanced by building on the principles and
insights that have grown out of niche construction theory in the past decade (Odling-Smee,
Erwin, Palkovacs, Feldman, & Laland, 2013). Therefore, a further goal that went into the
development of my curricula was to engage learners in activities that would also mimic the
natural process of ecosystem engineering, where students could modify their learning
environments that could potentially, in turn, modify their learning experience as niche
construction theory would predict. The peripatetic approach also allowed students the
opportunity to engage experientially with the natural habitats adjacent to urban areas. This
approach avails access and the opportunity for students to create wealth in their learning
community via ecological goods and services (Figure 1).

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Curricular environments. I developed nature study curricula on amphibian ecology
and conservation that transected different areas of Prince George, including rural parkland,
urban parkland, and the Exploration Place Museum, which are all nature-orientated centers
and places where families can visit. In the process of delivering the curricula, I also
considered the educational and ecological resources that are available in the city for
executing this type of curricula.
I did not expect that an amphibian would be encountered in Moore's Meadow as
occurred in my urban parkland group. My repeated annual searches within that park area
have only resulted in a single observation of a long-toed salamander in 2006. The locations
of amphibian habitats within the urban perimeter are not well known. This kind of
information is important for the future development of nature-orientated programs and
outdoor learning activities within the city. Nature study is becoming identified as an
important component in the educational system of an increasingly urban world (Ardoin,
Clark, & Kelsey, 2013). My study and further research that has been conducted by NAMOS
BC has provided an early glimpse into the spatial arrangement of amphibian habitats within
the Prince George area in relation to schoolyards and other places that might be of interest to
an urban planner or to school educators organizing field trips.
Study limitations. The MEI was distributed and completed by students using a
pretest-posttest study design. However, the two groups provided significantly different
responses in the pretest prior to the educational intervention. This indicates that the initial
conditions were not ideal to study the effect of the treatment. A larger sample size is more
likely to provide an overall representation of children within Prince George. A larger sample
size would also add to the robustness of the quantitative analysis to highly polar viewpoints.

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Furthermore, a strong control group consisting of students that had never taken part in any
form of nature study intervention could have improved on the study design.
The identified limitation of the quantitative component to my study design means that
a statistical inference could not achieve validity in reference to my hypotheses [1], in its
abductive form:
[1] Rule: Students with increasing direct experience in nature study (that is, rural parkland),
correspondingly respond more favorably to the MEI ecological values and students
without direct experience in nature study (that is, urban parkland and indoor) will
remain indifferent (no effect).
Result: Students in group 1 exhibit higher endorsement of MEI ecological

values.

.: Case: Students in group 1 are significantly affected in favor of and by the nature-study
experience.
However, the item analysis shows significant internal consistency, which means that
the responses had a high degree of reliability. Although the treatments could not be tested
quantitatively with confident validity, the overall responses and item analysis provides
insight into the way that students might respond generally to the values that the items were
designed to study. Moreover, the item analysis also offers guidance for future refinement of
the MEI instrument and modular approach. The study was also limited by the very nature of
the biophilia hypothesis and its connections to niche construction pedagogy, which would
require methodological development and experimental treatment beyond short-term feedback
from a written response based instrument.

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Contributions of the Study
Conservation educators or teachers may be inspired by my description of the activities
of the Junior Amphibian Conservation League to adopt a niche construction pedagogical
approach for designing nature study lessons. Although the quantitative analysis in this study
did not provide an effective test of the hypothesis [1], the item analysis, the experiences
gained by myself and the students, and the information obtained about the ecological
resources in Prince George for nature study programs may be seen as worthwhile
contributions. This study into the practicability of launching a biophilic, niche constructionbased curricula revealed that valuable places remain within Prince George's urban ecology
where educators may be able to provide and enhance nature study programs or outdoor
learning opportunities.
This study also revealed how the niche construction capabilities of children within
city limits are limited by the distance required for travel from one ecosystem to another.
There are also legislative hurdles in involving people in a participatory approach to
education. Ballouard, Provost, Barre and Bonnet (2012), for example, identified handling of
snakes as the most preferred activity. Handling and direct contact with wildlife is identified
as a critical component in the biophila experience but the Wildlife Act of BC requires a
permit for the handling of wildlife, including amphibians. Further work is needed to bridge
the divide between the legislative concern for harm to wildlife and conservation educators
noting the psychological benefits for direct experiential values that develop in school
children.
Few amphibians inhabit the urban periphery of Prince George where breeding wet
lands and migratory networks have been built over. Promoting the participatory nature of

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niche constructing activities in a learning environment is a novel approach that may face
some hurdles.
The theory of niche construction pedagogy describes the combined means by which
knowledge, experience and practice of ecosystem management are captured, stored, revived
and transmitted over time (Colding & Barthel, 2013, p 160). I selected the topic of
amphibians because rate of global decline that has been measured in this group of animals
has become a pressing concern for conservation biologists. This makes it all the more
important to understand how people are valuing and understanding the issue of amphibian
declines. Other educators may agree that a valid and reliable instrument is needed to evaluate
the effectiveness of nature study lessons and help to develop an instrument that provides
decision makers with compelling reasons to improve on community-based outdoor learning
opportunities for children. Other educators may improve on my instrument design more
generally and in specific relation to the modules that were adopted from other studies. The
NC module looks promising as a first of its kind to investigate the economic worth of nature.
The VTK was my attempt to develop a module focused specifically on amphibians. At the
time this study was designed, published modules were unavailable to address the
herpetological side of ecological values.
Closing Remarks
Other scientists may be inspired by my efforts to communicate with the non-scientific
community, especially with those young people who will inherit a new world with fewer
amphibians lacking more natural spaces. Recent studies into the biophilic or nature-based
values of school children, even specific research into herpetofauna (Ballouard, Provost, Barre
and Bonnet ,2012; Tomazic, 2011) points the value of my research and curricular objective to

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integrate learning with ecological processes so that students and educators can become agents
of biophilic design in their learning environments. The potential benefit of increased
biophilia and niche construction opportunities continue to inspire me to persist in grappling
with the problems posed here, having learned from the specified limitations and experiences
described. It is my intent to utilize a revised version of the MEI in future studies that would
involve an external control group not involved in the lesson plans and sampled from a more
general educational setting, such as public schools. It is also my goal to use these data and
the knowledge gained from my research and teaching experience to improve on the curricula
and share the lessons learned to a wider community of leaders invested in the conservation of
nature and education.

I ll
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Wyman, R. L. (1998). Experimental assessment of salamanders as predators of detrital food
webs: effects on invertebrates, decomposition and the carbon cycle. Biodiversity and
Conservation, 7(5), 641-650.
Zak, K. M., & Munson, B. H. (2008). An exploratory study of elementary preservice
teachers’ understanding of ecology using concept maps. The Journal o f
Environmental Education, 39(3), 32-46.
Zelenski, J.M. & Nisbet, E.K. Happiness and feeling connected: The distinct role of nature
relatedness. Environment and Behavior, 1-21.10.1177/003916512451901

125
APPENDIX A JUNIOR AMPHIBIAN ECOLOGIST LEAGUE ANNOUNCEMENT
POSTER.

126

^NAMOS BCVl
JUNIOR AMPHIBIAN ECOLOGIST LEAGUE

FREE Outdoor Science Program for Children!!
•

Participate in a UNBC Graduate Study - Masters of Education Program.

•

Completely FREE - free books, free supervision, and lots of fun activities!

•

Please e-mail to register your spot today! Three Groups - five children par group, Ages 10-14.

•

Parents and guardians are welcome to join us to team about the amphibians erf Prince George!

Group 1
Thursday August 25,2011
8:30am-4:30pm
Friday August 26,2011
8:30am-4:30pm
Saturday August 27,2011
8:30am-Noon
Sunday August 28,2011
8:30am-4:30pm
Monday August 29,2011
8:30am-4:30pm

Group2

____ Group 3

Tuesday August 30th, 2011
Friday September 9,2011
9aro-4:30pm
6pm-8:30pm
Wednesday August 31st, 2011
Saturday September 10,2011
9am-4:30pm I
9am-4:30pm
Friday September 2nd, 2011
jSunday September 11,2011
9am-Noon
j
9am-4:30pm

!

Saturday September 3rd, 2011
;Saturday September 17,2011
9am:4:30pm i
9am-4:30pm
Sunday September 4th, 2011
ISunday September 18,2011 9am9am:4:30pm 4:30pm

I
|

Contact: Mark D. Thompson
E-mail: ecotogy@namos.ca

127
APPENDIX B. CURRICULUM BOOKLETS.

128

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M embers of th e Junior Amphibian Ecologist league will learn about local
am phibians and their ecological functions th a t su stain th e soils, w etlan d s
and com m unities of th e Central Interior of British Columbia

131

A NAMOS BC (Northern Amphibian Monitoring O utpost Society) publication.
©2011
By: Mark D. Thompson - BSc, MSc

r^NAMOS BC*,
NAMOS BC
c/o UNBC
3333 University Way
Prince George BC
V2N 4Z9
Web: http://www.namos.ca/
C ontact:ecology@namos.ca

3

132

Learning contents
Activity 1 - Materials, Handouts, & an Introduction to the Terminology............. 5
Activity 2 - Decomposing logs....................................................................................9
Activity 3 - Terrestrial Amphibian Survey - Line Transect..................................... 13
Activity 4 - Terrestrial Amphibian Survey - Biomass..............................................15
Activity 5 - Amphibian Ecology - Trophic Pyramids and Food-Webs................. 17
Activity 6 - The Aquatic Transition - The Riparian Zone........................................ 21
Activity 7 - Aquatic and Wetland Ecology of Amphibians..................................... 25
Glossary........................................................................................................................ 30

4

133

Activity 1:
Materials, Handouts, & an Introduction to the Terminology
Learning Objectives. In this first activity w e will introduce ourselves to everyone and
to the science of amphibian ecology. Your instructor will run through the handouts and
m aterials that will be used in your training a s a junior am phibian ecologist. W e will go
over and learn the activity term s a s w e gather to d iscu ss the nature of the junior
amphibian ecologist program.

Activity Terms. Ecology, Environment, Nature, Amphibian, Metamorphosis, Habitat,
Algae, Photosynthesis, Energy, Matter, Symbiosis

Introduction to the Ecology of Amphibians
In the early days of civilization, children and natural historians devoted a great
am ount of time observing, collecting, and planting natural things. The m odern ecologist
h as inherited a great legacy of knowledge that h as been p ast down over the
generations. In their q u est to understand and probe the m ost complex riddles of life,
ecologists continue to take part in the tradition of natural history. Ecologists observe
nature a s they collect data, hypothesize, test, and then report on the intricate w onders
and inner workings of the natural world. The junior am phibian ecologist league will
teach som e of the m ethods that ecologist have developed to effectively study and
learn about am phibians.

Nature en c o m p a sse s all living things from the tiniest bacteria to the largest
animal on Earth, the blue whale. Nature also em bodies non-living things, including
physical matter, the sun, moon, rocks, minerals, water, energy, and the chemistry of
the surrounding environment. Nature is relentlessly on the move, spinning, ticking,
flowing, chirping, and crawling about. S om e parts m ove slowly, like a snail acro ss a
leaf, yet its tiny nerves sen d signals at 1/3 the sp e ed of sound! S om e parts are large
5

134

and rapid like a volcanic eruption, or slow a s a continent drifting apart. T here are
creatu res in the various dom ains of life that have big effects on our lives that cannot be
se e n by the naked eye, such a s viruses and 'bacteria-like' arch aean s. T h ese sm aller
creatu res contribute importantly to the ecology of life on this planet, but this booklet will
focus mainly on plants, animals, fungi, and bacteria in relation to am phibian ecology.

Amphibians include frogs, toads, salam an d ers, and limbless caecilians (Figure
1). Frogs start life a s a tadpole (Figure 2). T adpoles graze on sedim ents to feed on tiny
photosynthetic plants called algae (Figure 3). H ence, frogs are connected to plants in a
w eb of feeding relations. There are m any kinds of ecological connections that bind
com m unities together. Eggs, for exam ple, are attached to sticks or b lades g rass
(Figure 4). Frogs hide, swim, and hop am ong lily p ad s and duck w eed (Figure 2).
S alam anders burrow into decom posing logs and e a t bugs that e a t plants (Figure 2).
S alam ander eg g s also provide habitat for photosynthetic alg ae (Figure 4) and in som e
c a s e s symbiotic alg ae even live in salam an d er cells! T hese linkages create ecological
highways and opportunities for ex ch an g e of biological or physical m atter and energy.
In the sa m e way that an exchange ta k e s place every time you buy lettuce, carrots, or
broccoli at the grocery store, ecology h as been described a s the econom y of nature.

N ewts

Figure 1. Photographs of the different kinds of amphibians (a-d) and a family tree
showing how they are related to each other (inset). The panels include: a) wood frog,
b) caecilian, c) western toad, d) long-toed salamander. Only a, c, & d live in British
Columbia's habitats; the caecilians live in tropical regions of the planet.
6

Amphibian Habitats
Amphibians are a valuable resource. They are the herbivores and predators in wetland and soil
ecosystems. Highly energetic creatures, their activities empower the ecology of natural environments.

Like all creatures on Earth, amphibians are made of various kinds of minerals and nutrients. When they
migrate through their habitats, they spread things around. The combined action of bQlions upon billions of
wfaMttM

tuththi rim «1m i tf* W .

Spotted frogs and wood frogs tend to stay in or
near the water to hunt for aquatic bugs. All
come to the wetland to mate and lay

i u t anfla B a S j

d
Western toads are voracious
predators as they hunt at night
in great migrating herds. Large
numbers of toads hop A crawl
along the forest floor devouring

bugs along their path. Toads
Long-toed salamanders burrow,

rootaround, andhunt far

restem toads lay strings of
eggs amongst the vegetation.
Egg jellies of amphibians
provide habitat for bacteria,
fungi, and algae. The algae can be directly
twigs and blades of grass submerged
under the water. The egg jellies add
sfbktitogtcri

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Figure 2. An illustration of amphibian habitats.

136

Figure 3. Tiny green algae cells photographed and magnified under a microscope.

Figure 4. Photographs of larval long-toed salamanders preparing to hatch from their
eggs. The green coloration is caused by tiny algae in the eggs. Some eggs do not
survive. Can you locate the dead egg?

8

137

Activity 2: Decomposing logs
Learning objectives:
•
•
•
•

To collect, classify, and m easu re facts about decom posing logs
To understand decom position and soil biodiversity
To piece together the niche of the salam an d er
To learn how to navigate and read th e history of the land

Activity Terms. Landscape, Decomposition, Minerals, Nutrients, Biomass,
Biodiversity, Species, Invertebrates, Bugs, Fungi, Lichen, Plot

As trees fall, they open g ap s in the forest. T h ese small bits of disturbance add
complexity to the landscape. New patterns em erg e a s different sp e cie s and
seedlings establish them selves in the sun filled g aps. Fallen logs create new
habitats and start to decom pose. D ecom posing logs leave behind a recorded history
of sta g e s of ecological succession in th e se g aps, from a pioneer to a climax
community. In this activity, w e will m easu re and classify decom posing logs, which is
the primary hunting grounds and habitat of the long-toed salam ander.
Methods: Four terrestrial sites and two aquatic sites that will be visited are
m apped (Figure 5). It is ask ed that you have a parent or guardian drop you off at the
main parking lots for each site. O nce the class m eets and gets organized, the
instructor will show you how to use a co m p ass an d G PS to navigate toward our
precise destinations:
•

Day 1: M oores M eadow Park - m eet at parking lot off Foothills. Site A: 10U,
512543, 5976510
• Day 2: Cottonwood Island Park - m eet at PG railway and forestry m useum
parking lot. Site B: 10U, 517970, 5974983

9

138

• Day 3: College Heights G reenbelt - m eet and park at College Heights
Secondary. Site C: 10U, 516080, 5968259
• Day 4: H udson's Bay Slough - park at Exploration Place. Site D: 10U, 517236,
5972461
• Day 5: F orests for the World - m eet at S h an e Lake. Site E:10U, 510889,
5971061, Site F=10U, 510370, 5970804
The class will first sam ple and study the terrestrial life of am phibians by
looking at decom posing logs. Your instructor will dem onstrate how to do a circular
plot at Site A (Figure 5). Within the plot, your instructor will go over th e classification
of decom posing logs a s shown in Figures 6 & 7. The class will collectively identify
and classify logs in each circular plot that will be com pleted at sites A and B (figure
5). T oads or salam an d ers that we capture will be exam ined, weighed, m easured,
and photographed a s w e discuss their natural history biology. The depth of the soil
organic horizon and litter layer will be m easured. W e will exam ine and study each
log in detail using a dissecting m icroscope and guide books to learn about and
identify the various living and non-living com ponents. Everyone will have an
opportunity for han d s on experience.

A ssig n m e n t: You will notice that our sampling sites are predominantly
contained within the urban perim eter of Prince G eorge (Figure 5). W e are going to
learn about the urban ecology of am phibians. How do you think this will affect your
ch an ces of catching or seeing an am phibian? How might this change th e type and
am ount of logs w e encounter? W e will review and discuss th ese questions a s a
class.

10

Figure 5. An image of a Prince George city map with five (A-E) GoogleEarth insets
showing the locations that will be visited.

11

140
C la s s 1

C la s s 3

C la s s 2

C la s s 5

C la s s 4

.

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Wood Texture

Portion on Ground

Bronchos
Bark
Invading roots
Approximate ago
(yoan)

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^

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.

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- - J V

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......... /
Class 3
Class 2
Class 4
Class 5
Rot outside, hard Hard (spongy if Smal.blocky
Soft, small
inside, thumbnai wet), large
pieces crumble pieces crumble ’
penetrates
pieces
h hand (mushy
in hand
when wet)
Elevated by
Elevated and
Sagging near Entire log settled
Entrelog
sagging slightly
ground, or
support
onground,
sunksn
branches
broken
sinking
Present-hard Present, but soft Stubs <3 cm
Absent
Absent
few twigs
with twigs
Intact
Absent
Absent
Intact but loose Trace amounts
In outer
None
Throughout and Throughout and
None
fungi present
fungi present
sapwoodand
fungi present
0-4
13-35
30-150
3-14
>35
Class 1
Intact, hard

Figure 6. Classification of decomposing logs at different stages of development.

Main Function

Types o f Decomposing Logs

Main Vertebrate Users

Type 1: Large Concealed Spaces

Cats, mustelids, grouse,
Snowshoe Hare, Bushy-tailed
Woodrat, Porcupine, canids,
Black Bear

Type 2: Small Concealed Spaces (or Soft
Substrate Allowing Excavation of Such
Spaces) at or below Ground Level
beneath Hard Material

Amphibians, snakes, shrews,
voles, squirrels, Deer Mouse,
jumping mice, weasels

Type 3: Small Concealed Spaces above Ground
Level

Winter Wren, Townsend’s
Solitaire, Northern Waterthrush,
Pacific Treeffog, flycatchers,
other passerines. Deer Mouse

Concealed
Travel runways

Type 4: Long Concealed Spaces (or Soft
Substrate Allowing Construction of
Runways)

Long-toed Salamander, voles,
Rubber Boa, shrews, Deer
Mouse, squirrels, weasels

Type 5: Large or Elevated, Long Material Gear
of Dense Vegetation, Exposed & Raised

Squirrels, Marten

Travel lanes

Type 6: Invertebrates in Wood, under Bark or
Moss Cover, or in Litter/Humus

Amphibians, woodpeckers,
Winter Wren, shrews, Deer
Mouse, Striped Skunk, bears

Hibernation, Reproduction,
Resting, Escape,
Thermoregulation (Temperature)
Hygraregulation (Moisture)

Foraging & Feeding
Substrates

Figure 7. Classification of the functional types of decomposing logs.

12

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Activity 3: Terrestrial Amphibian Survey - Line Transect
Learning objectives:
• To learn how to sam ple populations using quadrat, plots, or tran sects
• To search of am phibians and classify decom posing logs in their habitat
Activity Terms. Niche, Landscape, Population, Community, Succession, Transect,
Fact, Data, Taxonomy, Bacteria

Scientists work with different units of m easurem ent to characterize ecological
habitats. This activity will introduce you to the transect, which is o n e m ethod used to
m easu re ecological attributes. W e will u se a tran sect scaled to sam ple the
decom posing logs. A decom posing log sitting on top of soil is the m ost advanced
recycling system on the planet. Soil is like a big stom ach for plants that slowly
digests fallen logs to release the m inerals and nutrients that plants need.
Amphibians are the keystone predator that prowl through decom posing logs. Their
predatory actions help to directly regulate the invertebrate community that bores,
digs, and feed s on and in the decom posing logs. In this way, am phibians contribute
significantly to the rates and p ro cess of decomposition in th e recycling of logs into
soil and back into plants.
Materials & Methods: On day 2, the class will m eet at th e PG railway and
forestry m useum parking lot n ear site B (Figure 5). As a class exercise, w e will run a
tran sect 20 m eters in length to record data on decom posing logs (Figure 8). A stake
will be used to mark a starting point. A 20 m eter string will be tied to the stak e and
run through a section of the forest. Your instructor will walk out in a straight line
using a com pass while carrying the string to mark out the tran sect line. O ne student
will be in charge of recording the data. Two students will be in ch arg e of m easuring
the width and length of each log that the string intersects (Figure 8, right panel). The

13

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remaining students will determ ine how the log should be classified while also looking
for am phibians. Two tran se cts will be run, one at site B (Figure 5) and the class will
decide after lunch w here w e will run the seco n d transect.
— Transect Line

Class 1, type 1, width 25cm, length=20m
—Ye* - Tally Log

Wood Frog

Yes • Tally Log

Class 1, type 1, width 10 cm, length=12m
Salamander

No - Out of Bounds

Salamander

Figure 8. An illustration of a 20 meter transect with data on decomposing logs and
amphibians. The left side shows how a decomposing log must run through the
transect in order to be tallied into the notebook. The right side shows how the
transect data can be recorded in a field notebook.

A ssig n m e n t: After running the transects, w e will discuss a s a class the
activity term s and how they relate to the d ata gathered. T he class will be shown how
th e se transects can be used to estim ate how many salam an d ers are likely to exist in
a defined and m easurable area. The following questions will be discussed:
•

How many tran sects would be n eed ed to accurately describe a salam ander's
habitat?

•

Do you think your results would be different if the transect w as run during the
nighttime?

14

143

Activity 4: Terrestrial Amphibian Survey - Biomass
Learning objectives:
• To count populations and estim ate biom ass
• To estim ate the biom ass of m aterials in a decom posing log
Activity Terms. Quadrat, Burlese Funnel, Biomass, Detritus
Plants are completely d ependent upon the bacteria, fungi, and all the digestive
system s of all the other soil critters, including am phibians. The collective action of
th e se creatures d ecom pose logs, leaves, and other litter into digested and then
usable nutritive material for plants. For exam ple, the older logs that are in an
advanced sta g e of decomposition (C lass 3-5, Figure 4), becom e nurse logs. T h ese
nurse logs supply mineral nutrients and the physical foundations that facilitate the
growth of new seedlings. Biom ass is a short way of biological m ass. The weight of
things or the am ount of energy stored in living things is a m easu re of their biom ass.

Methods & Materials: Continuing from site B (Figure 5) on day 2, th e class
will deconstruct a decom posing log (class 4 to 5, and type 6). Materials include:
weight scale, calipers, collection vials, tw eezers, digital cam era with su p er m acro
lens, and microscope. A 10 cm X 10 cm quadrat will be used to take five m easured
sections of a log and surrounding soil. Populations of shrubs, m oss, lichens, se e d s,
leaves, needles, fungi, salam anders, frogs, toads, beetles, ants, harm less w asps,
worms, and cute little spiders will be sorted, counted, and weighed. The leaf litter (or
detritus) sam ples will left overnight in a B erlese funnel (Figure 9).

15

144

Assignment: Each student will take one B erlese funnel hom e. In th e morning
pour the vegetable oil and bugs into a small container and bring this to Activity 5.

■Cover
- Light source

Cut & inverted
" pop bottle
- Soil or forest litter

Falling bugs
Vegetable oil
F ig u re 9. A B erlese funnel for collecting bugs out of soil or forest litter.

16

145

Activity 5: Amphibian Ecology - Trophic Pyramids and Food-Webs
Learning objectives:
• To classify and study bugs from the Burlese funnels
• To organize the trophic organization, energyflow, biom ass assimilation,
and food w ebs of places visited
Activity Terms. Producer, Consumer, Trophic Species, Predator, Energy,
Ectotherm, Endotherm, Herbivore, Omnivore, Detrivore, Food Web, Heterotroph,
Autotroph, Metabolism, Assimilation

O rganism s are linked into communities. The feeding habits of organism s
provide important linkages in food w ebs. W hat and who an organism feed s on
determ ines w here the energy and nutrients are being transported and exchanged.
Interesting patterns em erge w hen ecologists group different organism s into different
feeding categories called trophic sp ecies. The num ber and biom ass of different
sp ecies and how they link to plants and then to each other a s so u rce s of energy and
nutrients crea tes w hat is called a trophic pyramid (Figure 10). All eco sy stem s can be
split into two very broad trophic layers: 1) the autotrophic self-nourishing organism s,
and 2) the heterotrophic organism s that consum e others for nourishm ent (Figure
10a).

17

146
a.

b.
Secondary Predator
. Primary Predators
BBk

*5

Herbivores
T \ Plants

I

-Autotrophs

Soil

Decay
- Heterotrophs
Detrivores

Figure 10. Organisms that capture nourishment of feed in a like manner are
arranged into trophic layers. A trophic pyramid (a) is a common emergent pattern in
forested ecosystems. Organisms are layered according to their biomass, which
decreases in concentration up the trophic pyramid. Predators hold the least amount
of biomass in most ecosystems. Plants support the base and hold the greatest
amount of biomass. Ecologists study the transfer of energy and nutrients through the
various feeding relationships that link communities into a food web structure (b).
Plants are autotrophic primary producers (Figure 10a) and obtain their energy
from the sun directly. They m ake their own food by absorbing nutrients through their
roots and by converting the su n 's energy, carbon dioxide, and w ater into su g a rs and
other organic com pounds along their stem s and leaves. As plants grow, they
assim ilate the su n 's energy and store it into the biochemical bonds of carbon b ased
m olecules. The photosynthetic conversion of energy and th e metabolic assimilation
of nutrients into biom ass is called primary production.

Plants u se less m etabolic energy than heterotrophic consum ers, such a s
am phibians. H eterotrophs include herbivores (plant eaters), predators (animal
hunters), om nivores (will e a t plant or animal), and detrivores (eats detritus).
Heterotrophs consum e others to m etabolize and assim ilate m atter and energy into
biom ass. They run at a higher metabolic rate than plants to fuel the diverse kinds of
activities of they perform, including migration, foraging, hunting, reproducing, and
regulating body tem peratures. The metabolic digestion of food adding to body

18

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biom ass in heterotrophs collectively ad d s to levels of secondary production in a
trophic pyramid.

Feeding relationships in an ecological community link together into a food w eb
(Figure 10b). At the b a s e of the food web, d ead creatures, leaves, pollen, and s e e d s
accum ulate on the ground or in the water. This mixture of organic w aste is called
detritus and is broken apart, eaten, and digested by detrivores. The detrivores
usually include worms, bugs, fungi, and bacteria. Detritus is a very important part of
food-webs, b ec au se it contains a lot of energy. The p ro cess of decom position
transform s detritus into nourishing soil that feed s into the roots of plants.

The density and size of amphibian populations can have a significant impact
on rates of decom position a s they feed on many of the detrivorous bugs and they
disturb and dig tunnels through the soil. The very p resen ce of am phibians actually
ch an g es the way that the habitat looks. Amphibians regulate the ecology of soil
formation and primary production of plants through various food-web linkages
(Figure 10b). They are busily employed in their ecological activities (such a s
bioturbation or ingestion) that either helps or d ep letes other creatures. The
ecological community is ad ap ted to the modifications that am phibians en g ineer into
their environm ents.

M aterials & M eth o d s: The class will m eet at the Exploration P lace (near site
D, Figure 5) w here w e will gather around and pour the bug collections from our
Burlese funnels (Figure 9) into trays to tally and sort them into the following trophic
groups: predator, herbivore, omnivore, or detrivore. Your instructor will a ssist in the
identification of bugs a s w e learn about their diets. Using d ata collected from our
plots, transects, and quadrats, we will obtain estim ates of biom ass densities of each
functional trophic group (including estim ates for plants and detritus).

19

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Assignment: As a group w e will estim ate the biom ass of each trophic group.
T h ese estim ates will be stacked to s e e if w e have found a trophic pyramid (Figure
10a). The class will d iscu ss the outcom e of the patterns w e see.
Your assignm ent is to draw a food w eb that looks like the one illustrated in
Figure 10b, but draw the creatures (including plants) you saw in th e decom posing
logs. The class will u se the information w e have learned about trophic feeding in our
collections to build a food w eb using M arsh Market exercise
(http://www.wetland.org/downloads/Marsh%20Market.pdf) Created by WOW! The Wonders o f

Wetlands.

20

149

Activity 6: The Aquatic Transition - The Riparian Zone
Learning objectives:
• To study the linkage betw een terrestrial forests and w etlands
• To learn the basics of wetland classification
• To learn about the ecology of the w ater cycle
Activity Terms. Wetland (Marsh, Bog, Swamp, Pond), Riparian, Hydrology, Water
Cycle, Evaporation, Migration, Dispersal, Cohort, Home Range

A riparian zone is a transitional a re a w edged betw een terrestrial and aquatic
ecosystem s. The boundary of a riparian zone extends from the w aters ed g e to
upland a re a s that have been influenced by the ecological transition (Figure 11).
There is a very complex exchange of energy and nutrients that runs through riparian
zones. W e will learn about th e se ex ch an g es by learning about th e life cycle of
am phibians and the seaso n al rhythm or clockwork of events that take place and
define the nature of their habitats.

Forested
•Riparian—

Adults

Eggs

Larva Juveniles

Figure 11. An illustration showing the transition from a terrestrial zone (forested in
this example), a riparian zone, and the aquatic zone. The life cycle of a salamander
is also illustrated into the different zones.

21

150

The term riparian stem s from a Latin word that m ean s "of or belonging to the
bank of a river". However, th e modern m eaning refers to the transitional a re a
betw een a terrestrial and aquatic zone, which can also include lakes and ponds.
Riparian zon es are also part of a dynam ic se aso n a l ch an g e that begins with a
spring, sum m er drought, rainy fall, and freezing winters. Many small w etlands start
out a s stream s but puddle into ponds or even dry out a s w ater supplies dwindle.

There is a se aso n a l rhythm in natural la n d scap es (Figure 12a). S izes of
w etlands fluctuate seasonally a s the su n 's energy drives the w ater cycle.
Evaporation accum ulates w ater in the atm osphere and precipitates a s rain and
snow. The timing, perm anence, and distribution of w etlands impact the migratory
linkages and survival of amphibian populations (Figure 12b). The changing statu s of
a wetland im pacts w ater concentrations in the adjacent soils w here adults like to
hunt and rest.

Figure 12. An illustration of a dynamically evolving wetland (a). Water levels change
over seasons (1-4) and this effects amphibian migratory networks and pathways (b)
as they populate habitats across the landscape.

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Frogs tend to forage closer to w etlands, w h ereas to ad s and salam an d ers
migrate aw ay from w etlands and hunt d ee p er into the forest. Different a g e cohorts,
size ranges, and sp e cie s of am phibians may occur in the riparian zo n e (Figure 11).
W estern to ad s and long-toed salam an d ers migrate annually from terrestrial hunting
grounds to breed in w etlands. They migrate through their hom e range, which is
usually less than several kilometers in size. Juveniles are more likely to disperse
into other area s, but many am phibians like to stay a t hom e and return to their place
of birth to lay e g g s of their own.

Materials & Methods. T h e c l a s s will navigate to site C (Figure 5), our
first wetland area. S tudents will walk the trail ed g e along the H udson's Bay slough.
This area is a Ducks Unlimited W etland restoration site. The class will flip debris a t
the w aters ed g e and visually search for am phibians in the water. D ecom posing logs
will be flipped and search ed for frogs, toads, and salam anders. As the class m oves
along the trail, each student will write a log in their journal about the so rts of
creatures you find, w hat the habitat looks like, and any other notes that may be
relevant to an urban ecologist.
Assignment. The class will return to exploration place to will work on a
GoogleEarth mapping exercise. W e will m easu re the forested land a re a available to
am phibians at sites A-E. The class will supplied with d ata that w as collected on leaf
litter and am phibians from a wetland in F orests for the World.
Using the data, the class will organize th e am phibians into two groups, 1)
adults from the riparian zone and 2) adults from the terrestrial forest. As a class we
will discuss and answ er the following questions:

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• Are the adults in the terrestrial forest larger than th o se in the riparian zon e?
•

Do you think the length of the animal is an indication of its a g e ?

•

Do you think there is sufficient habitat for am phibians to live in sites A-D
(Figure 5)?

•

How might you te st your answ er to the previous question?

S hare your thoughts and answ ers in the class discussion. The class will also review
the Duck's Unlimited wetland classification sch em e showing illustrations of a bog,
fen, m arsh, and pond (=shallow open water).

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Activity 7: Aquatic and Wetland Ecology of Amphibians

Learning objectives:
• To sam ple aquatic bugs, tadpoles and salam ander larvae in w etlands
• To learn about aquatic plants
• To learn how to classify w etland eco sy stem s
Activity Terms. Development, Anaerobic Bacteria, Littoral, Limnetic, Profundal,
Benthic, Fossil Fuels

W hen am phibians hatch out of an egg, they essentially find them selves
floating in a nutritious aquatic soup. A food w eb (Figure 10b) is an effective way to
illustrate and understand connectivity in ecosystem s. Real eco sy stem s are often
m ore com plex than can be illustrated, b e c a u se not every organism is a strict
herbivore or a strict predator. Amphibians are ecologically com plex creatures,
b e c a u se their diets change a s they grow and m etam orphose into adults.

S alam ander babies are called larvae. Frog and toad babies are called
tadpoles. Tadpoles can have teeth, beaks, and other adaptations that lets them
digest pollen, leaves, and a small am ount of invertebrates. This m ean s that different
sp e cie s can e a t com binations of both plant and animal materials. Various sp e cie s of
tadpoles have been classified a s detrivores, herbivores, omnivores, and even
predators. S om e sp ecies even specialize on eating the eg g s of other amphibians!

S alam ander larvae instinctively prey on tiny aquatic bugs while incidentally
ingesting small am ounts of bacteria and plant materials. Almost every amphibian

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m etam orphoses into a predatory adult. A few sp ecies of frog feed on plants, but no
strictly herbivorous adult am phibian h as ever been discovered.

The burrowing activities of am phibians and other creatu res c re a te s tunnels in
the soil which mixes nutrients. T h ese tunnels also o p en s p assag ew ay s w here
oxygen and other g a s e s can flow w here other creatu res can breath and se e k refuge.
In w etlands, the physical properties of w ater slows the rate of diffusion of oxygen
and carbon dioxide ac ro ss the surface. T here is a lower concentration of g a s e s in
w ater than in the air w e breath. S alam an d ers and tadpoles use their gills, which are
adapted to the watery environment. Gills can absorb oxygen and rele ase carbon
dioxide or 'breath' under w ater. Many aquatic invertebrates also have gills. Aquatic
plants have other kinds of adaptions, such a s having stem s that act like straw s to
reach above the w aters surface into the air.

W e have learned about the carbon elem ent in its g a se o u s form in the
atm osphere -- carbon dioxide. W e also learned about it in its solid form a s carbon
m olecules link together into the physical parts of life, such a s twigs, leaves, and the
foods organism s eat. In this way, w etlands provide many essential services in the
way that they regulate both carbon and w ater cycles, which translates into climates.
In an indirect yet significant way, am phibians are linked to the clim ates of planet
Earth.

The size, sh ap e, abiotic, and biotic properties of w etlands provides important
information about the way the habitat is structured. A convenient way to understand
w etlands is to structure them into stratified habitat zo n es (Figure 13). Amphibians in
northern BC tend to breed in shallow ponds, but also visit and breed in stream s,
rivers, and lakes. A shallow pond can be divided into five habitat zo n e s that sh are
com mon properties of tem perature, light, and chemistry. Populations of different

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Surface Zone
Limnetic Zone

Profundal Zorn

Littoral
Zone

Benthic Zone
Figure 13. Five different zones are illustrated for a typical amphibian pond. Five
locations that will be studied in this activity are numbered in circles. The littoral zone
is populated with aquatic rooted plants that have access to sunlight. It also has
higher oxygen concentrations while providing forage, cover, and substrates for
attaching eggs. Water striders, spiders, and pollen float and move aalong the
surface zone. Floating aquatic plants and algae populate the limnetic and surface
zones. The profundal zone receives less light and usually has lower concentrations
of oxygen. Oxygen levels are lowest in the benthic zone where sedimentary detritus
accumulates and is slowly decomposed by anaerobic bacteria.
sp e cie s migrate and then ag g reg ate into habitat zo n es and com munities to which
they are adapted.

On a landscape scale, th ere is a wide range of ecological im balance in the
exchange of biom ass and energy. In the previous activity, we noted how the depth
of organic detritus in soil litter varied am ongst sam pled sites. Aquatic eco sy stem s
often exhibit an even more pronounced ch an g e in the soils. Much of the organic
m atter is dissolved or floating in the w ater column, which is also populated by small
algae and aquatic plants that hold less biom ass than tree s and other terrestrial
plants.

While am phibians are not a s energy efficient a s plants are, they are much
m ore efficient than m ost creatures. Plants, fish, am phibians, reptiles, and m ost

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invertebrates are cold-blooded creatures, otherw ise known as ecotherm s. T h ese
creatu res obtain heat from the environment. Birds, m am m als, and som e
invertebrates are warm-blooded creatures, otherw ise known a s endotherm s. T h ese
creatu res m etabolize energy to produce internal body heat.

Ectothermic organism s are m ore energy efficient at growing and accum ulating
biom ass than endotherm ic organism s are. Amphibians, for exam ple, assim ilate
m ore than fifty percent of the energy they ingest into body biomass! Most
endotherm s (like us) are very energy inefficient b e c a u se w e assim ilate less than one
percent of ingested material into body biom ass and u se the rest to maintain an
elevated body tem perature.

Amphibians m ust feed and then assim ilate the energy and nutrients from the
food supplies that are available to them in the habitats they occupy. Growth rates
can vary acro ss lan d scap es a s production levels adjust to the ecological conditions.
S om e w etlands are m ore nutritious than others. W hen nutrients becom e limited or
conditions becom e overcrowded, som e salam an d er larvae and tadpoles can ch an g e
into cannibals by growing bigger h ead s that lets them feed on their brothers,
cousins, and sisters. Amphibians grow at different rates according to the kind of food
they e a t and the quality of the detritus that feed s the wetland trophic system .
Different kinds of tree s and shrubs produce different kinds of detritus with varying
levels of energy content, different organic chemistry, and som e pieces are m ore
difficult to metabolically digest than others.
The size that an am phibian attains by the time it m etam orphoses is a general
predictor of how large they will be a s adults. Sm aller tadpoles or salam an d er larvae
will grow into smaller adults or take longer to m ature. It may take several y ears for

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an adult to accum ulate enough biom ass to reach its full reproductive growth
potential. Productive w etlands with lots of reso u rces give the young am phibians a
head-start in life. Fully grown m ales tend to b e more attractive and larger fem ales
can lay m ore eggs. Many invertebrates go through the sa m e cycle and m ove about
a s am phibians do, starting from an egg to an aquatic larvae that m etam orphoses
into a terrestrial adult. The ecological principals you have learned can apply to many
different kinds of creatu res and their habitats.
Materials & Methods. This exercise is a field trip to Forests for th e World Site
E-F (Figure 5). The class will sam ple in five wetland locations at site E (Figure 13)
using a fine net and jars to gather sedim ents. An am phibian dip net will be used to
capture larvae and tadpoles that will be placed into a bucket. Each larvae and
tadpole will be weighed, m easured in length with calipers, placed into a small w ater
bath (1.5 cm width X 5 cm length X 2 cm depth) carved into a piece of paraffin wax.
A g lass cover slip is placed over the w ater bath and the amphibian is digitally
photographed. This p ro cess will be repeated at site F (Figure 6).

Assignment. The class will look at the aquatic bugs, results from the
m easurem ents, and discuss the ecological implications. A verage w eights and
m easurem ents of the tadpoles and larvae will be com pared from the different sites
and the results will be discu ssed a s a group.

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158

Abiotic - The non-living, dead, and physical components of the Earth and universe, such
a s air, sunlight, temperature, water, rocks, gravity, fire, nutrients, and fossil fuels.
A daptation - Parts of organisms that are shaped, developed, and passed on from parent
to child because they give them the functional capabilities to acquire the resources they
need to survive and reproduce in their habitats. Amphibian tadpoles have gills, fins, teeth,
beaks, and other body parts that are adapted to life in an aquatic environment. Adults have
hands, feet, lungs, toxic glands in their skin, and other body parts that are adapted to life
on land and water.
Algae - Photosynthetic organisms that are closely related to photosynthetic land plants,
such as moss, ferns, grass, shrubs, and trees. Algae live primarily in aquatic habitats,
mostly as microscopic forms floating in wetlands, but they also include the large kelp and
seaweed in oceans and those species that live symbiotically with fungi in lichens. Algae
have the sam e kinds of cellular structures and organelles typically found in plants, but they
lack flowers, woody stems, and are lack many of the adaptations for living on land. They
range in size from single-celled forms to larger filamentous or colonial forms. Some
species have symbiotic relations with amphibians.
Amphibian - Vertebrate animals including frogs, toads, salamanders, limbless caecilians,
and several fossil lineages that went extinct. Amphibians have semi-permeable skin with
glands and lack scales, feather, and hair. Their eggs have permeable jelly membranes
instead of a hard outer shell, although some species give birth to live young. Amphibians
undergo a metamorphic transformation from an aquatic larvae or tadpole to a terrestrial
form, but not every amphibian leaves the water and some species have no aquatic stages
in their life history. Amphibians are defined by unique skeletal features with an internal
anatomy that is intermediate between fish and reptiles.
A naerobic bacteria - Bacteria species that live and metabolize in habitats lacking oxygen,
such as the bottom of a swamp.
Assimilation - Metabolism that converts nutrients and energy into growth and production
of living matter. Autotrophs (e.g., plants) assimilate the suns energy, carbon dioxide, and
soil nutrients during photosynthesis. Heterotrophs (e.g., animals) assimilate biomass by
eating and digesting the assimilated biomass of autotrophs or other heterotrophs.
Atom - The smallest fundamental unit of matter that is held together by electrons, protons,
and neutrons. Different kinds of atoms are called elements. If atoms are the smallest units
that make up elements, then elements combine into molecules. The scale of things
continues to grow as the smaller units combine into bigger units. Molecules composed of
elements combine to form compounds, that combine to form minerals or proteins and so
on. This process of scaling can start from atoms all the way up to the entire universe.

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A utotroph - Creatures, such as plants, that produce their own food supplies internally.
Bacteria - Single celled creatures that lack a nucleus and evolved into the little organelles
that live in animal cells.
Benthic - Bottom or lowermost zone where detritus accumulates in an aquatic ecosystem.
Biodiversity - Is the variety of life that evolves dynamically within the genes of species, in
the physical attributes of species, and in the differences among species. Biodiversity
creates complex ecosystems, processes, and functions that has sustained life on this
planet for billions of years.
Benthic - Bottom or lowermost zone where detritus accumulates in an aquatic ecosystem.
Biodiversity - Is the variety of life that evolves dynamically within the genes of species, in
the physical attributes of species, and in the differences among species. Biodiversity
creates complex ecosystems, processes, and functions that has sustained life on this
planet for billions of years.
B iom ass - The weight or amount of living matter contained in a measurable area or
volume.
Biotic - The living components of an ecosystem.
Bioturbation - The active movement, mixing, and reworking of soils and their sediments
by plants, fungi, microbes, and burrowing animals. Amphibians and worms are very active
bioturbators as they digest their food, enhance the dispersal of nutrient particles, and
aerate the soil as they tunnel along.
Bug - There are two definitions for bugs. To a biologist a bug is a specific lineage of
insects that have sucking mouth parts. Biologists classify these 'true bugs' into the order
known as Hemiptera. However, to the common person and the way it is used in this book a
bug refers to any kind of crawling or creeping invertebrate, including insects, spiders,
centipedes, millipedes, scorpions and sometimes even slugs, snails, and worms.
B erlese funnel - A devise that holds a light source over soils and leaf litter in a funnel that
is suspended over collection jar. As the light dries and heats the top, the bugs scurry
downward and fall into a collection reservoir where they can be studied in detail.

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Carbon cycle - Carbon is a common element in the molecular building blocks of life. It
cycles through ecological food webs, through the atmosphere, oceans, and even into the
depths of the planets core. Carbon can cycle through ecosystems, through photosynthetic
plants that are eaten by herbivores, that die, that decompose into soil, and then become
absorbed through the roots of other plants. Across the planet there are carbon sources that
flow into carbon sinks in both the living and non-living parts. The carbon cycle describes
the pathways that this important element travels.
Cohort - A population of related individuals of the sam e age. Cohorts of amphibians in
British Columbia generally follow the yearly cycle of the seasons. Each new cohort starts
with the eggs being deposited in the early spring.
Community - Populations of different species that associate and overlap in their
geographic distribution. A community is connected by food webs and ecological
behaviours that modify the surrounding environment. Amphibians modify their local
environment by tunneling through soil. Their tunnels loosens the soils for plant roots and
creates habitat for other species in the community, including bacteria, mushrooms, and
other animals.
Complexity - Describes the state of something that has too many parts for the human
mind to comprehend or to predict what those parts will do when they come together.
Things that have many interacting parts are complex. In ecology, there are many layers or
levels of complexity as elements organize into molecules, molecules into proteins, proteins
into cells, cells into organisms, and so on, ecologists study the way each level of
organization functions as a whole. Smaller parts combine to form larger things that exhibit
very different physical, structural, and behavioural properties that do not exist when the
smaller parts are studied in isolation.
C onsum er - Organisms that get their nutrients and energy by eating other organisms.
Data - Measurements, weights, numbers, and other factual pieces of information that is
accurately recorded into a notebook.
Decomposition - A combination of biotic and abiotic actions (such as fire) that breaks,
decays, and digests larger pieces of organic matter into smaller pieces. Decomposition is
vital to life as it creates different kinds of soils and adds to their nutrient contents.
Detritus - Dead and decomposing organic matter that gravitates toward and accumulates
on the ground, water surfaces, and at the bottom of wetlands and oceans. Detritus is a
mixture of leaves, seeds, pollen, dead creatures, sand, minerals, microorganisms, and
animal waste.
Detrivore - Any creature that feeds on and receives nourishment from detritus.

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Development - Changes in body form, shape, and structure as creatures grow and age.
Dispersal - The migration of an individual from one population to another. Amphibians
often return to the wetland where they originally hatched. Some individuals migrate further
than normal and disperse into other wetlands where they may live and reproduce.
Ecology - The study of life and the way that organisms behave, migrate, function,
regulate, distribute, interact, and evolve across the surface of the planet, over time, in
relation to the environment, and in relation to each other. More broadly, ecology is the
study of the economy and politics of nature, including the many ways that biodiversity and
environments sustain the health, wealth, well-being, organization, and functions of human
civilization.
Ecosystem - An environment that is occupied by a community of organisms that interact
and affect each other and the abiotic components of their habitat. Ecosystems do not have
strict and clearly definable boundaries because everything is interconnected on the planet,
either by food webs or in the exchange of matter and energy into a common global
environment. Ecologists usually describe, organize, and name ecosystems according to a
whole functional pattern. A wetland ecosystem, for example, is defined by a perimeter of
water. There is an abrupt physical difference between the wetland and the surrounding
terrestrial ecosystems that changes how these different ecosystems function.
Ectotherm - Any creature that obtains bodily heat from its environment. Amphibians have
to migrate to different parts of their environment to adjust their body temperature. Plants
are also ectotherms.
Element - The building blocks of all matter consist of atoms that bond together. The
different kinds of atoms are known as elements. Scientists organize the different kinds of
atoms into the periodic table of elements. The most common elements found in
ecosystems is carbon. Carbon elements link together into different kinds of molecules.
Endotherm - Any creature that metabolizes energy to generate internal body heat.
Humans and bees are examples of endotherms. Bees shiver and crowd together to
generate heat in their bodies and in their hive.
Energy - The ability of one physical or biological system to do work on another physical or
biological system. Energy has a physical interaction with m ass that adheres to strict laws
that are forever consistent and create predictable rules of behaviour. Energy can be stored
in the chemical bonds of nutrients and molecules and it also flows through living systems,
such as food webs, as it fuels the metabolic activities of life. Energy can be found in
different forms, such as light, heat, radiation, electricity, chemicals, and sound. There are
different units of potential energy, such as calories, joules, or kilowatt-hour. Energy flow
through salamander populations, for example, contributes to metabolic levels of production
that can equal 11,000 kilo calories per hectare over the course of one year.

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Environm ent - Anything, living or non-living, that is external to and surrounding an object
or creature. Environments place certain restrictions and constraints on life. Organisms are
both the product and modifiers of their environments. The relationship between organisms
and their environments creates feedback and they influence the evolution, design, and
development of the other. Amphibians have a significant influence on the nature of our
local forested and wetland environments.
Evaporation - The physical loss of heat lifting off the surface of a liquid as the molecules
transition into a gas. The evaporation of water away from the permeable skin of an
amphibian cools its body down. This evaporation, however, also makes amphibians
susceptible to dehydration if left away from a water source for too long.
Fact - Pieces of reliable information and larger compilations of scientific ideas that have
been recorded as evidence that can be independently checked, observed, measured,
verified, tested, and mathematically proven. Facts are a part of science. Facts are not
universally accepted as true. Scientists regularly check their facts. They loosely hold onto
those that have not been examined in great detail and they reject those that fail to predict
logical consequences or outcomes should they indeed be true. It is a fact that amphibians
add to rates of productivity in our local forested and wetland ecosystems.
Food web - An illustration that links organisms together according to their feeding relations
in a community. The food web helps to visualize and study the directions and flow of
energy and nutrients through ecosystems.
Fossil fuels - Coal, oil, and gas that originates from detritus that becomes trapped in
sedimentation for millions of years. Many freshwater wetlands during the age of the
dinosaurs and earlier, where amphibians played a major ecological role accumulated into
the fossil fuels that are used today. Fossil fuels contain energy.
Fungi - A lineage in the tree of life that you might commonly know as a mushroom. The
mushroom is actually the fruiting body of a kind of fungi. Molds, yeasts, and other similar
kinds of organisms are classified as fungi. Many species of fungi are microscopic and they
come in all sorts of shapes, colours, and sizes. In terms of biomass, fungi closely match
bacteria as the primary decomposers in most ecosystems. Fungi are heterotrophs.
Habitat - The place where an organism lives and the resources in that environment that
allow it to survive.
Herbivore - Any creature that eats and obtains all of its energy and nutrients from plants.
Heterotroph - Any creature that must eat another to obtain energy and nourishment.
Home range - The distribution and area where an organism may migrate through the
seasons.

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Hydrology - The study of water including its chemistry, movement, and distribution across
the planet. Evaporation is an important factor in the hydrological cycle.
Hydrological cycle - The movement of water as it evaporates, flows, accumulates,
precipitates, and percolates through ecosystems and throughout the environment.
Amphibians are part of the hydrological cycle through their ecological activities in wetlands
and due to the water that is absorbed into and evaporates away from their bodies.
Invertebrate - A diverse and most abundant group of animals that do not have an internal
skeleton with vertebrae along the spine. Invertebrates can have different kinds of
skeletons, such as the hard outer exoskeletons of insects, crabs, or scorpions, or they can
have soft inner hydrostatic skeletons, like worms or slugs. Frogs and salamanders are
vertebrate animals that regularly prey and feast on invertebrates.
L andscape - A piece of land that gives a unique character or quality to a region by virtue
of its geographic and ecological configuration. A landscape is perceived around us without
looking too closely at the small details to allow the bigger image of interacting ecosystems
blend and drape over the undulating topography of the Earth surface.
Lichen - A symbiotic organism composed of a fungus and a photosynthetic partner,
usually a green algae or a cyanobacterium.
Limnetic zone - The well-lit open surface waters that stretch beyond the littoral zone of a
wetland. Traditionally the limnetic zone refers to the open deep waters in a lake that is
populated by zooplankton (tiny invertebrate microorganisms), but the classification of this
zone gets more complicated as the size of the habitat becomes smaller and seasonally
ephemeral. The limnetic zone is provides unique environmental qualities that is populated
by different kinds of aquatic plants and microorganisms that are adapted to the conditions.
Littoral zone - The shoreline waters of wetlands where aquatic plants take root.
Mass - The amount of something usually measured by its weight. Mass is a physical
property of matter, but energy can also have mass.
Matter - Any physical substance that has a mass and occupies a physical space. Matter
can exist in multiple forms, such as liquid, solid, and gas.
Metabolism - The physical and chemical processes within organisms that are fueled by
energy and material resources to maintain life functions, such as growth, movement, and
reproduction.

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M etam orphosis - An abrupt developmental transition from an early larval form into a adult
form having different adaptations. All amphibians go through metamorphosis. Frogs
metamorphose from a tadpole having no limbs, gills, and tails for swimming to an adult
form with limbs, lungs, and no tail.
Migration - The seasonal movement of an organism across its home range as it travels to
find resources for survival and reproduction. Amphibians generally migrate within 1-2
kilometers of the wetlands they hatch from.
Mineral - Any solid is a potential mineral if it has a unique chemical composition and an
organized molecular structure. Minerals are sources of nutrition. Minerals aggregate into
larger solid things, such as rocks, sand, silt, and clay in soil mixtures. The ecological
activities of organisms, digging, feeding, digesting, assimilating matter into biomass, and
migrating, contributes to the release, formation, and transportation of minerals in a global
mineral cycle.
Molecule - Tiny particles that have at least two atoms that are stuck or chemically bonded
together to form a larger unit of matter.
Nature - Our complete physical and living surroundings, including wild nature that has not
been subjected to human development and urban nature that has been extensively
modified by human actions. Nature also includes the sun, moon, stars, universe, and their
observable properties. Nature study was the early precursor to modern science.
Niche - The set of environmental conditions in which a species is able to live and sustain
populations. The niche is similar to the habitat of an organism, but instead of describing
where an organism lives the niche describes the features of the habitat that allows the
organism to survive and persist.
Nutrient - A molecule, such as an element, mineral or protein, that is needed to fuel the
metabolic functions of organisms. Nutrients are the molecules that are metabolically
assimilated into biomass. The movement of nutrients by the ecological actions of
organisms and other environmental factors generates and powers a global nutrient cycle.
Omnivore - A heterotrophic organism that eats a combination of autotrophs and
heterotrophs.
P hotosynthesis - A complex metabolic process in plants that captures energy from
sunlight by breaking the chemical bonds in water
Plot - A unit or measured sample of a piece of land. Plots are used by ecologists when
conducting research or surveys to characterize and measure the attributes of ecosystems.
Population - A group of individuals. In ecology a population refers to a group of individuals
from a species that belong to the sam e community.

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Profundal zone - A layer below the pelagic zone where the amount of light and oxygen is
diminished to an extend that primary production ceases. There is also a distinct
temperature difference between the pelagic and profundal zones.
Protein - A kind of molecule in organisms that is created within cells and has an
organization and structure that is adapted to perform specific metabolic functions. The
physical parts of organisms that we can see are primarily composed of proteins.
Q uadrat - A measured square frame or perimeter that is used to sample habitats.
Ecologists use quadrats to sample and then estimate the density of species or other
environmental factors in the habitat. Multiple quadrat samples are generally needed to
obtain enough information about the average quality or density of things in the habitat.
Recycling - The process of moving materials back into use after they have served a utility
and outlived their purpose. Recycling has feedback loops that use energy in the process of
putting material resources back into use. Ecosystems employ many species in the food
webs that recycle natural materials. Salamanders, for example, are one link in an
ecological web that recycles nutrients through soils back into plant biomass. Human beings
do not employ ecological food webs to recycle technological waste back into different kinds
of marketable pieces of technology.
Riparian - An ecological transition that is wedged between any terrestrial ecosystem and a
wetland. Riparian areas traditionally referred to the banks of rivers, but ecologists now
include the shore, bank, or edge of any wetland under the definition. Small ephemeral
ponds, for example, are seasonally occupied by different age classes and densities of
amphibians. Male salamanders migrate toward and cluster in riparian zones in the early
spring before the females arrive on the scene.
Soil - The uppermost layer of the Earth's surface that contains mixtures of detritus,
minerals, nutrients, and ecological communities that actively decompose and recycle
natural materials into constituents that can support plant growth. Modern soils also contain
technological artifacts that disrupt or modify natural cycles.
S pecies - Populations of individuals that interbreed to produce fertile offspring that have
similar appearances and similar ecological behaviours by virtue of their common ancestry.
S uccessio n - Changes that occur in ecosystems as they age and go through different
developmental stages after a disturbance, such as a fire. The process starts with
pioneering species that help to assem ble ecological webs as other species begin to inhabit
the site.
Sym biosis - A reciprocally beneficial relationship between two species that exchange
energy and nutrients and live in close contact.

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166

Taxonomy - The scientific method that is used to classify species into groups that are
organized according to their naturally evolved patterns of relationship. Taxonomists
(people who practice taxonomy) gather facts on the anatomy, ecology, and genetics of
living and fossil organisms. Taxonomic groups nest into levels starting with Kingdoms
progressing downward through Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, and ending with
Species.
T ransect - A measured line or path that runs through an area. Ecologists run transects to
count things, such as salamanders under logs. Transects are used to sample habitats and
the counts are used to estimate how many things, such as salamanders, live in the area.
Trophic level - An ecological position that organisms occupy when classified according to
the way that they feed or acquire their nourishment. Many organisms, such as amphibians,
are difficult to classify into a strict trophic category, such as herbivore or carnivore. Many
amphibians are classified as omnivores, because organisms they feed on a variety plants,
animals, and microorganisms. Some amphibian larvae have even been classified as
detrivores.
W ater cycle - Continuous recycled movement of water through Earth systems. The suns
energy evaporates water into the atmosphere. Water molecules precipitate into fog, rain,
hail, or snow and returns to the surface. Ecosystems regulate the water cycle as water is
absorbed into organisms, held by cellular membranes, transported, and then channeled
about until it is evaporated once again.
W etland - An ecosystem that is saturated with water to such an extent that the organisms
living in this kind of habitat are adapted to the unique physical conditions that an aquatic
environment creates. Oxygen and carbon dioxide, for example, diffuse more slowly and
are are less concentrated in water than in air. This means that the physical nature of water
creates a unique kind of habitat where different creatures, such as anaerobic bacteria, can
survive. The physical presence of different aquatic species also changes the nature of the
wetland environment. Aquatic plants and other wetland creatures have many different
kinds of adaptations to obtain and transport oxygen and carbon dioxide that lets them live
under the water. Some aquatic plants have leaves that float and long stems that act like
straws to bring air down to the roots. Amphibians have feathery gills that gives them a
large surface area to exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide into and out of their bodies.
Marshes, bogs, swamps, fens, and ponds are different kinds of wetlands that are
frequently populated by amphibians. Rivers and streams are also wetlands, but the water
needs to flow slow enough for most species of amphibian eggs to remain stuck to the twigs
or grass where their parents thought best to put them. The tailed frog of British Columbia,
however, is an exception and is adapted to lay its eggs in stream habitats. Each kind of
wetland is distinguished by differences in: 1) soil nutrient levels (bog's are very poor,
marshes are very rich); 2) the amount of moisture they retain (bog's are very moist, fens
and marshes are very wet); and 3) and the amount of seasonal water movement (marshes
are very dynamic, bogs, fens, and ponds can be stagnant or sluggish).

38

EXPERIENCING AMPHIBIANS
APPENDIX C MODULAR ECOLITERACY INSTRUMENT.

168

Item
1

2

3

Age
Gender (m / f)
Cultural background / ethnicity
I participate in the following activities:______________________________________
Never

4
5
6

7
8

9
10
11

12

13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20

7

Often

Camping in a tent
Internet
Mountain biking
Video-games
X-country skiing
Canoeing
Motorcycling
Motor boating
Water skiing
Quading
Skidooing
Nature watching
Television
Movies
Hunting or Fishing
Cell phone
Watching nature programs

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D isagree
strongly

1
1 People are supposed to rule over the rest of nature.
2 Plants and animals have as much right as people to live.
3 People must still obey the laws of nature.
4
5
6
7

If things don't change, we will have a big disaster in the environment soon.
There are too many (or almost too many) people on Earth.
People are treating nature badly.
When people mess with nature it has bad results.

8 People are clever enough to keep from mining the Earth.
9 Nature is strong enough to handle the bad effects of our modern lifestyle.
10 People will someday know enough about how nature works to be able to control it.

Disagree a little

~

2

Neither agree or
disagree

3

~

Agree a little

Agree
strongly

4

5

170
Disagree
strongly
A . The economic cost of trying to conserve amphibians:
1
2
3
4

Is too htgh and would reduce economic benefits, such as jobs
Is necessary because amphibians sustain forest ecosystems and wetlands
Is mainly important if there are endangered or threatened species involved
Is not as important as conserving fish, bears or other large animals.
B . Wide strips of vegetation should be left along the margins o f every am phibian w etland w hen clear cutting a forest:

5 Wetlands need to be large enough to justify the cost o f preserving them Otherwise, companies will loose money as they are forced to reduce the harvest size by leaving so many trees arotaid
every small pond.
6 Only if fish are also present.
7
8

9
10

Only where, when, and if tt is economically feasible to do so
Even if it reduces timber harvest supply in the short term as this measure is necessary for the conservation o f amphibian biodiversity
Only within protected areas, like Jasper or Banff National Park, otherwise this practice would reduce forestry yields, industry profit, and threaten job markets
Would sustain the long-term economic situation for foresters because this would help enhance biodiversity functions, such as nutrient flow.
C . Having ponds w ith am phibians in cities, like Prince G eorge o r Vancouver is:

11

13

As important as having ponds with amphibians in a forest
Should be drained to prevent mosquitoes from breeding
Is a great idea.

14
15
16

Is very similar to the recycling process in nature, such as a decaying log
Is energy efficient and directly beneficial for amphibian ecosystems.
Is more green, sustainable, and creates more jobs than investing in conservation programs for amphibians

17
18
19
20

Are not as complex as computers or other technological devises that humans can create
Are economically important.
Have important roles to play in our health care system For example, glands in their skin may contain potential medicinal properties and cures for disease
Not as economically valuable as fish, because there is an huge fishing industry and very little to no industry that relies on amphibians

12

D . Recycling plastics, paper and metals:

C . Amphibians:

Page 3

DlaaBroo a Htthi

Neither agrea or
disagree

Agree
Aarae a little

y

171
Disagree
strongly

_

1
2
3
4
5

A. In forestry, reduce die total amount o f area th at is usually harvested in the province by 50% and leave the rest alone to let amphibian
ecosystems and migration routes return to n o rm al
This sounds like a wise economic policy for the next ten years.
This sounds like a wise economic policy for the next twenty years.
This sounds like a wise economic policy for the next fifty years
This sounds like a wise economic policy for the next one-hundred years.
This sounds like a wise economic policy for the next_______________ years. Give an answer of zero years if your answer is never.

B. It is better to:
6
7

8
9
10
11

Put all our efforts toward conserving amphibians now to prevent further losses in the future.
To conserve fewer large wetlands instead of many small wetlands.
Spend more on the conservation o f the few species o f amphibians that live in Prince George and less to conserve amphibians that live in Vancouver where
more species exist.
Spend more on the conservation o f die few species o f amphibians that live in Prince George and less to conserve amphibians that live in the Amazonian
rainforests where there are many more species.
Spend more on the conservation o f places that are remote, wild, and distant from human cities instead o f places that are near settlements with roads.
Spend more on the conservation of threatened or endangered species than the more abundant local species.

15
16

C. The economics o f government, industry, and society would improve greatly if everyone decided it was best to spend money on:
Sustaining global ecosystems and the amphibian species that live there.
Sustaining local ecosystems and the amphibian species that live there.
Sustaining the worlds amphibians in die present.
Sustaining the worlds amphibians into die distant future.
Investing in the conservation of amphibians as much as any other species, such as fish, bears, and even mosquitoes.

17
18
19
20

D. I would be willing too:
Give up internet, movies, cell phones, and video games if this meant that all local amphibians (in Prince George) would never go extinct.
Give up internet, movies, cell phones, and video games if this meant that all the worlds amphibians would never go completely extinct.
Pay taxes to conserve local amphibians in Prince George.
Pay taxes to conserve amphibians in tropical rainforests.

12

13
14

Pago 4

_

Disagree a little

Neither agree or
diaagraa

_ _ _ _ _Agraa
_ _ a Nttla

Agree
strongly

_

172

1

2
3
4
5
6
7

8
9
10

1

2
3
4
5
6
7

8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21

Disagree
strongly

Plssgrss a llttls

Neither agree or
disagree

Agree a Httls

Agree strongly

Disagree
strongly

Disagree a little

Neither agree or
disagree

Agree a Uttle

Agree strongly

1

2

3

4

6

Disagree
atrongly

Disagree a little

Neither agree or
disagree

Agree a little

Agree strongly

Salamanders are cute.
W etlands can b e resto red an d populated by am phibians if fo resters plant tre e s after a clear-cut tim ber harvest.
A frog does not feels pain the same way that 1 do.
It is important to be kind to amphibians. I feel empathy for the toads and salamanders that get squished on roads by cars.
Amphibians are fascinating and mysterious creatures. 1 hope to see and then leant more about them.
The thought o f a salamander or frog touching my cheek frightens me or grosses me out.
Amphibians are an important scientific resource for medicine and education.
Amphibians are a source o f inspiration for artists and storytellers.
A m phibians help th e econom y by recycling soil nutrients, which is a n e sse n tia l service for forest industries.
Snakes are cute.

I enjoy being outdoors, even in unpleasant weather.
Some species are just meant to die out or become extinct.
Humans have the right to use natural resources any way we want.
My ideal vacation spot would be a remote, wilderness area.
I always think about how my actions affect the environment.
I enjoy digging in the earth and getting dirt on my hands.
My connection to nature and the environment is a part of my spirituality.
I am very aware o f environmental issues.
I take notice o f wildlife wherever I am.
I d on't often go out in nature.
Nothing 1 do will change problems in other places on the planet.
I am not separate from nature, but a part of nature.
The thought o f being deep in the woods, away from civilization, is frightening.
My feelings about nature do not affect how 1 live my life.
Animals, birds and plants should have fewer rights than humans.
Even in the middle o f the city, I notice nature around me.
My relationship to nature is an important part o f who I am.
Conservation is unnecessary because nature is strong enough to recover from any human impact.
The state of non-human species is an indicator o f the future for humans.
1 think a lot about the suffering o f animals.
1 feel very connected to all living things and the earth.

1___________
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2_____________ 3_____________ 4_____________ 6

173
1
2
3
4
5

6
7

8
9

10

II
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19

20
21

22
23
24
25

I am afraid o f toads.
I would like to study toads in nature.
I would like to hold a toad in my hands.
I wouldn't like to hunt toads.
Cars kill to many toads each year
Toads are disgusting animals.
Toads are very important in nature.
It would be for the best if all toads were killed.
Hunting toads for fun is cruel.
When 1 am walking through the woods, I do not have a special wish to meet a toad.
I would rather see a model o f a toad than a live one.
I get bored when biologists are talking about toads
1 would rather see a movie about toads than watch them in nature.
Toads are o f value as they eat mosquitoes and other bugs.
I like to read about toads.
I would like to leant about different species o f toads.
I would like to know how toads eat, smell and hear.
Toads need to have rights too.
Keeping toads in captivity is cruel.
I could observe toads for a long time.
I would like to have a toad at home.
1 would like to learn about environments where toads live.
We don't need to protect rain forests, because toads living there will move elsewhere.
I would like to know how toads developed.
Toads are ugly.

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