Engaging Rural High School Students in a Watershed Literacy Program

Place-based learning is an educational approach that centers around the concept of place. Intersecting watershed literacy with place-based education methods, this study explores a short-term place-based watershed outreach program in a rural high school in Tennessee, United States. As the community’s first known watershed outreach program, this pilot study aimed to improve the watershed literacy of its student participants by engaging them in the locally relevant and shared phenomenon of flooding. Overall, five units were developed, with each providing a unique interactive lecture and activity. The program’s short-term effectiveness in improving watershed literacy was evaluated anonymously through pre- and post-program assessments, as well as pre- and post-unit assessments. Ultimately, the program resulted in moderate short-term improvements in student watershed literacy, as measured by pre- and post-program surveys. The program content assessments resulted in an average percent change in watershed literacy of +34%. A Likert scale survey indicated that the students perceived an increase in watershed connectedness and confidence, but a decreased willingness to address watershed stormwater and flooding issues. Additional assessments are required to evaluate the long-term impacts of this outreach.