@phdthesis{JaunHolderegger2019, author = {Barbara Jaun-Holderegger}, title = {Wege zur Artenkenntnis}, url = {https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:bsz:751-opus4-1962}, pages = {164}, year = {2019}, abstract = {The loss of biodiversity is a global threat and, despite widespread agreement on the urgency of action, the loss is progressing. The protection and conservation of biodiversity is therefore regarded as one of the most urgent environmental tasks, but this cannot be done without the involvement of the public. However, especially in highly industrialized countries perception and knowledge of species is low. In consequence, people may not be able to recognize the ongoing loss of biodiversity. Little is known about the extent and quality of species education in primary schools in Switzerland and the promotion of species knowledge by families and others. In the present research project, four complementary studies were carried out to investigate how familiar primary-school students in the Canton of Berne are with local plant and animal species and how knowledge of species develops. For the first time, pictures of a large number of species (69 plant and 67 animal species) were presented to 241 primary-school students in the Canton of Berne and their 14 teach-ers. Participants were asked to indicate whether they felt familiar with the species presented and, if so, to identify the organisms by their common name. Moreover, data about students' age, gender, place of living, and nature experiences were collected. Guided interviews were used to investigate how students learn about species, what characteristics they look at when identifying plants and animals, and for how important they consider species knowledge to be. Overall, 47 of the 241 primary-school students participated in this part of the project. Five years later, 22 of the original 241 students were asked again about their species knowledge and its general relevance. There was a positive correlation between the correct naming of plant and animal species among both students and their teachers. Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale), forest straw-berry (Fragaria vesca), raspberry (Rubus idaeus), great nettle (Urtica dioica) and horse chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum) were the most often correctly named plant species, while red fox (Vulpes vulpes), hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus), dwarf bat (Pipistrellus pipistrellus), hare (Lepus europaeus) and wild boar (Sus scrofa) were the most often correctly named animal species. With increasing age of the children, species knowledge decreased. Boys could correctly identify more animal species than the girls. Children who spoke neither German nor Swiss-German with their parents at home, and children who investigated nature, plants and animals, and typical features of organisms mainly at school, had the lowest knowledge of species. The presence of trees and a garden, the responsibility for living creatures, and the naming of local plants and animals by adults fostered species knowledge. Teachers could identify more plants and animals than their students. The older and thus more experienced they were, the more species they could correctly name. However, there was no significant correlation between the number of plant and animal species correctly identified by the teachers and that of their students. When children became acquainted with plants, they mainly remembered sensual experiences such as unpleasant encounters with stinging nettles, but also the preparation of meals. In case of animals, they especially mentioned observations that they had made alone or with other people. Parents and grandparents helped more than school or the media in getting to know species. There was a positive correlation between children's knowledge of species and the number of characteristics they used when describing a plant or an animal. In case of plants, children paid particular attention to stems, hairs, leaves or fruits and less to flowers. Determination aids for children should thus place more emphasis on vegetative than generative parts of plants. Compared to plants, children mentioned more features when describing animals. However, scientifically important characteristics, such as the three-part nature of the insect body, were not part of the children's descriptions. In both the first study and the follow-up five years later, most children considered species knowledge important. They wanted to know local species as they regarded it as part of their general education and as useful. About three-quarters of students in the follow-up survey knew more plant and animal species than five years before, which is probably due to their personal interest. The results show that children's attention to characteristics of plants and animals is closely linked to their knowledge of species and thus to the perception of diversity in nature. The family environment is very important for getting to know species. If this is not the case, schools must take on this task more intensively in order to contribute to an understanding of biological diversity. The imparting of organismic knowledge in pre-service and in-service teacher education plays thus an important role.}, language = {de} }