Towards an educational program for promoting children’s awareness of urban bird diversity

Abstract

This paper reports on the educational program “Something’s flying around us” that took place in the Zoological Museum of the University of Patras, based on constructivism, under the citizen science project “Ornithopolis”. The aim of the program was to support primary school pupils in identification of bird species and to enhance their awareness about urban bird diversity using exhibits and dioramas of the museum. Overall, 112 pupils were involved in the program. Pre- and post-program children’s knowledge and ideas about eleven selected bird species that are common in the Mediterranean urban areas were tested. After the implementation of the educational program bird identification skills of the pupils increased significantly. Besides, most participants seemed to be enthusiastic about birds and acknowledged their value for the ecosystem, while they also stated that they enjoyed the program. Our study indicates that educational programs in zoological museums can efficiently increase biological and ecological knowledge of pupils and have a positive impact on the attitude towards biodiversity.