Understanding carbon cycle is critical to our view of environmental science literacy. Environmental science literate citizens need to understand relationships between seemingly disparate events such as how sea ice available to polar bears in the Arctic is connected to processes inside leaf cells in the Amazon rain forest and to American consumers’ choices about what car to buy. Traditional science curriculum obscures rather than reveals these connections. Students do not learn to see the key processes that tie systems together—in this case the production and consumption of carbon dioxide and its effect on global climate. We argue that a deep understanding of carbon cycle in coupled human and natural system helps students make necessary connections among various contents and disciplines.

Based on the project's framework, we developed six progress variables that are involved in carbon cycle: Structure of Systems , Tracing Matter, Tracing Energy, Change Over Time, Inquiry, and Citizenship. Each variable has three parts: upper anchor, lower anchor, and transition levels. (The general framework for developing variables can be downloaded below.) The upper anchor for each variable is arranged into three categories:

1. Generation of organic carbon & Harnessing energy into ecosystem
2. Accumulation of organic carbon & Passing on energy in ecosystem
3. Oxidation of organic carbon & Energy (Heat) dissipating out of ecosystem

 

Currently, The general framework for developing variables and three variables are available: Tracing Energy, Tracing Matter, and Structure of Systems (Structure of Systems variable is involved in Tracing Energy and Tracing Matter variables).