Greenhouse Effect in the Classroom: A Project- and Laboratory-Based Curriculum

This article describes a multifaceted curriculum for use in earth science classes from secondary school to undergraduate level. The centerpiece of the curriculum is a project-based investigation of greenhouse warming that can be conducted during one or more lab sessions using off-the-shelf materials. This process provides students with the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of the climate system, the nature of scientific uncertainty, the burden of proof in ongoing research, and the difficulties of transferring scientific results to the public-policy realm. The main thrust of the lab demonstration and the curriculum itself is to help students distinguish the solid science in these issues from the array of questionable information they encounter in the press, on the internet, or in conversation. Educational levels: Primary elementary, Middle school, High school, Undergraduate lower division