| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 69.22 |
| Liaison | Leslie Raucher |
| Submission Date | Dec. 11, 2023 |
Barnard College
AC-6: Sustainability Literacy Assessment
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.00 / 4.00 |
Does the institution conduct an assessment of the sustainability literacy of its students?:
Which of the following best describes the literacy assessment? The assessment is administered to::
Which of the following best describes the structure of the assessment? The assessment is administered as a::
A copy of the questions included in the sustainability literacy assessment(s):
A list or sample of the questions included in the sustainability literacy assessment or the website URL where the assessment tool may be found:
Literacy quests begin on page 11 of the survey. See attached file.
A brief description of how the literacy assessment was developed and/or when it was adopted:
The literacy assessment was developed for Spring 2023. It was developed after reviewing a variety of other assessments within STARS and talking with faculty in the Environmental Science Department as well as staff in Institutional Research. We combined our literacy and culture survey and will repeat each year we submit STARS.
A brief description of how a representative sample was reached (if applicable) and how the assessment(s) were administered :
All students were emailed the survey. The survey was administered through Qualtrics and opened on January 25th and closed on February 3rd, 2023.
A brief summary of results from the literacy assessment(s):
We had 340 students, or 10.8%, of the student body completed the survey.
Q14 - Have you taken a course that includes sustainability or climate principles while at Barnard?
42% responded "yes"
Q16 - For the following concepts, the percentage represents students who responded with a 4 or 5 - with 1 being "I have not heard of this concept" and 5 being "I have heard of this concept, and I understand how it connects to sustainability"
Climate change - 94.71% of students
Circular economy -42.94%
Biodiversity -81.95%
Intergenerational equity - 54.14%
Environmental Justice - 79.05%
Precautionary principle -12.94%
United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals -45.89%
Q17 - Is there a relationship between the earth’s average temperature and the amount of greenhouse gases, especially carbon dioxide, in the atmosphere?
99.4% of students responded "yes"
Q18 - What is the primary reason for increased levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere?
95.4% responded correctly "Human activities that involve the burning of fossil fuels"
Q19 - What are the potential effects of global climate change? (choose all that apply)
46.33% of students were able to answer correctly with "More frequent and mores severe weather" "mass human migration" and "increase in sea level"
Q20 - Many economists argue that water and energy prices in the American Northeast are too low because:
80.54% of students answered correctly "They do not reflect the costs of pollution, land use change, and biodiversity loss required to produce the utility"
Q21 - Food and dietary choices impact which of the following?
96.16% of students answered correctly "all of the above"
Q22 - Put the following list in order of the activities with the smallest negative environmental impact to largest negative environmental impact:
This was only answered correctly by 2.74% of students
Q23 - Which of the following is an example of environmental injustice? (select all that apply)
60.9% of students got this question right
Q24 - Which of the following best describes a circular economy?
84.13% of students got this answer correct
Q25 - Which of the following is a renewable energy resource?
1 Oil 99.06% Correct
2 Wind 97.86% Correct
3 Natural gas 85.38% Correct
4 Geothermal 89.47% Correct
5 Hydroelectric 95.74% Correct
6 Nuclear 41.44% Renewable 58.56% not renewable
7 Solar 99.39% Correct
8 Coal 99.38% Correct
Q26 - Over the past 50 years, what has happened to the difference between the richest and poorest Americans?
95.87% answered correctly
Q27 - What is the primary function of wetlands?
57.91% of students answered correctly
Q28 - Which of the following is the United Nations’ definition of sustainable development?
92% of students answered correctly
Website URL where information about the sustainability literacy assessment is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.