Learning about climate change with comics and text: a comparative study

Abstract

Climate change education has a high priority in the current global situation. Traditional learning material like text does not meet the needs of young learners, because of the complexity of the problem. We designed learning material in the comics form merging visual storytelling with scientific geographical communication devices such as maps, charts and diagrams. In an experimental research design, we found that this comic is more effective for learning about climate change than text with the same content, particularly regarding understanding and retaining the material’s content and development of environmental concerns. We strongly recommend using more comics for the support of cognitive performance of young learners for learning about climate change where human–environmental interaction is a focal point.