| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 69.70 |
| Liaison | Kelly Wellman |
| Submission Date | Dec. 2, 2021 |
Texas A&M University
AC-6: Sustainability Literacy Assessment
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
4.00 / 4.00 |
Ben
Kalscheur Sustainability Assistant Manager Office of Sustainability |
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indicates that no data was submitted for this field
Does the institution conduct an assessment of the sustainability literacy of its students?:
Yes
Which of the following best describes the literacy assessment? The assessment is administered to::
The entire (or predominate) student body, directly or by representative sample
Which of the following best describes the structure of the assessment? The assessment is administered as a::
Pre- and post-assessment to the same cohort or to representative samples in both a pre- and post-test
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:
See attached document.
A brief description of how the literacy assessment was developed and/or when it was adopted:
The literacy assessment was created by Office of Sustainability staff. We looked at similar assessments done by STARS peers as a starting point and then integrated our own specific TAMU questions. We combined the assessment of culture and literacy into one survey instrument.
We completed our first survey of the campus community during the Fall 2016 semester. This is normally an annual survey and we completed our first follow-up assessment during the Fall 2017 semester and have done so each fall since, including Fall 2019. Due to COVID-19 ramifications, we decided to put our annual survey on hold for Fall 2020. We plan to redesign the survey and be back to an annual schedule for Fall 2021.
We completed our first survey of the campus community during the Fall 2016 semester. This is normally an annual survey and we completed our first follow-up assessment during the Fall 2017 semester and have done so each fall since, including Fall 2019. Due to COVID-19 ramifications, we decided to put our annual survey on hold for Fall 2020. We plan to redesign the survey and be back to an annual schedule for Fall 2021.
A brief description of how a representative sample was reached (if applicable) and how the assessment(s) were administered :
We worked with the Office of Institutional Effectiveness & Evaluation (experts in designing and deploying surveys for our campus community) to design and administer the survey. They used email to randomly sample a representative portion of the entire student population. The survey was sent as a qualtrics link to randomly selected campus members.
A brief summary of results from the literacy assessment(s):
Results of the study are evaluated by Office of Sustainability Staff and are used to better understand areas of both strength and weakness in regards to sustainability literacy acquired during students time at the university.
Highlights from the 2017 survey include: In regards to defining sustainability and its three core areas, 49.36% of students correctly identified social sustainability, 74.36% were able to identify economic sustainability, and 91.67% were able to identify environmental sustainability. This shows a decline in understanding of sustainability from the 2016 survey. 81.41% of our students identified greenhouse gases correctly, a decline from 2016. 70.09% of our students were able to correctly identify ways in which a person's carbon footprint could increase, which is higher than the 2016 results. 62.8% of students correctly identified steps to prepare for climate change. 79.29% of students correctly identified all renewable sources of energy.
Highlights from the 2018 survey include: In regards to defining sustainability and its three core areas, 52.73% of students correctly identified social sustainability, 84.89% were able to identify economic sustainability, and 99.57% were able to identify environmental sustainability. This shows an increase in in identifying all three dimensions of sustainability from the 2017 survey. 89.25% of our students identified greenhouse gases correctly, an increase from both the 2016 and 2017 results. 76.31% of our students were able to correctly identify ways in which a person's carbon footprint could increase, which is higher than the 2016 and 2017 results. 73.87% of students correctly identified steps to prepare for climate change, which increased from Fall 2017. 76.5% of student responses correctly identified all renewable sources of energy, which decreased from Fall 2017.
Highlights from the 2019 survey include: In regards to defining sustainability and its three core areas, 59.18% of students correctly identified social sustainability, 83.67% were able to identify economic sustainability, and 96.33% were able to identify environmental sustainability. This shows an overall increase in identifying all three dimensions of sustainability from the 2018 survey. 89.75% of our students identified greenhouse gases correctly, an increase from both the 2018 results. 76.97% of our students were able to correctly identify ways in which a person's carbon footprint could increase, which is higher than the 2017 and 2018 results. 82.23% of students correctly identified steps to prepare for climate change, which increased from Fall 2018. 80.08% of student responses correctly identified all renewable sources of energy, which increased from Fall 2018.
Highlights from the 2021 survey include: In regards to defining sustainability and its three core areas, 58.53% of students correctly identified social sustainability, 83.24% were able to identify economic sustainability, and 95.59% were able to identify environmental sustainability. This shows an overall decrease in identifying all three dimensions of sustainability from the 2019 survey. 88.82% of our students identified greenhouse gases correctly, a decrease from the 2019 results. 85.16% of our students were able to correctly identify ways in which a person's carbon footprint could increase, which is higher than the 2018 and 2019 results. 80.24% of students correctly identified steps to prepare for climate change, which decreased from Fall 2019. 80.08% of student responses correctly identified all renewable sources of energy, which was on par with the 2019 survey.
Highlights from the 2017 survey include: In regards to defining sustainability and its three core areas, 49.36% of students correctly identified social sustainability, 74.36% were able to identify economic sustainability, and 91.67% were able to identify environmental sustainability. This shows a decline in understanding of sustainability from the 2016 survey. 81.41% of our students identified greenhouse gases correctly, a decline from 2016. 70.09% of our students were able to correctly identify ways in which a person's carbon footprint could increase, which is higher than the 2016 results. 62.8% of students correctly identified steps to prepare for climate change. 79.29% of students correctly identified all renewable sources of energy.
Highlights from the 2018 survey include: In regards to defining sustainability and its three core areas, 52.73% of students correctly identified social sustainability, 84.89% were able to identify economic sustainability, and 99.57% were able to identify environmental sustainability. This shows an increase in in identifying all three dimensions of sustainability from the 2017 survey. 89.25% of our students identified greenhouse gases correctly, an increase from both the 2016 and 2017 results. 76.31% of our students were able to correctly identify ways in which a person's carbon footprint could increase, which is higher than the 2016 and 2017 results. 73.87% of students correctly identified steps to prepare for climate change, which increased from Fall 2017. 76.5% of student responses correctly identified all renewable sources of energy, which decreased from Fall 2017.
Highlights from the 2019 survey include: In regards to defining sustainability and its three core areas, 59.18% of students correctly identified social sustainability, 83.67% were able to identify economic sustainability, and 96.33% were able to identify environmental sustainability. This shows an overall increase in identifying all three dimensions of sustainability from the 2018 survey. 89.75% of our students identified greenhouse gases correctly, an increase from both the 2018 results. 76.97% of our students were able to correctly identify ways in which a person's carbon footprint could increase, which is higher than the 2017 and 2018 results. 82.23% of students correctly identified steps to prepare for climate change, which increased from Fall 2018. 80.08% of student responses correctly identified all renewable sources of energy, which increased from Fall 2018.
Highlights from the 2021 survey include: In regards to defining sustainability and its three core areas, 58.53% of students correctly identified social sustainability, 83.24% were able to identify economic sustainability, and 95.59% were able to identify environmental sustainability. This shows an overall decrease in identifying all three dimensions of sustainability from the 2019 survey. 88.82% of our students identified greenhouse gases correctly, a decrease from the 2019 results. 85.16% of our students were able to correctly identify ways in which a person's carbon footprint could increase, which is higher than the 2018 and 2019 results. 80.24% of students correctly identified steps to prepare for climate change, which decreased from Fall 2019. 80.08% of student responses correctly identified all renewable sources of energy, which was on par with the 2019 survey.
Optional Fields
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Not all participants who completed the survey answered all of the questions, which could lead to selection bias in some of the answers.
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.