Identifying and Overcoming the Challenges in Achieving Climate Science Literacy in the K-12 Environment

Global climate change is one of the most urgent social and environmental challenges of our time, requiring a scientifically informed and civically engaged population who are both knowledgeable and ready to take action. However, many students lack the climate literacy necessary to respond to these challenges. This study investigates the barriers to achieving climate science literacy within the K-12 education system. Drawing evidence from two comprehensive literature reviews of over 400 research studies, we found only a small number of studies provided enough detail for teachers to adequately implement the curricular resources, and even fewer offered adequate detail on the types of successful professional learning programs to equip teachers with the tools needed to teach climate science. Lack of formal preservice educator training and increased alternative pathways to teacher certification have left many teachers lacking both the content and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) required to effectively prepare students who are science literate. Additional constraints include the highly politicized nature of the topic, including the recent shift in the US. federal government’s priorities, as well as time- and resource-constrained classrooms. Achieving a climate literate citizenry requires greater integration of a national standards-aligned curriculum, increased professional learning (PL) of in-service educators, and greater investment in accessible resources.