Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/882783
T E A C H I N G T H E FA C T S The debate over teaching about global warm- ing in schools is heating up, according to the AP, which reports several states have consid- ered measures to teach opposing points of view about climate change. In 2012 in the Southern Californi a c ommunity of L o s Al amito s, for example, the school board told teachers they must prove climate change lessons are "polit- i c a l ly b a l a n c e d " ra th e r th a n s c i e n t i f i c a l ly accurate, which created an outcry. Science has shown conclusively that human activity is changing the global climate. Even the 2017 "Climate Science Special Report," authored by scientists from 13 federal agencies as part of the congressionally mandated National Climate Assessment done every four years, forcefully sup- ports this view. (e report is pending approval by the current administration.) T h i s a n d m a ny o t h e r s c i e n t i f i c stu d i e s , and President Trump's decisions to withdraw America from the Paris climate accord and dis- mantle environmental protections, have given many educators a renewed sense of urgency to teach about the subject. " We have a responsibility to teach about climate change," says Darlene Killgore, an Oxnard Educators Associa- tion member and science teacher at R.J. Frank Middle School. "It's happening in our world today. You teach the facts, and students make their own decisions. You can look at changes during the Ice Age and warming trends that are documented historically — and see that now our planet is warming up at an increased rate that has never been seen before." Indeed, Earth reached its highest average temperature on record in 2016, breaking the record set just a year earlier in 2015, which beat the previous record in 2014. Most climate scientists think global warming has contributed to unusually devastating weather patterns in recent years such as drought, heat waves, and intense precipitation and storms. Facts About Climate Change Global sea level rose about 8 inches in the last century. The rate in the past two decades, however, is nearly double that of the last century. Earth's average surface temperature has risen about 2 degrees Fahrenheit since the late 19th century, driven largely by increased carbon dioxide and other human-made emissions into the atmosphere. The oceans have absorbed much of this increased heat, with the top 700 meters (about 2,300 feet) of ocean showing warming of 0.302 degrees Fahrenheit since 1969. +8" Kelsi Himmel takes her high school students on wilderness excursions to see the effects of climate change firsthand. +2° +.302° 26 cta.org Feature C L I M A T E C H A N G E Lisa Hegdahl