Children and marmots: a pilot study in mountain primary schools

• Published in: Ethology, ecology & evolution Vol. 21; no. 3-4; pp. 415 - 427
• Main Authors: Lenti Boero, D., Clerici, T., Perrucci, V.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Taylor & Francis Group 01-07-2009
• Subjects: conservation; environmental education; human-animal relationship; marmot genus
• ISSN: 0394-9370; 1828-7131
• DOI: 10.1080/08927014.2009.9522496

In future years climate change will affect many areas of the planet, in particular delicate environments such as high elevation habitats at any latitude where most marmot species dwell. Thus all conservation efforts should be multiplied in the future and research aimed in understanding motivations of the public regard for species and/or habitat protection should be enhanced. In fact public opinion is an important part of the multiple layers involved in conservation issues that include many aspects: administrative and political, scientific, mass-media and educational (especially toward young generations).
In the present pilot study we present an investigation aiming at understanding both cognitive and affective relationships between children and alpine marmots and their habitat. Two primary schools located in a mountain area were chosen, 4 teachers and 28 children participated. According to the research-action paradigm we tested different integrated approaches. Results relating to children's informal knowledge investigated by means of semiotic field and drawing, expert encounter, and enhanced essay suggested they were context dependent, and elicited different responses in children. Informal knowledge about the fauna was much influenced by media: it is noticeable that many mammals from the African fauna but not from the local fauna were mentioned by children in their semiotic fields, nevertheless drawings and habitat descriptions showed a detailed knowledge of the marmot, suggesting an active naturalistic intelligence based on direct experience. Results are discussed also in term of the possibility of extending similar research-action techniques across different countries and cultures in order to understand the effect of the cultural environment as regards the marmot genus.